Garden fencing

[pebblepots]

We are having our garden rrefemced in the new year as part of a bigger project. The contractor we have decided on for the main work will do concrete posts and gravel boards with slot in closed board panel fencing.

If we want arris rail we will have to use a different contractor for this part of the work which would be a faff and a bit more expensive.

Will the slot in panels bebas durable or should we go for the arris rail despite the cons?

Pls excuse typos, posted in haste!

I don't understand what you mean.

Close board fencing means to me three horizontal arris rails with vertical, overlapping feather-edge boards nailed to the rails, and the rails morticed into wooden posts or slotted into concrete ones. It can be built on site or is available as prefab panels.

Most often, fence panels are made of thin woven of overlapped slats on battens. This is a cheaper and inferior fence. This type can be used with slotted concrete posts or nailed to wooden posts.

Either way, concrete posts and concrete gravel boards last very much longer than wooden ones. If you are using a dark brown fence stain you can treat the concrete with dark brown masonry paint which helps it blend in.

The very worst thing is to put wooden posts into big holes filled with concrete. When the wood rots after a few years, it is an awful job because you have an unmanageable lump of concrete in the ground just where you want to put a new post in.

I think I am having prefab panels like these, which will slot into the concrete posts. So no arris rail running horizontally slotting into the concrete posts.

We've got those panels one side. It seems pretty durable and the posts should be taller than the panels.

Those look fine. No need for arris rails as they have an equivalent. You do need to use plenty of preservative on the upper surface of the rails as they are not sloped to shed water.

Oh good point, if they have been pressure treated would they need further preservative?

Also what is with recessed gravel boards? Are they cheaper as they are lighter? Still tough enough though?

Thanks lizs

people say that pressure-treated timber doesn't need further treatment. However my neighbour has panels like yours, and the battens are going rotten (he never treats it with anything).

I like Cuprinol Wood Preserver (which is not a fence stain) or similar, particularly for the upward-facing surfaces, or near the ground, liable to get wet and rot quickly. Water gets into the centre through cracks and knots even on treated timber. 5 litres will last for years.