DIY Doctor UK DIY Forums

Hey,

I've never put up a fence by myself before and was kind of hoping that someone could check over my proposed method for any pitfalls...

Thanks for any input you lot may have, you've never let me down in that past :D

Assuming the old fence has already been pulled down and the neighbours have signed to say they're happy for me to follow the existing fence-line:

Step 01) Place two temporary posts at top and bottom of garden and draw a plumbline between the two to trace path of the fence.

Step 02) Using a petrol or handheld post auger to bore a 6" wide hole down to a depth of 3' at the top of the garden - first post.

Step 03) Follow same method to bore remaining holes at approximately 2m intervals.

Step 04) Place the first 4x4" - 9 foot post at the top of the garden using a bag of Postcrete to secure in place.

Step 05) Place last post using the method above.

Step 06) Tie a line between the two posts to try and get uniform fence height for the length of the garden.

Step 07) Place the remaining posts, adjusting depth of the posts to try and keep the overall height of the fence as level as possible.

Step 08) Leave to set overnight

Step 09) Add eggs and beat to a light fluffy texture.... wait, wrong instructions... sorry....

Step 10) Screw in three lengths of 2x1" timber between each post.

Step 11) Nail each indivdual slat in place using one nail per length of timber.

Step 12) Paint with cuprinol.

Step 13) Watch it fall down and regret not hiring a professional.

Step 14) Fake death and run away in shame.

If you guys could be so kind as to look it over, I'd be very greatful...

Cheers,
Rich

How high are you making this fence?

How do.. Mainly sounds ok, be carefull with the auger thou cos it will give you a dead leg or two. usually 2 foot in the ground is fine unless it s in a windy site and you need to go deeper, the deeper the better thou. The rails sound undersize, you really need either arris rails 75x50 ish or i prefer 100x38 mm rails, they last longer and are better to fix to. they r normaly 2.4 m long or 4.8 and span two bays. the gravel boards need to be the same length. Getting the levels right is not too bad, set your string line 150 mm above ground level, if more than 20 m long put in more stakes on the fence line, pull the line as tight as it will go.. mark out post centres by laying out rails and marking positions, dig holes, if the fence is featheredge and the rails are nailed on the posts you will need a block to attatch the gravel board onto( 150 mm long peice of a rail, needs to be the same thickness). cut as many as you need for 1 per post, use 1 of feather edge boards, lay it on the post flush with the top and nail the block flush with the bottom of the board, this sets the height of your fence so your posts and boards are the same level.
Put in the first post, adjust hole so the string line is just on the top of the block ( dig deeper if necc ) line touching post,concrete in ,semi dry mix, ram in stages getting it upright. nail on 150x20mm gravel board to first post on the block flush with top of block. check next hole and if ok then fix gravel board in centre of 2nd post and your away. when there all in leave for a few days and nail on rails, 100 mm from top and bottom of post, 6' fence needs 3 rails, nail on boards with 2" nails . 4" for rails
Hope this has been usefull

Wow, Jimm1e sounds like you've done this before !

Can I ask you a Question ? This windy weather we've had in London has blown my fence loose. It's a feathered fence about 5ft high

The left hand fence has short concrete posts into the ground which the main wooden post is bolted to. What are these called ?

I'd like to fit these to the right hand side too, as the soil in my garden doesn't drain at all well, so the soil is always damp and the posts will just end up moving again.

Will I need to dismantle the fence in order to fit these concrete posts ?


Your help would be very greatly appreciated.

For any viewers looking for more info on similar issues please see our DIY fencing projects category which covers how to install fence panels, how to concrete fence posts, what type of fence posts to use, how to cut down or join fence panels, how to join fence panels and more.