How To

How to Install a Board Fence

Contributor
By eHow Contributing Writer
(14 Ratings)

Keep prying eyes out of your yard with a board fence. This type offers the best privacy and is difficult to climb - it's also the most expensive to build. Another version of the board fence - an interlapping board fence - has alternating vertical boards. This type holds up well in windy areas and looks good from either side.

Difficulty: Moderate
Instructions

Things You'll Need:

  1. Step 1

    Set your fence posts 10 feet apart. (See "How to Install Fence Posts in Concrete" and "How to Install Fence Posts in Dirt.")

  2. Step 2

    Use screws to install a rail between posts at 4 inches below the top of the fence, 1 foot below that, and 6 inches off the ground.

  3. Step 3

    Choose pressure-treated wood, prefabricated panels, or precut boards for the slats. They should be of uniform size.

  4. Step 4

    Lay the boards out side by side and snap a chalk line at each rail point to help you align them. (See "How to Snap a Chalk Line.")

  5. Step 5

    Nail the boards to the rails using galvanized hardware. Butt the edges up closely - the wood will shrink eventually, no matter what, but you can minimize gapping by putting the boards up tightly to begin with.

  6. Step 6

    Keep a level handy and watch the top and the bottom to make sure your fence is even.

  7. Step 7

    Alternate the boards on either side of the fence for the interlapping method. Use a spare board to keep the spacing even.

Tips & Warnings
  • Treat any areas you cut with a wood preservative.
  • Finish the fence with a waterproof stain, paint, or sealer.
  • Get your neighbor's permission if you will need to be on his or her side of the fence.

Comments  

Flag This Comment

on 11/30/2008 Should go more in depth, like a lot of people use 4x4 for the post, 2x4 for the side boards that the panels screw to and a lot more details.

projectmgr said

Flag This Comment

on 8/15/2008 Yes it is too simplistic and incorrect. Posts ten feet apart might work with a 3 foot high fence. Step number 4 makes no sense at all. Step number 6 "keep a level handy". All posts should be vertically plumb in all directions and the vertical pickets as well. Step number 1; "How to install fence posts in dirt". Gotta read that one.

Flag This Comment

on 6/13/2007 This is a BS article, and too simplistic for almost every wood fence installation.

Post a Comment

Post a Comment

Have you done this? Click here to let us know.

I Did This

Related Ads

Copyright © 1999-2009 eHow, Inc. Use of this web site constitutes acceptance of the eHow Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.   en-US

eHow Home and Garden
eHow_eHow Home and Garden