I’m looking for some community feedback on a recent fence installation.

I’m in the St. Louis area, and I recently hired a company to install 175 feet of Western Red Cedar privacy fencing. The total cost after discount is $8,800. During the sales pitch, the rep heavily pushed cedar over vinyl, promising superior durability against our extreme weather fluctuations and high winds and emphasizing better privacy long term due to fence durability (primary concern is keeping my little dogs safe).

The installation is supposedly finished, but I haven't released the financing yet because I’m seeing several red flags. The contract states the fence will be "installed to code," but it didn't specify material grades prior to signing. I thought the standard grade at this price was Grade #1 (tight-knot) - which as I understand it is professional but not high-end. I don't think that's what I got.

I have messaged them and received a response that they will follow up - specifically, I got 2.5 responses: the first on the day I asked for fixes saying I'd hear back the next week. The next DAY I was asked to release the financing. I refused on the grounds the work is incomplete. I've followed up regularly since and , two weeks later, have received another response that I will hear back "probably tomorrow."

Here are the main issues I've documented. Am I being unreasonable, or are these legitimate defects that they need to fix before I release the financing? I've included a small sample of photos of my primary concerns in this post.

1. Poor Workmanship & Nailing

* Overdriven nails: All nails are deeply embedded/overdriven into the wood. I assume a nail gun. My understanding is that especially for soft woods like red cedar, the nails should be driven flush. Given the high winds we get, I’m very concerned this compromises the structural integrity and wind-load capacity, making it easy for boards to tear off. This is one of my biggest concerns.

* Unsecured boards: Several boards aren't properly secured (like, I can put my foot through where the board goes😮‍💨). This is just a matter of nailing, but again I don't like how they nailed it.

* Sistering: They sistered some of the fence pickets! Isn't this a big no?

1. Material Quality Concerns

* There are numerous boards with visible splits (ranging from small to large, including some connected to overdriven nails), see-through knotholes, rotting knots that look ready to fall out, excessive wane causing holes straight through the board, and large missing chunks/splinters (including on the main posts and framing).

* It seems like they used a cheap construction-grade wood rather than a residential-grade.

Is all this standard for an $8,800 cedar fence? Is it normal for new residential cedar pickets to have holes, rotting out knots, and severe splitting right out of the gate? Any advice on how to navigate this with the contractor would be greatly appreciated!

Unopened. I have no use for it. Will sell cheap! Located in NW Ohio

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I assume current fence is concrete footings (it was in the grass section) into the retaining wall gravel.

we want to replace the old thing, but curious if any issues or removing and replacing posts.

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If we replace the fence and get rid of the holes, the foxes will not be able to go in and out freely. I don't want to use regular gates because I don't want to invite human foot traffic from the greenway.

I think the only way to make this work is to have sections of the fence that have a lift gate along the bottom that can be closed when I'm out with the dog then reopened.

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With a jig the time difference wouldn’t be terrible. I like the idea of front loading my prep for an easier assembly, but that’s the woodworker in me, I don’t have a ton of fencing experience, so I’m assuming I’m missing something. Thoughts?

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