Gazebo weights are useful and inexpensive safety accessories for a portable, tent-style, foldable gazebo. This type of gazebo has many advantages in terms of both cost and portability, but, unlike gazebos that have been permanently installed with concrete footings, these gazebos are very vulnerable to wind gusts. Gazebo weights offer a partial solution to this problem by adding weight to the gazebo and making it less likely to be carried away by the wind. They are manufactured and sold commercially in a variety of styles but can also be improvised by a homeowner.
Foldable gazebos are manufactured out of durable but very lightweight materials. This makes them easy to transport but also makes them easy for passing breezes to carry off. Often, these gazebos are held in place with spikes and ropes. This solution is not always practical, however, especially when a gazebo needs to be set up on a concrete or asphalt surface, where mounting the gazebo is impractical.
In circumstances where a gazebo cannot be anchored firmly to a surface, gazebo weights can be employed instead. These weights typically fit around or attach to the legs of the gazebo. Ropes, spikes and weights can be used together to maximize the stability of a portable gazebo, although an extremely strong wind will demolish even a well-anchored and weighted gazebo.
Some gazebo weights are pre-filled, and require no further setup once they have been attached. Other weights are simply empty plastic shells and must be filled with water or sand. Such weights require a bit more work to set up but have the advantage of being both cheaper and lighter to transport when empty. Another type of weight consists of pouches that can be filled with sand, gravel or other heavy substance and then attached to the legs of the portable gazebo, often with simple Velcro fasteners.
A homeowner on a budget or a creative homeowner with a bit of time on his hands can easily improvise a set of gazebo weights. Any object that provides compact weight in a form that can be attached to the leg of a gazebo can serve as a weight. Typically, weights used for such purposes are generally around 30 pounds (14 kilograms). Sandbags, while not elegant, can easily serve the same function as commercial weights, and bricks or concrete blocks make excellent weights if hardware or cordage is available to secure them to the gazebo.