Backyard & Outdoor
Backyard, Patio & Pergola Services in Burbank
That pergola kit has been in boxes on the side of the house since April. Gazebos, pergolas, patio covers, shade sails, above-ground pools and outdoor living setups assembled, leveled and properly anchored.
- Kit assembly done to the manufacturer's spec, including the anchoring nobody does
- Level on Burbank's sloped lots — shimmed and set, not eyeballed
- Above-ground pool site prep, assembly, filling and pump setup
- Honest guidance on what needs a City of Burbank permit before you buy
The boxes on the side of the house
Every spring, thousands of pergola, gazebo and patio kits get bought across the Valley, and a genuinely large share of them sit unopened until fall. There's no mystery why. The instructions are translated, the parts are numbered inconsistently, most kits need two or three people, and the whole thing weighs more than the listing suggested.
This is a great job to hand off. A 12×16 aluminum pergola that takes a homeowner three frustrating weekends takes me most of a day, and it comes out square, level and anchored to spec — which is the part that determines whether it's still standing after a Santa Ana wind event.
Pergolas & patio covers
Aluminum, steel, cedar and vinyl kits from Costco, Home Depot, Lowe's, Wayfair, Backyard Discovery, Sunjoy, Yardistry, Purple Leaf, Sojag and the rest. Freestanding or wall-attached. Louvered/adjustable-roof pergolas including motorized louvers. Retractable canopy systems.
What separates a good install from a bad one:
- Anchoring. Concrete-anchored bases with the correct wedge or epoxy anchors, or footings where the surface requires it. Almost every failed pergola I've seen came down because it was set on pavers with nothing holding it.
- Square and level. Burbank lots slope. A structure assembled on a slope without shimming ends up racked, and racked structures bind, leak and eventually loosen. Diagonals get measured, not guessed.
- Fastener discipline. Kits ship with the fasteners they ship with; several manufacturers under-spec them. Where a connection matters, it gets upgraded hardware.
- Water. Wall-attached covers need proper flashing where they meet the house. Skipping that is how a patio cover turns into a stucco repair two winters later.
Gazebos & shade structures
Hardtop gazebos (galvanized steel and polycarbonate), soft-top gazebos with replaceable canopies, cabana and daybed structures, and shade sails. Shade sails in particular are worth doing properly — the geometry matters. Sails need to be tensioned across a hyperbolic plane with corners at different heights, or they pool water, flap in the wind and tear within a season. Posts need real footings, not a bag of concrete poured into a hole around a wobbly post.
Above-ground pools & spas
- Site assessment and leveling — the number one cause of pool failure is a base that's out of level by more than an inch
- Ground prep: sod removal, sand or foam base, ground cloth
- Frame and liner assembly for Intex, Bestway, Coleman, Summer Waves and steel-wall pools
- Filling, pump and filter setup, initial chemistry balance
- Ladder, cover and vacuum setup
- Winterizing and spring reopening
- Inflatable and portable spa placement, power planning and setup
California's Swimming Pool Safety Act requires enclosed pools to have specific safety features, and local codes in Burbank, Glendale and LA County add their own requirements around fencing, barriers and gate hardware. Above-ground pools over a certain height, and any pool with a permanent ladder, generally fall under these rules. A permanent in-ground pool, permanent electrical for a spa, or a pool requiring a bonded electrical connection all need permits and licensed trades — I'll tell you that before you buy, not after.
Outdoor living odds and ends
- Outdoor furniture, sectionals, dining sets, hammocks and swing assembly
- Gas and charcoal grill assembly with a proper leak test on the gas connection
- Fire pits and outdoor heaters, sited to safe clearances from structures
- Playsets, swing sets, trampolines and basketball hoops (with the anchoring the manuals require)
- Sheds and storage buildings from kits
- Raised garden beds, planters and trellises
- Café/string lighting on posts and catenary wire, on weatherproof exterior circuits
- Gate repair, fence picket replacement, deck board replacement and railing tightening
- Drip irrigation repair, timer replacement and hose bib swaps
Where a licensed contractor is required
I want to be clear about this line, because it's where homeowners get burned. Kit assembly of a pre-engineered structure is generally handyman work. Custom-built patio covers, anything attached to the house structurally, structures over the size or height thresholds in the code, new electrical circuits to the yard, gas lines to an outdoor kitchen, permanent pool electrical bonding, concrete slabs and retaining walls all require permits and licensed contractors — and in Burbank, a permitted structure means plans through the Community Development Department.
My work stays inside California's §7048 exemption: under $1,000 in labor and materials, no permit, no employees. For a large pergola kit, that typically means you buy the kit and I'm hired for assembly labor. When your project genuinely needs a licensed contractor, you'll get that answer on the phone plus a couple of names, for free.
