No single fence meets every homeowner’s needs and desires. Fortunately, you can organize the reasons to consider a new fence into five categories. Simply decide which categories are most important to you and use that as a guide when selecting your new fence.
1. Privacy and Screening
The right fence protects you from the prying eyes of your neighbors or from passersby when you want some alone time in your yard. Privacy fences also work well for screening, such as by hiding less attractive items like a garage or an air conditioning unit.
Options
Solid fences are the best option for a privacy fence, so chain link and open pickets aren’t as desirable. Height also matters — the standard privacy fence is six to eight feet tall so that no one can easily peek over the top.
Consider cedar or vinyl solid-style fences. If you like the look of pickets but still crave privacy, consider an offset double picket design. You get the visual interest of the pickets without the spaces in between.
2. Child and Pet Containment
If you have small children or pets that use your yard, the main point of a fence may be to keep them from getting out or wandering away.
Options
Nearly any material, as long as the pickets are set closely enough together, can effectively contain children and pets. Solid fences like vinyl and wood work exceptionally well. Chain link is a cost-effective and low-maintenance option — just keep in mind that older children may be able to climb a chain-link fence.
Wrought iron and open picket wood fences are another option, as long as the pickets are close enough together so that a child or animal can’t slip through.
3. Wildlife Prevention
Have deer stripped the bark from your trees, or have rabbits invaded your vegetable garden? If so, then you need the right fence to keep these pests out of your yard.
Options
Height is necessary to keep deer out, while a buried barrier is needed for rabbits. For deer, plan for at least an eight-foot-tall fence. A solid fence is preferred, since deer are likely more hesitant to jump over a fence if they can’t see through it. Wood and vinyl work well, in this case.
For rabbits, any fence that is at least a couple of feet tall is sufficient. Digging is what you need to worry about. You can invest in a buried fence to keep rabbits out. Another option is to install a concrete threshold under the fence. The threshold prevents digging, and you don’t have to worry about weeds growing along the fence line.
4. Security
You don’t want anyone snooping around your property. Fortunately, the right fence can help discourage unwanted visitors.
Options
Design, more than materials, determine how secure a fence truly is. A good security fence should be at least eight feet tall, have no horizontal supports on the outside face, and feature a secure gate.
Solid fences like wood and vinyl are more difficult to climb, but see-through options like chain link and open pickets mean that potential intruders can be seen and reported by your neighbors. Consider your other needs when deciding whether to go open or closed picket.
5. Safety and Protection
Sometimes you need a fence to exclude people and pets from an area that isn’t safe. Pool fencing is one example of a fence for safety and protection needs.
Options
A pool fence should be a minimum of four feet tall, although verify local height regulations before picking out a fence because the rules may vary. With pool fencing, generally chain-link or wrought iron is preferred. The open style means you can see from the house if someone has fallen into the pool.
For other types of protection fences, such as those around dangerous equipment, opt for a closed picket design to cut down on the temptation to enter the area.
Contact City Wide Fence Company, Inc., for more help.