To celebrate our 20th season on national television, we’re highlighting some of the great improvements people are making in their communities all over the country. We traveled to Tulsa, Oklahoma to help the Home Builders Association of Greater Tulsa with a service project at a local nonprofit called Manna House.
Manna House is a transitional living home for young women who have aged out of the foster care system. The program provides a safe and supportive environment for the residents while focusing on mentoring, educating, and developing life and social skills.
Building the Cedar Pergola
Members of the local Remodelers Council, who also served as carpenters on this project, designed a beautiful cedar arbor as the shady focal point of the patio. To reclaim some valuable real estate, we moved the AC unit to a nearby slab. Then we cleaned and painted the concrete patio to give us a fresh blank slate.
Check out Cleaning and Staining a Concrete Patio or Porch for tips.
The volunteers had cut and stained the lumber for the pergola earlier in the week, so building the structure went quickly once we were all on site. The addition of corner braces not only look attractive, they also add rigidity to keep the pergola from tilting or twisting. Finally, we added some large carriage bolts to the major timber joints and trimmed out the column bases.
Watch How to Build a Pergola Shade Arbor for Your Yard for details on this project.
The Finishing Touches
The residents of Manna House already felt at home inside, but we wanted to bring that feeling of warmth and comfort outside as well.
Amenities like the gas grill, patio furniture from Overstock, planters from Southern Patio, and Moonrays string lights complete the outdoor retreat.
To create a neat and secure spot in the yard for the ladies to store their bikes, we added a commercial-style bike rack.
Other Tips from This Episode
Simple Solutions with Joe Truini:
Tip for Leveling Wood Patio Furniture
Here’s a tip to address two common problems with wood patio furniture: the tendency to rot from sitting on wet concrete, and to wobble from sitting on an uneven slab. Watch the video.
Best New Products with Jodi Marks:
Ridgid 5-Outlet Power Hub
Unlike typical power strips, this 5-outlet indoor/outdoor power hub from Ridgid is designed to accommodate large plugs, so none of the receptacles will be blocked. It is available at The Home Depot. Watch the video.
