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Last time I was in Tampa Bay Area I saw thousands of homes that are built of WOOD and are still standing- and they were definitely older than 21yrs!
That's a home jarome. Cheap wood on a fence vince is a whole nother ball game james. Most times 10 years is it and they start to look bad brad. Seems you need to wake up bra.
I have read the reviews on those panels, and most people say the nails/staples start rusting, which eventually causes them to fall apart.
The property next door to me is being subdivided, so I need to put up 370' of fence. I had originally planned a privacy fence, but now I'm thinking I'll just put up a farm style fence, and then plant some evergreen shrubs in front of it. Privacy fences tend to get blown down by hurricanes here.
Nails to start to pop out and sun and water damage do their thing. Then you are always banging in new nails and replace some wood here and there. So after 10 years i just get a new fence.
Nails to start to pop out and sun and water damage do their thing. Then you are always banging in new nails and replace some wood here and there. So after 10 years i just get a new fence.
Always banging nails ? Stop the banging and start screwing using treated wood screws
Those pre built panels suck, because they are fastened on the outside of the posts. Nailing 2 x 4 rail boards flat on the outside of the posts, then fastening the dog ear boards to the rails will also produce a very flimsy fence. Don't waste your money building it that way.
Starting with posts, use 10' long posts for a 6 foot tall fence, set them so 1/3 the length is below ground level and use a couple bags of concrete mix to set them straight and level, and in perfect alignment by setting the corners first and running string at top and bottom from corner to corner to use as guide for setting the inside posts. Look over the posts really good to make sure they are straight, a bowed post should be rejected. I like to space the posts a little under 7 foot apart, because pressure treated 8 foot long 2x4's are the least expensive for your rails, and you will need the leftover pieces to cut blocks which you screw into the inside of the posts, 3 blocks on the inside of each post, pre drill holes for screws on those blocks (blocks at least 6 inch in length) so they don't split. Screw the rails into the top of blocks. 3 screws for fastening blocks to post (one on top in middle, 2 on bottom), and 2 screws for ends of rail to fasten into top of each block.
Keep in mind on the lower blocks, much of the length of them will be below ground level so don't fill in holes until you screw in the bottom blocks. Lay your rails flat on the blocks, and of course if you use 6x6 posts, you must use 6x6 rails. The top rail doesn't need a block, it will screw down on the top of the posts, don't cut the top of post until you install bottom rails, measure carefully. Use 4 rails, NOT 3, three rails is not enough spacing to prevent dog ear boards from deforming or getting broken easy, and it makes the fence stronger.
The position of the lower and upper rails on the inside of post is very important. You want the dog ear boards to attach within an inch of the top, and an inch of the bottom, because they will curl at the ends if you don't. Use number 2 square head 3 inch deck screws for the blocks, and 1 1/2 inch screws for dog ear boards. Don't use phillips head screws, they suck. Don't use regular screws, they will rust or leave black streaks on the dog ear board if you use cedar.
Just to correct a typo on my above post, when you use 6x6 post, you must use 2x6 rails, not 6x6 rails, lol, that would make a very heavy duty fence.
The good thing about building it with inside rails, the fence can withstand a much greater lateral force, you can grab the top of fence halfway between fence posts, and hardly budge it, whereas with panels or 2x4's slapped on the outside of post, you can wiggle it back and forth with great ease. Another problem with the pre built panels, if the land has any slope, the panels won't conform to the lay of the land, and you end up with a jagged fence, which looks dumb. If you build it by attaching each dog ear boards individually, you can get a smooth look by laying down a dog ear board flat on the ground under the boards your about to install, to use as a guide. use a thicker board if you want it higher off the ground, I prefer it to be a few inches off the ground for weed eating, but if you have dogs you might want it closer to the ground. I use a deck screw as a spacer when I install the next board, and a level to make sure each new board goes up close to level. It's easy to get way off on that, because the edges of the dog ear boards are not perfectly straight.
I just went to the Lowe's and Home Depot web sites to check the prices of fence sections. That would be to just get an estimate on just what new panels would cost you. But the tallest either of them sells, online anyways, is 6 ft.
Do you plan on living there for a few more years or many more years? If I were planning on staying somewhere long term I would look into replacing the fence.
I would at least get a couple estimates to see what total replacement would cost. My sister is currently planning on putting in a fence. Her estimates on the project have run between 1800.00 to 7000.00. She's gotten four bids so far. I think the other estimates were 3800.00 and 5000.00. She has said she has learned different things from each guy so far. The man with the 7000 dollar bid has recently moved to the area from Hawaii - she thinks that he not be familiar with the prices here.
I just went to the Lowe's and Home Depot web sites to check the prices of fence sections. That would be to just get an estimate on just what new panels would cost you. But the tallest either of them sells, online anyways, is 6 ft.
6 Ft is the law for my area. No matter what ya use, wood warps, plastic will bleach out over time in the sun and metal will rust. The plastic fences look bad after a while with mold and holes in them from mowers throwing objects.
Yes I plan to be here long term we retired here now age 73. I lived in Houston in same home for 27 years and repaired the fence repeatedly. It lasted 42 years and looked good and was strong. Here 8 feet is what neighbors and mine are. I like the privacy of that height. Two sides are backed up to neighbors fence so high wind protection on one side.
I like doing it over time too for spending.purposes. But spending a third or half of new costs on repairs seems like a warning that I may not be repairing it wisely. So advice is helpful.
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