Wood Fence Upgrade

Daina
by Daina
7 Materials
Last year we happily removed the old chain link fence in our backyard and replaced it with brand new wood fence. It was an interesting project because we had multiple trees on the property line to work around! Here's the lovely finished product :)
While it may seem pretty standard, it was anything but. Let's look at the original fence (complete with a pile of junk in the yard from a shed clean out!). It was standard chain link with green privacy slats.
I was all too happy to rip this thing out.
We were able to use the majority of the old fence post holes and quickly erected pre-fabricated fence panels.
Each panel was screwed into landscape timbers (a fraction of the cost of a 4x4!).
We also made sure to level each section and allow for a little room below so the wood wasn't sitting in the dirt where it would rot quickly.
Then we got to the hard part. The property line went directly through a tree in a V-shape.
Yikes! We knew we had a few options (cut the trees down, build bump-outs in the fence), but we ultimately decided to custom build right through the tree. We got the pre-fabricated fence panels as close as we could and had to build the rest of the fence ourselves. The top rung of the fence was able to span the entire gap through the tree.
We then made some custom frames for the fence slats to attach to.
While it took a while to measure and cut each fence slat to fit around the tree, I'm very happy with the result and would do it again if I had to.
It is wonderful that our backyard now feels like a secluded place of our own.
You can check out the three-part post details on the blog :)
Daina
Want more details about this and other DIY projects? Check out my blog post!
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  • Mary Hofstra Mary Hofstra on Oct 26, 2018

    How big is your backyard and how much did it cost you? How much was each panel, I guess I should ask & where did you get them?

  • Ruth L. Ruth L. on Nov 01, 2018

    Why would you not put the pretty side facing you property?

  • Michelle Michelle on Dec 01, 2018

    Great makeover! What did you use to cover the windows to allow the sunlight in but block out the view?

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  • Cathy Cathy on Nov 01, 2018

    We used landscape timbers a few years back on a fence like this, they 'warp' over time and the fence becomes crooked and weak. Spend the extra dollars and use 4x4's.

    • Altmanrainey25 Altmanrainey25 on Nov 08, 2018

      thanks because we are getting ready to put fence up around our yard were thinking going with those post or the 4x4 i said the 4x4s would last years againis t weather

  • D fuhrman D fuhrman on Nov 08, 2018

    I myself like chain link fences. They don't obstruct the view and last for years without looking nasty. Also they are easier to mow around. You just push them out with you foot and weed-wack. If you weedwack next to a wooden fence you tear it up. We installed a chain link one at our old house and it's still up after 40 years.



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