Level the Shade Structure Pole

The ease of leveling a pole is determined by how careful you were in installing the anchor bolt cluster and pouring the footing. It may seem obvious to say, but the more level the anchor bolt cluster is prior to pole installation, the more level and plum it will be after the pole is installed. It is doubtful that it will ever be perfectly level when you first install the pole though. So, to level the pole, you will need a large level. The longer the level, the better read you will get on the pole.

1. Place the level on all sides of the pole to determine which direction the pole is leaning.
2. Manipulate the lower bolts and upper bolts to shift the pole in your desired direction.
3. Go slow and make subtle twists of the bolts. The degrees of tilt are effected a lot more than it may seem by subtle bolt adjustments.
4. Once you have leveled the pole, ensure that all of the nuts and washers are hand tightened up under the plate first. Then, working on opposite nuts on the top, slowly tighten down the top nuts and washer with a wrench or socket, until the entire anchor bolt system is secure.

Special Note: Make sure that you do not fully tighten down any particular nut first. This can drastically effect the leveling you have done. Make incremental twists on each, working around the pole, until all of the nuts are tight. Also, do not stress little variation in level. If the pole is pleasing to the eye and the bubble on the level is between the lines, you will probably be ok.