Fence Installation Question

[GeezerSteve]

Local conditions matter. The knowledgeable locals here in Eburg advise that Stampede Gap winds indicate gapping.

[Ted Striker]

But star and Philips screws... come on. Hey some Robertson screws you guys. Far superior.

True, but they're not as easy to get down here. And although phillips is useless, the star drives are actually pretty good if you know what you're doing.

And the notion that you can't make a strong fence with nails is silly. A structure is strong or weak by design.

[GeezerSteve]

We used T-25 star screws. No problem. Gold e-coat, should last my lifetime in this climate.

[tuco]

Or you can let the rails into dadoes in the posts, but that's more work than most people want to do.
Cedar and redwood are rot resistant, not rot proof. I would still treat.

Dadoing the rails into the posts might be overdoing it, unless going for a certain look. The Simpson connectors are fairly cheap and easy.[ATTACH=CONFIG]240797[/ATTACH
I did, however, dado, glue and screw the corners of my gate and Kreg screwed the diagonal supportt

[Ted Striker]

Nice gate.

[The AD]

I'm using those Simpson sheet metal brackets. They're fine. It doesn't need to be a work of art.

[mcski]

So are nail guns

[tuco]

Nice gate.

Thanks man, took me longer than it should have, but it's almost 4ft wide. Didn't want that bitch sagging!

[Game Over]

Cementing posts makes them rot much faster. Just use gravel at the bottom and dirt for the top half.

[The AD]

Turns out my neighbor is a big Alpental skier! I don't think he goes as much as he used to, though. Chinese guy named Ray in case anyone here knows him.

[Ted Striker]

So just do a ski fence?

[muted]

Nails come loose and leave ugly streaks of rust. Say fuck-no to nails! As for treating or not, keep in mind you will be treating every 2-3 years for the stained look. I'm pro-stained, but it's just another thing for the to-do list which is tedious. So I'd advise to stain dark. Use a sprayer. Think about planting things in front of the fence, if they grow all crazy-like staining will be a pain.

I've heard about buying lumber at hardware stores. here they all close at 5pm and are not open during the weekends, so they are a myth to me because that shit is ridiculous. Home Depot boards are so crooked, good luck getting no gaps, I tried doing that. Buy the boards Monday morning after the big weekend restock, let them dry for a couple weeks in the sun, then exchange the super-warped ones. that's all you can do. And HD matches Lowes prices, that saved us a lot of money btw.

Cementing posts depends on how much wind you get, without cement they will bend like bamboo if you have strong winds. Side note: This year I pulled some 4 year old posts without any cement, not a lick of rot on them here in SLC. PNW is a different beast for sure though.

[The AD]

I've got all the lumber. Ordered it from a lumber yard and they delivered it a couple days ago. Fence is about half done now. The existing posts are mostly in good shape. There are two that we'll need to replace.

[Game Over]

Great points on the cementing of posts Muted. PNW clay is a lot different than desert sand! Also I have never thought about wind being a issue.

[Ted Striker]

omg... nails!

Every fence company uses nails - including the one I worked for.

But I hear the holiday inn express has comfy mattresses!

[snoqpass]

time is $$$

Stainless nails for cedar=$$$$$$$$$$

[tuco]

I've heard about buying lumber at hardware stores. here they all close at 5pm and are not open during the weekends, so they are a myth to me because that shit is ridiculous.

Burton Lumber open till noon every Sat.

[tuco]

Great points on the cementing of posts Muted. PNW clay is a lot different than desert sand! Also I have never thought about wind being a issue.

Fwiw, pretty much every rotten fence post I've dealt with is right around the dirt line and I'm in SLC as well.

[Ted Striker]

Often it's caused by repeated weed whacking getting through the pressure treatment, and dirt/water exposure.

[tuco]

And the notion that you can't make a strong fence with nails is silly. A structure is strong or weak by design.

True. But the reality is any screwed connection is stronger than its nailed counterpart.

[Ted Striker]

Spiral and ring shank. Built decks with them too. Thicker gauges, and less brittle. And unless you're kicking them or live in a crazy high wind zone, the load on fence boards is zero (or close to).

I also spent a few years framing houses with nails... I wonder if they're still standing?

But really, I'm just commenting on / laughing at the advice offered by people who don't actually know what they're talking about. (not you)

[tuco]

Spiral and ring shank. Built decks with them too. Thicker gauges, and less brittle. And unless you're kicking them or live in a crazy high wind zone, the load on fence boards is zero (or close to).

I also spent a few years framing houses with nails... I wonder if they're still standing?

But really, I'm just commenting on / laughing at the advice offered by people who don't actually know what they're talking about. (not you)

If I was doing it as a business, it would be nails all the way. But I have seen spiral/ring shank nails back out on a fence that I know gets very little wind. Worked on it just 2 1/2 weeks ago. Fences go through a lot of expansion/contraction along w/ getting wet.
I have a nail gun, and I debated it, but that little fence of mine will end up going through a lot and I need to be able to pull mine apart. My center post is set in a sleeve so I can pull it apart and be able to get large equipment into backyard or the 2 trucks I have back there out. We'll see how that works out.
As far as houses, of course you're not going to frame a whole house with screws, but they very much a place in framing too.

[Tips^Up]

Have you priced out fencing yet? There's this thing called trade wars, and lumber prices have doubled in the past year.

Alternative value minded approach: house along my commute (less than .5 mile bike ride...) just did a new fence out of re-purposed pallets. Home Depot, Lowes, $$$. People literally give away pallets. Sand, stain and finish the boards yourself, enough $ saved to buy a new dentist chair.

My Grandpa (RIP) used to tell me about his first job, collecting pallets during the Depression when he was a boy. He'd pull all the nails, salvage all the wood, then re-sell all the pieces for more than he got the original pallets. Reduce, reuse, recycle before it was cool.

[The AD]

Yes, I've got the wood. The lumber was something like $1,000 and that should cover about 80 feet of fence. It's expensive, but everything is these days. I'm a rich TGR dentist. What do I care?

The fence is coming along and I think it looks good.

[nickwm21]

Alternative value minded approach: house along my commute (less than .5 mile bike ride...) just did a new fence out of re-purposed pallets. Home Depot, Lowes, $$$. People literally give away pallets. Sand, stain and finish the boards yourself, enough $ saved to buy a new dentist chair.

How much time was spent looking for and breaking down pallets? How much methyl bromide was inhaled during the cutting/sanding of the pallet wood?

...No thanks...


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