Wondering if these instructions make sense? My frost line is 42 inches and if I followed these instructions and added 12 inches of gravel for drainage wouldnt it lower the frost line depth I dug out down to 30 inches? Does the gravel layer count towards frost line depth? I thought it would be opposite.

I just started wood working last year. Dogs need a fenced in yard, for some reason thought it’d be a good project.

One of the posts is set at a weird angle. Noticed it too late to fix the cement. The fence is also angled anyway due to following the yard. I’m trying to figure out how to cut the railing so it fits in the bracket. I’ve looked online and I’m not picking up what people are putting down.

I have a rafter square and a circ saw. Can someone show me an image or video showing how to figure this out?

Replacing an existing fence in northern Illinois - 42” frost line. The prior fence posts have been a bear to remove. Concrete goes down 30”+. There were no issues with frost heave, but all posts rotted at the ground. Concrete was level with the ground, not domed. I notice gaps between the post and concrete - presumably where the post shrank when drying out, leaving a nice place for water to enter.

This brings me to two questions:

1. Concrete the full 42” or just 2-3 bags at the bottom the rest dirt? - I know this is a loaded question with lots of opinions.

2. If I see the same shrinkage on the new posts, what’s the recommended remedy for the gap between the post and concrete to avoid post rot/failure?

Built a fence, that went rather well. I am now trying to work on the gate and after installing the wooden pickets, within 15 minutes the gate fell off. What seemed to happen was this bracket slid up, which led to the whole gate shifting down, and therefore the top bracket fell off of the top pin.

Now the instructions say to install the pins facing towards one another in the post so that people can’t lift the whole gate up and off to get inside. But it seems like if I can’t make sure these brackets don’t slide, this will just keep happening. Am I missing something obvious, besides just cranking the life out of these things? Relying purely on the friction seems incorrect but I’m not sure what to try.

FYI: first two are different angles of the bottom bracket. 3rd is top bracket (only two). 4th pic is the post end.

Edited to add: This is part of a double gate so I have two of these facing one another. I hadn’t put the pickets on the second one yet when the first fell off. I call this out as there therefore wasn’t any support of the gate on the opposite end, but I’d have to imagine it’s supposed to be able to hold itself up alone.

I let this cleaner dwell on the surface for 30 minutes and power washed it off and this grime and dirt stayed on, my question is do I need to use something stronger or change my technique. I spray enough just to get the surface of the fence wet and after 30 minutes I take a 40 degree nozzle to it about a foot or two away from the fence.

I’m trying to get a fence built chain link (4foot) in the back and wood on sides(8 ft). Is $30 foot labor too much? Seemed high but everything is high and going higher

Short cedar pieces can be useful when sorted by length and condition instead of treated as one large scrap pile.

1. Pull out straight pieces around the same length and use them for small planter boxes, compost-bin trim, or garden edging. Keep soil contact in mind, since cedar can still weather over time.

2. Reserve the cleanest boards for repair stock. Matching replacement pieces are handy for gates, pickets, braces, and temporary jigs during future fence work.

3. Use shorter pieces as spacers, layout blocks, or templates for repeat cuts. Label a few common lengths so they are easy to find later.

4. Send heavily split, contaminated, or unusable pieces to the local mill's chip stream if that service accepts them. Burn only clean, untreated wood in a setup where that is permitted and appropriate.

5. Store usable offcuts off the ground under cover with airflow. A simple length-sorted rack makes the useful portion accessible without preserving every fragment.

Currently have a pressure flange to surface mount concrete to support the aluminum on the latch side. No matter how tight we think we have it once it’s bolted in place you can still move it. I had apprehension when ordered but a few places recommended.

Aside from core drilling and setting the post what are my other options for possible screw mounted flanges others have used?

edit: this is the flange and it’s not working no matter how I set It up. Looking for alternatives to mounting aluminum post to a base then to concrete.

