Both of our pergola models share the same DNA: a powder-coated aluminum frame on a 13.5 × 13.5 cm post profile with 2 mm walls, a waterproof louvered roof with hidden drainage through the posts, wind resistance up to 110 km/h, maintenance amounting to an occasional rinse, and compatibility with the full accessory range — screens, shutters, heating, lighting. Choose either and the engineering is settled. From there they diverge deliberately — in how the roof is driven, how big they go, what comes built in, and what they cost. This is the full comparison, model by model, ending with the honest decision logic we use ourselves when advising.
Pergola Piano — the manual one
The Piano is the purist's pergola: a louvered roof operated with a removable crank handle. A few easy turns sweep the flat louvers through their full 115° range, from wide open to sealed and waterproof. There is no motor, no wiring, no electronics — nothing that can fail, and nothing to install electrically.
- Sizes: 10' × 10', 10' × 13' and 10' × 16' — dining or lounging covered beautifully.
- Snow load: 65 – 120 kg/m² depending on size; wind 110 km/h like the Equa.
- LED: optional add-on kit, matched per size — light when you decide you want it.
- Installation: the fastest in the range — two people, typically 3 to 5 hours, usable immediately since there is nothing to wire.
- Louvers: flat profile, 1.5 mm; wall-mounted with louvers parallel to the wall.
Who it's for: straightforward terrace sizes, gardens without convenient power, buyers who prize mechanical simplicity, and anyone for whom the saved difference funds a side screen — which adds more daily comfort than any drive upgrade. Full detail in our manual-vs-electric guide.
Pergola Equa — the flagship
The Equa is the design statement of the range. Its louvers are curved rather than flat, in a thicker 1.7 mm profile — the roof reads as sculpted, with a shadow play the flat louvers don't have, closing at 110°. The louvers glide to any angle at a press of the radio remote, driven by a whisper-quiet motor, with integrated warm-white LED lighting included on the same remote — and it goes further on flexibility in two ways that matter on real projects:
- Nine sizes, including the in-between 11' widths (11' × 13' / 11' × 16' / 11' × 19') — quietly the most useful dimensions in the range for terraces where 10' is tight and 13' overwhelms.
- Two-side wall mounting — the Equa can attach to the facade from two sides, a real solution on L-shaped facades, corners and renovations where the obvious mounting side isn't available.
Snow: 160 – 320 kg/m² per size, wind 110 km/h. Screens: the Equa uses its own matched screen series, sized to its frame including the 11' lengths. Who it's for: design-driven projects, tricky dimensions and facades, and anyone who wants the premium version of everything.
The numbers, side by side
Every product page carries the full specification table — roof drive, sizes, LED, snow and wind ratings, frame and louver dimensions, mounting directions — with your current model highlighted, so the line-by-line comparison is always one scroll away. The structural constants worth repeating: same frame profile, same waterproofing and drainage, same 110 km/h, same accessory compatibility, same 5-year structure / 2-year mechanism warranty across both.
Deciding in practice
- No convenient power, simplest possible ownership, best price → Piano, and spend the difference on a screen.
- One-button electric comfort, built-in LED, the in-between sizes, a complicated facade, or the sculpted roof → Equa.
- Size before model: if your terrace needs 11' width, two-side mounting or the large 13' × 19' format, the Equa chooses itself. Read our sizing guide first and the model question often answers itself.
Two fits, no wrong answer
The range is deliberately built so the "worst case" is a pergola that protects you identically and merely operates differently. Compare them line by line on any product page, let the 1-minute quiz turn your seating, space and habits into a specific recommendation with size and color included — or request a free quote and talk it through with a person who configures these every day.