Anchored.
A gazebo holds in wind because it is weighted down, not because it is pegged in. Get the weight per leg right and the frame stays where you put it.
The maths is simple and the calculator below does it for you. Pitch a frame light and the wind will find it; pitch it weighted to the gust and it stays square. The structure is temporary. The way it holds is not.
The rule
1.61 kg
per leg, for every mph of gust.
Take the strongest gust you expect — not the average wind — and put 1.61 kg of ballast on each leg for every mph of it. A four-leg gazebo facing a 40 mph gust needs roughly 64 kg holding down each leg. Always size to the gust; the average tells you nothing about the moment the wind tries to lift the canopy.
In metric the rule is cleaner: 1 kg per leg for every 1 km/h of gust. We lead in mph because that is how UK forecasts and frame ratings are quoted (1 km/h ≈ 0.621 mph, so 1 mph ≈ 1.61 kg).
Scope
The rule and the calculator on this page are for pop-up gazebos and frame tents — the kind that open, lock and take ballast on each leg. Large or traditional marquees are a different structure: they carry wind load through a frame and ground anchors that have to be engineered for the specific span, site and exposure. Don't apply the per-leg rule to a big marquee. If that is what you are pitching, talk to us and we will work out the anchorage with you.
The three ways to add weight
There are three practical ways to put weight on a leg. The right one comes down to your budget, whether you have water on site, and how much handling you want to do. Prices are an indicative guide, not a quote.
Lowest cost, easy transport.
Travels empty, so it is light to carry to site — then you fill it from a tap or bowser. Cheapest per kilo by a distance, as long as you have water and time on the day.
Tidy, no filling, fast to drop in.
Stacks onto the foot with no setup and no mess — the clean choice. Use at least two per leg. The priciest per kilo, and the easiest to live with.
Full weight, ready to use.
Comes out of the van at full weight with nothing to fill — useful where there is no water. Mid-priced, and heavy to move, so plan the handling.
Work out your weight
Enter the strongest gust you expect, how many legs your gazebo has, and the ballast you want to use. The weight per leg is the number that matters; the indicative cost is a rough guide, not a quote.
Weight needed per leg
65 kg
On each of 4 legs, for a 40 mph gust (64 km/h). Total across the gazebo: 260 kg.
2 per leg · 8 in total (45 kg each)
| Ballast | Per leg | Total | Indicative cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water bag | 2 | 8 | £168 |
| Cast iron plate | 5 | 20 | £1,380 |
| Concrete block | 2 | 8 | £496 |
Weights are the rule applied to your gust. Costs are an indicative guide only — tell us your setup and we will quote properly.
About 1.61 kg per leg for every mph of the strongest gust you expect — or 1 kg per km/h if you work in metric. A four-leg gazebo in a 40 mph gust needs roughly 64 kg on each leg. Size to the gust, not the average wind, because the gust is the moment the canopy tries to lift.
The gust, every time. The average tells you how the day feels; the gust is the load the frame actually has to hold. Take the highest gust in the forecast for your site and weight to that.
Pegs and guy lines help on soft ground, but ballast is what holds a gazebo in wind. On hard standing — car parks, courtyards, paved squares — you cannot peg at all, so weight on each leg is the only option. Treat ballast as the primary anchorage and pegs as a supplement.
No. The per-leg rule is for pop-up gazebos and frame tents. A large or traditional marquee carries wind load differently and needs anchorage engineered for its span, site and exposure. Tell us what you are pitching and we will work it out with you.
Water bags if cost matters most and you have water on site. Cast iron if you want a clean, fast pitch with nothing to fill — use at least two per leg. Concrete blocks for full weight straight out of the van where there is no water. The calculator shows the count and indicative cost for each.
Tell us about your application, space, and requirements. We will review the details and come back with the right setup, documentation notes, and quote support.
