Assemble the Trellis Frame - Part 1

Drilling and mounting the trellis anchors is just half of the work to be done to complete this DIY wall trellis project. It's actually the easier half because you have a power drill to do the bulk of the work for you.

In assembling the wire trellis, you'll be limited with manual hand tools like pliers, vise grips and other trellising materials. Expect plenty of brute force for bending, forming and setting the metal wires. So it is important to plan ahead with the sequence of tasks to do so there is minimal wasted effort. You save time on rework. As well, you save your knees from undue stress of climbing up and down the ladder to assemble this big trellis.


Assemble the Outline of the Trellis Frame

Working on the outline of the trellis frame is the easiest task. By completing this first, you will get a visual grasp of the project's physical scope or boundary.

  1. Choose any one of the four corners of the rectangular frame outline (top-right, top-left, bottom-left, bottom right) as starting point.

  2. With a pair of pliers, wind or coil one inch of the metal wire tightly around the trellis anchor. In the photo below, the bottom-right trellis anchor became the starting point. The vertical metal wire is the start of the trellis frame outline.


  3. Move the metal wire to the next trellis anchor in a counter-clockwise manner. If the wire is vertical at the anchor, just let it pass the anchor (more on this later).




    If the wire is at a corner (in this case, uppermost-right), loop it once, tightly, around the trellis anchor as shown below.


    Here's the trellis anchor at the opposite corner (bottom-left).


    If the wire is horizontal, use a four-inch long thin tie wire to lash the metal wire to the L-hook trellis anchor. A pair of long-nosed pliers will help in securing the thin tie wire as shown below.


    Remember, the metal wire is thick gauge metal wire. Repeatedly looping the wire against the trellis anchors is not only cumbersome, but also deforms the metal wire. And you want the wire straight, as much as possible.




    Here's the finished metal wire still straight and securely fastened to the trellis anchor by the tie wire.


  4. Continue moving the metal wire to the rest of the trellis anchors along the frame outline.

  5. Upon reaching the starting trellis anchor, wind one inch of the metal wire on the trellis anchor. Shown below is the starting trellis anchor. The one inch off the end of the metal wire was wound around the trellis anchor, as shown by the horizontal wire coming from the left.



The outline of the trellis frame is bounded by the outer trellis anchors. These are the trellis anchors that the outline passes through.





Horizontal and Vertical Members of the Trellis Frame

Shown below is a view of the completed trellis frame showing the members of the trellis frame.


The horizontal members are the trellis wires that run from left to right. Two types of horizontal members for this trellis frame are:

  • Horizontal members that pass through inner trellis anchors. There are 2 pieces in this trellis frame.
  • Horizontal members that do not pass through the inner trellis anchors. There are 3 pieces in this trellis frame.

The vertical members are the trellis wires that run from top to bottom. The two types of vertical members for this trellis frame are:

  • Vertical members that pass through inner trellis anchors. There are 3 pieces in this trellis frame.
  • Vertical members that do not pass through the inner trellis anchors. There are 4 pieces in this trellis frame.

In part 2 of the frame assembly, the assembly of the horizontal and vertical members, as well as the trellis built-in starter, will be discussed.


Articles in this Series:
Build a Bleeding Heart Wall Trellis - Part 1
Build a Bleeding Heart Wall Trellis - Part 2
Build a Bleeding Heart Wall Trellis - Part 3
Build a Bleeding Heart Wall Trellis - Part 4
Methods to Join Garden Trellis Wires
Strong Jointed Garden Wire Trellis
Marking Drill Points for Trellis Anchors
Drill Trellis Anchors in Concrete Wall
Assemble the Trellis Frame - Part 1 (this article)
Assemble the Trellis Frame - Part 2




Go ahead, post your comment below!

corrine said...

Hi! Where did you buy the trellis anchors and what kind of wire did you use for the trellis? Your work is so clean and organized!

Blackdove said...

Thanx Corrine. The trellis anchors may be bought in hardware stores like Ace. They're called square hooks or "L" hooks and are 2 inches long. The wire is ordinary steel wire gauge 14. There are thinner wires that are easy to work with if gauge 14 is too thick for you. For the tools and other materials I used in this project, click here. Thanx for dropping by.