How to Install a White Picket Fence

A white picket fence is nostalgic.

A white picket fence brings up a feeling of nostalgia. We envision country cottages and old movies. A picket fence provides some sense of security, keeping pets and children in the yard, without totally blocking out the outside world. Installing a picket fence requires some skill but becomes a much easier job when you buy prefabricated fencing sections. Be sure to check neighborhood building codes before installing any fencing on your property. Contact local utility companies to mark locations of buried cables before you begin digging.

Things You'll Need

• Fence posts
• Picket fence panels
• Posthole digger
• Shovel
• Carpenter’s level
• Wooden stakes
• Wood wedges
• Twine
• Screws
• Power screwdriver
• Hinges
• Gate latch

Instructions

Building the Fence

1. Dig the initial posthole with a posthole digger. Dig a 10-inch diameter straight-sided hole 32 inches deep.

2. Place the first post in the hole positioned so that the mortises are 2 to 5 inches above ground level. Fill the hole with soil, checking that the post is plumb as you go by placing a carpenter’s level along two adjacent sides of the post. Pack soil tightly around the post.

3. Drive wooden stakes into the ground at the location of each corner of the fence. Attach a length of twine to the first post five inches above the ground. Stretch the line to the stake. Wrap the line securely to the stake five inches above the ground level. Repeat this procedure as you begin each side of the fence.

4. Measure the length of the first fence panel from the installed post. Mark the position of the second post with a small stake. Dig the second posthole.

5. Place the rails of the first fence panel into the mortises of the first post. Prop the opposite end of the panel on wood wedges, adjusting them so that the top rail is level.

6. Place the second post in the hole with the face against the twine. Adjust the height and insert the fence panel into the mortises. Align so that the space between the post and the rail is equal to the space between the pickets. Fill the hole as for the first post, checking the plumb of the post and the picket panel as you go. Secure the rails to the posts with 2 ½-inch screws.

7. Repeat the installation procedures until the fence is complete, leaving an opening for a gate. Note that the fence panels on either side of the gate will be inserted into the mortises on the outside edge of the gate posts.

Gate Installation

1. Dig a posthole for the first gate post. Install the gate post as you did the fence posts.

2. Measure the width of the gate from the first post and add 1 ½ inches. Mark the position with a small stake. Dig the second post at this point. Install the second post being sure that the two gate posts are level and plumb.

3. Prop the gate between the posts on wood wedges. Line up pickets with the panels adjacent to it. There should be a ¾ inch gap between the gate and each post.

4. Attach two hinges along one side of the gate and one post. Remove the wood wedges and check the swing of the gate. Mount the latch to the opposite side of the gate and the other post using screws.

5. Paint both sides of the fence with white fence paint.

Tips & Warnings

• Rent a gas-powered posthole digger if you are installing a large fence around your property.

References

• This Old House: How To Install a Picket Fence