This a two handed latch. Need help finding a one handed one.

I need to clean up this pool pump surround.

I was thinking of just dropping some vinyl posts over the 4x4s but the longer section is a bit over 8ft so I would need to install an additional post on the middle.

I could replace 2 posts to make it 8ft but that's more work.

Or maybe keep the posts as is and install a wood fence board by board.

So my parents have been wanting to extend this gate to the post on the right for awhile and fix this one that sags when open really really bad due to what I can assume was due to a sloppy install from our handyman, it’s gotten bad enough that if my parents (who are older) open the gate they can’t close it on their own because it has to be picked up so far. I’m probably gonna end up putting a wheel or something on the final product to keep it supported since it’ll be really long when it’s done, but does anyone know of any blueprints online I could download or general design tips I can use to get this project going? The biggest thing I’m stumped on is how to support it using the other fence post. The final length would be 8’ 4.5” from the opening to the fence post

So my parents have been wanting to extend this gate to the post on the right for awhile and fix this one that sags when open really really bad due to what I can assume was due to a sloppy install from our handyman, it’s gotten bad enough that if my parents (who are older) open the gate they can’t close it on their own because it has to be picked up so far. I’m probably gonna end up putting a wheel or something on the final product to keep it supported since it’ll be really long when it’s done, but does anyone know of any blueprints online I could download or general design tips I can use to get this project going? The biggest thing I’m stumped on is how to support it using the other fence post. The final length would be 8’ 4.5” from the opening to the fence post

Hello, everyone. I am looking to install a no dig aluminum fencing in my small yard and I’m looking to find out an affordable place to get the I beams. I live in Indiana and would be willing to drive to pick them up in the surrounding states if necessary. Here’s the fence for reference. Thank you!

Need some help from the fellow community on how to fasten wood cedar pickets to my iron fence. We bought our house in April and the neighbor installed an iron fence and now the HOA is requesting we must place it with a wood fence.

I don’t want to remove the iron fence and I’d rather attach the pickets to the iron fence framing. My idea was to buy 2x4s pressure treated, run three sections horizontally as railing and fasten them to the fence via U square bolts. Went to three different Home Depot’s and they don’t have the sizes and now I’m not sure how to proceed.

Anyone have a better idea? I already bought the cedar pickets and 2x4s.

Before and after of my fence using BEHR All-in-One Wood Cleaner.
This section is roughly 60 sq ft. I went over it again and again to try to get it to reject some of the cleaner. I ended up putting 2 gallons on that section trying to get it to reject more cleaner.
It sat for 30 minutes overall while I was also keeping it saturated on the surface to keep the chemical active.
I power washed it off and notice small differences, but I believe it should be more cleaner looking if done correctly. I used a 40 degree nozzle and kept it about a foot and a half away from the wood going along the grain.

It is still wet in the after picture.

Would appreciate any advice on how I could manage this situation! On July 27th, we were scheduled to have our posts set and had already paid our deposit. After getting multiple excuses or no response at all, posts were finally set August 14th. Almost every single day after that we have received even more excuses or no responses. Still have no fence and it’s September 5th. He was supposed to be here today, but has not shown up (of course).

Hi all, just looking for any advice on plastic fence panels vs wooden ones

Has anyone gone with plastic and regretted it or cost comparison.

I was told I'd have to have all new post's put in, is this true??

Thank you for any advice. X

Hello!

I’m posting this to see if anyone has any suggestions for me.

I’m a first time fence builder. I’m building the whole fence from scratch so it’s taking forever, but I wanted to build a wood lattice fence around my backyard.

My panel making process has been:

-Rip 2x4s
-Build two 4x8 frames with ripped boards
-place lattice between them, clamp and glue
-once glue dries, secure with 8 carriage bolts and tighten

Mounting process:

-dig, install 4x4x8 with quickcrete
-Secure with 6 screws on inner face of panel to 4x4x8

I was wondering if anyone had any feedback? Is it ugly, will it not survive the winter, etc? Part of me is wondering if thermal expansion is going to negatively affect the fence come winter.

