Things To Avoid When Building A Fence
People build fences everyday while they are done well by most standards, there are some things that could always be done better. Here are some things that can be done to make your next fence better. You start a fence by making holes spaced about every 8 feet apart for the 4×4x8′ treated posts. These holes should be dug 2 feet deep with a post hole digger. Most people stop right there with a cylinder shaped hole since digging these holes is the most strenuous part of fence building. To ensure the post is well anchored the fence installer should use the post hole digger at an angle around the whole diameter of this hole to make a ball shaped anchor at the bottom of the cylinder. Post holes are much better if dug this way.
Another mistake people make is not realizing the fact that wood never sticks to concrete. Drive by any concrete job and you will notice they use wood forms to frame the concrete held up by nails and wood stakes. The next day the concrete workers take the nails out and these wood forms just fall off of the concrete. Another problem is bugs and water in the soil can deteriorate the wood posts. To prevent these problems the fence builder should put black roof tar on the bottom two feet of the fence post that enters the ground. This will prevent the post from rotting and enables the concrete to stick to the posts. After the posts are leveled and set you should allow them to dry for one whole day before nailing on them. If you start nailing on them before the concrete is completely set you will knock the posts out of level.
Most often, people are only using two rails per fence slat. This is okay, but you really should consider more. To build a secure fence that will last for years, three rails should be used. The top rail should be placed on the top of the fence posts lying in a horizontal position. The fence slats should not be installed more than 8″ above this top rail. If so they will tend to twist and turn with age. The bottom rail shouldn’t be more than 8″ above the bottom of the fence slats for the same reason. The center rail should be placed evenly between the top and bottom rails.
One thing often over looked is that we assume that water only travels downward. That assumption is almost correct but don’t understand the lip or linger factor. There is one instance where water can and will travel up, and every fence builder should be aware of. If you are wondering why your fascia boards rot and warp, this is why.
Here is an example. Ever noticed that you see paint bubbling on the bottom of the fence? The paint or wood sealer should have protected the wood from moisture to prevent it from rotting but the linger factor wasn’t taken into account. Meaning, that the water traveled up and rotted the wood.
Many contractors never seal the bottom lip of the wood. Over the years as water drains down the face of the wood it lingers on the exposed bottom lip and begins to soak up into the wood causing it to rot. If you want to water seal or paint your new fence, always be certain to coat the top and bottom lip.
So there you have it. The key things to remember are to make sure the posts are actually sealed, and you make sure that the bottom of the wood gets sealed to prevent rotting. If you are in the process of making a fence then you can make these simple changes.