Hi,

due to having most of my garden fence wrecked with the high winds yesterday, I am looking to build a new fence. What is the preferred/up to date method/materials to use these days, is it just concrete in your treated posts etc.. or do people recommend concrete posts and gravel boards etc.. or any other recommendations ?


Cheers, John

I would bite the bullet and put concrete posts with gravel boards in. Expensive now but you know that the posts will not rot and you will be digging out in a few years time. I would stagger the post run to avoid having to dig out the old post concrete so you are digging fresh holes for the new posts.

DWD

Hi DWD,

got plenty of slack for moving the holes back 18-24 inches so clashing with the original poles shouldn't be a problem. My garden runs at quite a slope, I'm guessing at about 8-10 degrees so I need to try and trawl the web to see some examples of how it would look running/staggered down a slope.


Cheers, John

Use arriss rails and feather edge boards, much stronger and better looking.
You can get 3m rails, so a lot less posts and site them to suit.

3m rails can sag in the middle, You can get dwarf posts to support the middle, but I'd just stick with 2.4m rails. This will also let you follow the lay of the land more easily as you can change angle of the rail at each post.

You can get concrete arris rail posts, but i've never used them.

If you are prone to high winds, it might be worth considering an open picket type fence which would allow the wind through. Depends on how much privacy is needed.

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I am not a pro.

Thanks Cotswold and JG, I will investigate those options as I have never heard of Ariss before. Bloomin wind is wild again tonight, just been out and emptying my garden before all the furniture ends up flying out into the street.


Cheers, John

This is the style of fencing that Cotswold & JG mention



Looks like this from the rear - the arris rails are the horizontal rails between the posts.

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Cheers,
Darren

Property Refurbishment & Maintenance Dorset

Thanks Darren.

On the first picture, what is the base as it doesn't look as if the boards are going all the way to the ground, they seem to be slotting into something ?

Not sure this style of fence would be any good for here due to the potential wind issues. My fence fell apart at the posts, approx 6 or 7 posts all snapped due to the pressure applied by the wind, although it had been up for about 15 years which isn't too bad.


Cheers, John

They're called Gravel Boards.

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Verwood Handyman
I Know it says I'm On-line, but I might have just left myself logged in, whilst I'm out....

If the wind in your location is a major issue then you need to look at "hit and miss" fencing which allows the wind to blow through but gives you some privacy as well. Something like this.

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Cheers,
Darren

Property Refurbishment & Maintenance Dorset

Or use thicker uprights. Yours were probably 3"x3" and partially rotten after 15 years. If you want or need stronger use 4"x4" posts. These are nearly twice the strength of 3"x3". If you need real strength use railway sleepers as posts.

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Mike

Hi, If your garden is on a slope I'd use pressure treated 4X4 posts, will look nicer than the concrete posts in my opinion.
Featherboard looks nice but the wind can't get through it so i wouldn't reccomend that either.
You could go for standard screen, double sided screen (100m slats vertical), ranch stlye/double ranch style (3600X150mm horizontal), scalloped screen or chevron.......there is loads you can try like using a gravel board or capping.
As long as you use at least 75mm rails and no more than 2m centres for your posts. Fencing rails are usually 3600 (3.6m) long so with your posts in at 1800 (1.8m) centres it will be plenty strong as long as you dig your holes 2ft deep for a 6ft fence and use at least a bag an a half of postcrete (if you get high winds I'd use 2)
Good luck!

My arris rail fences are done with 5x4 posts, If I were specing them, I'd use 6x4
Standard fence panael on 3x3 posts is no way near as strong.

You either need something that will stand up to the wind, or something that will let it through.

With the open fence types you need to consider what's on the other side of it, if there are pants which will forever be growing through the fence, it could get very frustrating.

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I am not a pro.