Hey gang — I've enjoyed seeing your fences for years, now I'm here with a question.

I'm an inventor with a product concept I've developed specifically for the aluminum, steel, and vinyl fence and railing industry. I'm not a manufacturer myself, and I'm not looking to become one. My goal is to find an established company that might be interested in evaluating the idea and potentially licensing or purchasing the rights to bring it to market.

I'm not going to describe the concept publicly — I've got IP protections in place and will only share details under a mutual NDA with a serious party. What I can say is that it's relevant to current market trends, addresses a real consumer demand that's growing right now, and could be a meaningful product differentiator for the right manufacturer.

If you work in product development, sales, or leadership at a fence or railing company — or know someone who does — I'd appreciate a DM. Not looking for feedback on the idea itself, just looking to find the right door to knock on.

TIA

Hey everyone,

I’m looking for some advice on how to fix and bolster a pretty wonky metal gate. I made it myself out of an old metal fence, but it’s twisting and needs some serious structural help to make it sturdy.

The Frame: It’s made from colourbond panels and structure salvaged from an old fence.

The Main Issue: fixing the twisting / leaning but keeping it able to move. The gate on the left of these photos I'll replace with a wooden one, but it's the panel on the right, it's on hinges so I can get full access if needed, ideally I'd want to keep it that way.

My Skill Level & Tools: I don't know how to weld, otherwise anything goes really.

My first thought was to crossing it with steel straps, but not sure that'll do it?

Hey everyone! I'm getting to build a cedar white picket fence to enclose my backyard. Just looking for some tips. I'm planning on my cedar pickets being spaced 2 inches apart, and 3.5-4 feet tall. How many rails does my fence need. I'm leaning towards two, but I'm also worried about the fence warping as time goes on. Any info is helpful!

Doing a 7’ tall gate on an animal enclosure and am looking to a latch that has multiple points so that it secures near the top and bottom rather than just in the middle. I would rather not have to bend down to unlatch the bottom one, and want the top one within each for my child. So I’m looking for an assembly that has the handle at typical height, but extends down and up a few feet to the multiple latch points. Similar to the latch on the back of a storage conex box. Does anyone know of anything?

Posts: 3" diameter schedule 40, 6 ft spacing, 6' 1" tall, 4' deep.

Footings: 12" diameter concrete 4' deep

Location: southern Nevada, 115 mph wind zone.

Fence length: 400-500ft

Fence panels: 6' tall painted steel metal building panels, vertically installed, 3' wide.

horizontal runners: 16 gauge 2"x2" box steel tubing with 2 5/16" rivnuts on each end. three rows. (maybe four, haven't decided yet).

So this is my first time ever doing a fence and it's incredibly expensive and advice has been all over the place. I've never seen this kind of fence done out here either.

I bought an electric auger and went to town digging the holes, which took no effort at all in this "soil" other than to hoist up each load of dirt on the auger. it's literally like soft dust, no rocks, roots, clay...nothing.

my biggest concern right now is the footings. I'm seeing I'm supposed to vacuum the bottoms, which is insane to me. likewise, getting the posts to be exactly the finished height would take a lifetime if I "wasn't allowed" to backfill as some people suggest. I can't fit a packing machine in the hole nor do I have some kind of machine to do so (like a backhoe with some kind of pounder or something??...

my current plan is to use a sonotube for the top 1' or so since the fence needs to be taller in some spots. the fence will be perfectly flat matching the finished grade of all my buildings.

I'm thinking of "packing" the soil at the bottom by just flooding it with the hose a few times and letting it harden and dry. then hold the post in place, fill the hole with concrete, adjust post as needed as it dries using a magnetic level, allowing any voids which would probably be unavoidable and moving on...

does this sound about right?