For a Wall Mount or Eave Mount installation, Open Lattice Patio Covers require a structural ledger to attach to the home. This is our structural connection point. The manufacturer provides us with an engineered 2” x 6 ½” ledger with an interior wood backing inside for a solid connection point. We then use 3/8” x 6” lag bolts to attach through the stucco to the framing of the house (the studs or the horizontal header). This is a sealed environment utilizing a beveled cap, so there is no concern for moisture penetration at the attachment point.
When we install our ledger on the house, we run a bead of 30-year silicone sealant behind the ledger, between the ledger and the house wall. Each of the structural lag bolts are also sealed to create a leak proof sealed attached point.
Another method of attachment, a Roof Mount attachment affords us the ability to achieve additional height above the elevation of the roofline. We accomplish this by using BeamLyft structural brackets, which attach to the top of the roofing for composition shingles. If installed on a tile roof, we modify a small section of the impacted roof tiles to attach directly to the top of the roof sheathing. We are bolting down through the roofing sheathing to the rafter tails, or the wooden component of the eave that is continuous in the framing of the house. This raises the elevation higher than the surface of the roof allowing unobstructed drainage to the gutter and to avoid a build up where debris can form.
The next major component is our structural Rafter systems, which are designed in sets of doubles or singles. We have great flexibility based upon each customer’s preferences in regards to how we lay our rafters. Our many years of experience in custom design give us the ability to temper the finished product to our customer’s personal vision. Some of the options for different rafter combinations and styles include:
- Double 2×6 ½” rafters at 4’ on center
- Single 3” x 8” rafter at 4’ on center
- Single 2” x 6 ½” at 2’ on center
- Double 3” x 8” headers
- Double rafters on a single header
- Double rafters on a double header