Build a Unique Garden Gazebo

Follow this plan to build your own outdoor oasis with recycled materials.

April/May 2006
By Randy Meisel 
gazebo plan, garden gazebo, free gazebo plan, build gazebo, gazebo design
Image Gallery
This distinct gazebo design adds flare to your space while also giving you a shady spot to relax.
RANDY MEISEL
Article Tools
Print
Comments
RSS
Bookmark and Share

You can build an out-of-the-ordinary gazebo, and recycle at the same time, by using an old satellite dish for the roof. By keeping a used satellite dish out of a landfill, you’ll not only be helping the environment, but creating a unique addition to your own yard or garden that’s virtually maintenance free.

RELATED CONTENT

Simply prepare a satellite dish by removing the base, taking it apart, thoroughly cleaning it, and reassembling it with new stainless steel bolts and silicone to make it water tight.

Then level the area where the gazebo will be located and set 6-inch plastic pipe support columns in concrete. For the roof supports, use 1-inch plastic pipe running through the support columns, connected in the center with an ‘X’ fitting.

Next pour a concrete footing as a level foundation for the low wall. The gazebo walls were made of three rows of decorative concrete blocks mortared together. The same blocks were used for the floor, but were filled with concrete and embedded with small multicolored river stones. You can use more pipe fittings to rig a weather vane.

To install the dish roof, have a friend with a tractor and bucket lift the roof into place. Then put bolts through the dish and into the columns to secure the dish.

You can also install gazing balls, fixed with silicone, onto the tops of the columns for a bit of whimsy and color.

Bookmark and Share
RSS | Comments | E-mail | Print

14 Comments

  • Kalli Widger 6/26/2009 3:07:45 PM

    Looking for the satellite dish? Look up your local Freecycle and post it there. Great group of people that are really into recycling! - You receive free, give free. Look up freecycle at freecycle.org and search your area.

  • Kalli Widger 6/26/2009 3:06:55 PM

    Looking for the satellite dish? Look up your local Freecycle and post it there. Great group of people that are really into recycling! - You receive free, give free. Look up freecycle at freecycle.org and search your area.

  • Kate Hetzel Second Life Art 7/9/2008 8:10:44 AM

    I finished my gazebo a month ago. I set 4 cedar poles 2 1/2- 3 ft. deep, about 6 in. from the edge. no concrete, just packed with sand and rocks. I added 4 cross pieces and angle supports from cedar. I covered the hole in the top by siliconing 3 glass lamp shades on top of each other, and painted the underside like a sky. I also planted the edge of the dish with daisy's, hens & chicks and sedum, and drilled small holes for drainage. I'm hoping the plants survive the Michigan winter and will add more next summer if they do.

  • FRED Stark 2/3/2007 12:00:00 AM

    After you dig out the holes for the columns. Set the colums in
    place and then you could try ramming sand mixed with dirt or clay
    in around the columns in lifts of about three inches at a time. It
    can be pretty stout in some areas. Depends on where you live and
    what is available.Then for the floor you could level the bottom and
    lay the decorative block in a thin bed of sand and then pour sand
    over the block and using a straight board screed the sand into the
    block pattern. I wouldn't suggest wearing high heels on it though.
    Moist sand may pack in better. Just a thought. Might go to a
    sattelite installer and ask where some of the big dishes could be
    found.

  • AIDEN hughes 1/27/2007 12:00:00 AM

    Yeah your right!, let's skip building the gazebo and go straight
    to the BEER!

  • AIDEN hughes 1/24/2007 12:00:00 AM

    Just a minor problem for us living in the UK, our satellite dish
    are only 1mtr in Dia. I supose it will be OK as I dont have any
    friends to invit over any way

  • andydufresne 1/24/2007 12:00:00 AM

    OUR dishes are that size now. But there are MANY old ones
    around.Put up the gazebo and buy some beer and I'll bet you make a
    few more friends.

  • andydufresne 1/24/2007 12:00:00 AM

    OUR Sat dishes are smaller now too, but there are still plenty
    of the giant ones littering the countryside.If you build that
    gazebo and bring some beer, I'll be you gain a few new
    friends.

  • Sharon Barnes 7/11/2006 12:00:00 AM

    Using less concrete is environmentally correct -air pollution
    from concrete itself and stormwater runoff pollution. better ro use
    those decorative blocks filled with gravel (can put top 2" as
    decorative gravel rock).

  • andydufresne 5/2/2006 12:00:00 AM

    I got mine from www.freecycle.orgIT was POSTED on there but I
    see them all over and I bet if you post a WANTED there you'll find
    one that someone will let you have if you come and get
    it.

  • KIRBY kinkead 5/1/2006 12:00:00 AM

    Does anyone have any specific ideas of where to locate and
    aquire used satelite dishes in or around the Bay Area in
    California?

  • DEBORAH Claxton 4/30/2006 12:00:00 AM

    If you want to be really frugal, how about white washing old
    barn lumber for a floor and making the sides from old wood
    pallets.For decorations you could have hummingbird vines,
    honeysuckle vines, climbing roses, etc. up the poles and/or colored
    shears between the poles for privacy and bug netting.

  • RAMONA erdman 4/29/2006 12:00:00 AM

    why cant you use a post hole digger and set the 4 post in
    concrete and have a wood floor.

  • andydufresne 4/29/2006 12:00:00 AM

    Anyone have an idea for doing this without pouring all that
    concrete? Ilike the idea and I have a spot that needs this AND I
    have the dish. But that's a lot of concrete to put out in
    nature.

Add Your Comment

You can use this comment form to enter your personal experiences or additional information and resources that you'd like to share with Mother Earth News readers. Your helpful advice will be posted on this page.  E-mail addresses are never displayed on comments, but they are required to confirm your comments.

Line breaks and paragraphs are automatically converted — no need to use <p> or <br> tags.

New to Mother Earth News?
Sign up to share comments.
Asterisks(*) indicate required fields.
Name*
Your name appears next to your comment.

E-mail Address*
This will be your login ID.

City State Zip Code

Password*


Confirm Password*

Comments
(Offensive materials and/or spam will be removed, no HTML allowed)
Please Note: Your sign-up must be verified via e-mail before your comment is published.
FEATURED ARTICLES
MOST POPULAR


Subscribe Today - Pay Now & Save 66% Off the Cover Price

First Name: *
 Last Name: *
Address: *
 City: *
State/Province: *
 Zip/Postal Code:*
Country:
 Email:*
(* indicates a required item)
Canadian subs: 1 year, (includes postage & GST). Foreign subs: 1 year, . U.S. funds.
Canadian Subscribers - Click Here
Non US and Canadian Subscribers - Click Here

Lighten the Strain on the Earth and Your Budget

Mother Earth News is the guide to living — as one reader stated — “with little money and abundant happiness.” Every issue is an invaluable guide to leading a more sustainable life, covering ideas from fighting rising energy costs and protecting the environment to avoiding unnecessary spending on processed food. You’ll find tips for slashing heating bills; growing fresh, natural produce at home; and more. Mother Earth News helps you cut costs without sacrificing modern luxuries.

At Mother Earth News, we are dedicated to conserving our planet’s natural resources while helping you conserve your financial resources. That’s why we want you to save money and trees by subscribing through our Earth-Friendly automatic renewal savings plan. By paying with a credit card, you save an additional $4.95 and get 6 issues of Mother Earth News for only $10.00 (USA only).

You may also use the Bill Me option and pay $14.95 for 6 issues.