Backyard project pricing
Kit assembly pricing. Custom-built structures require a licensed contractor and I'll refer you.
| Service | Typical price | What's included |
|---|---|---|
| Pergola kit assembly (10×10 to 12×16) | $450 – $1,100 | Assembled, squared, leveled, anchored |
| Gazebo kit assembly (hardtop or soft-top) | $400 – $950 | Includes canopy or roof panel fitting |
| Patio cover / awning kit install | $380 – $900 | Wall-mounted or freestanding kits |
| Shade sail installation | $260 – $620 | Posts, hardware, correct tension geometry |
| Above-ground pool setup (12–18 ft) | $450 – $1,100 | Site leveling, assembly, pump and filter |
| Outdoor furniture & grill assembly | $95 – $260 per item | Including gas grill leak-check |
| Fire pit, planter & kit assembly | $120 – $340 | Level, sited to safe clearances |
| String light / outdoor lighting run | $180 – $520 | Posts, catenary wire, weatherproof connections |
How a job actually goes
- 1
Tell me what's wrong
Call, text a photo, or fill in the form. Photos of the model plate or the problem area cut the guesswork enormously.
- 2
Get a real price range
You get a range before I drive out, not after. If it's a job that needs a licensed contractor, I'll tell you that on the phone instead of wasting your time.
- 3
I show up in the window
You get a text when I'm on the way. Shoe covers, drop cloths, and the work area left cleaner than I found it.
- 4
Pay when it works
Flat price agreed up front. Card, Zelle, cash or check. Parts I install carry the manufacturer warranty and my labor is guaranteed for 90 days.
Questions people actually ask
How much does it cost to have a pergola kit assembled?
Assembly labor for a standard 10×10 to 12×16 kit runs $450–$1,100 depending on material, roof type and whether it's freestanding or wall-attached. Louvered and motorized pergolas sit at the top of the range. That's labor only — you buy the kit, which keeps the total under the licensing threshold and keeps your cost down.
Do I need a permit for a pergola in Burbank?
It depends on size, height and whether it's attached to the house. Detached, unroofed structures under certain size thresholds are commonly exempt; attached covers and larger or roofed structures usually are not. Burbank's Community Development Department is the authority and a five-minute phone call to them settles it. I'll tell you before you buy whether your kit is likely to need one, because a permitted structure needs a licensed contractor.
Can you level the ground for an above-ground pool?
Yes — sod removal, grading and a sand or foam base. This is the step that determines whether the pool survives. A pool more than about an inch out of level puts uneven load on the wall and liner, and failures are dramatic. On a sloped Burbank lot this is real work, and it's worth doing right.
I bought the kit from Costco. Will you install it?
Yes — Costco, Home Depot, Lowe's, Wayfair, Amazon, direct from Yardistry, Sunjoy, Purple Leaf, Backyard Discovery and others. Send me the model or a link and you'll get a firm assembly price before delivery day.
How long does a pergola or gazebo assembly take?
Most soft-top gazebos and small pergolas take 4–6 hours. A 12×16 aluminum pergola with a louvered roof is typically a full day. Hardtop gazebos with polycarbonate panels run 6–9 hours. If concrete anchoring is involved, the cure time means a short return visit the next day for final tensioning.
Will it survive a Santa Ana wind?
If it's anchored, generally yes. If it's sitting loose on a patio, no — and that's how most of them fail here. Proper anchoring into concrete or footings is included in every install I do, and where a kit's supplied hardware is under-spec for local wind I'll upgrade it and tell you why.
Can you run power or lighting to the backyard?
Existing outdoor circuits, yes — string lights, fixtures, weatherproof outlet covers, replacing an existing exterior fixture. A brand-new circuit from the panel out to the yard requires a permit and a licensed electrician, and that's a referral rather than a job I take.
Do you do repairs on existing structures?
Yes: canopy and shade-cloth replacement, loose hardware, racked frames re-squared and re-anchored, replacing rotted cedar members, re-tensioning shade sails, and fixing patio covers that have started to leak at the house connection.
What neighbors say
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“Our Samsung fridge stopped cooling on a Friday. Armen came out the same afternoon, found a failed evaporator fan, and had it running before dinner. He showed me the old part and explained exactly what happened. No upsell, no drama.”
“Three-story townhouse with Wi-Fi that died on the top floor. He ran a hardwired access point instead of selling me another extender, and now I get full speed in every room. He labeled every cable in the closet too.”
“Four cameras around the house plus a doorbell, all on my phone. He walked the property with me first and moved two camera positions based on where our packages actually get dropped. Clean cable runs, nothing hanging.”
Backyard, Patio & Pergola Services across Burbank and 25 miles
Based in Burbank, on the road every day across the east Valley, the Verdugos and the west San Gabriel Valley.