EASY STEPS TO BUILD A FRONT FENCE

Make your move towards a modern update right from the get go with a fresh twist on the old paling fence. Chunky palings fixed on their edge are the key to this look.

Gather your supplies

• Posts 90 x 90mm x 3.6m H4 treated pine

• Retaining wall 200 x 75mm x 3m treated pine sleeper

• Rails 66 x 30mm primed treated pine

• Palings 66 x 30mm primed treated pine

• Letterbox

You’ll also need

Crowbar; tape measure; set out paint; post hole digger/pincer; spirit level; quick-set concrete; stringline; marker; chalkline; drill; long 5mm drill bit; 125mm galvanised batten screws; square; circular saw; hammer; chisel; wood preservative; exterior paint in Monument; painting equipment; 75 and 100mm galvanised screws; exterior gap filler; mitre saw; sander; 10mm plastic packers; countersinking drill bit; nail gun with 50mm galvanised nails; 30mm screws; epoxy filler; charcoal decking stain

Here’s how

STEP 1 Demolish and remove the existing fence. Where the fence is stone, as here, use a crowbar to help break it apart.

STEP 2 Measure and mark position of holes for fence posts using set out paint. Place a post at each end and space intermediate posts evenly, not exceeding 1500mm between centres to suit length of retaining wall sleepers.

STEP 3 Use post hole digger/pincer to dig 600mm deep holes at marked positions for fence posts.

STEP 4 Cut 3.6m long post material in half to make 2 posts. At each end of fence, insert a post into hole so face is at least 75mm from the property boundary. Use a spirit level to make plumb and set in place using quick-set concrete.

STEP 5 Run stringline between the 2 end posts and make taut. Insert remaining posts in holes, make plumb and concrete in position so they are just off the stringline. Leave to set.

STEP 6 Determine height of retaining wall to hold back existing or planned garden beds. Mark this on end posts, stretch chalkline between these points and flick to mark all posts. If, as here, the height is over 200mm, meaning you will require 2 rows of sleepers, chalk a line 200mm below this to mark the top of your first row.

STEP 7 Starting at one end, place sleepers against posts so top edge meets chalked line. Join sleepers over a post, cutting as required. Predrill through sleeper into post using a long 5mm drill bit, then screw together with 125mm batten screws.

STEP 8 Lay the second row of sleepers on top of the first, staggering the joins. Predrill and screw in place.

STEP 9 Mark end posts for cutting to height and for 66mm high and 30mm deep notches to accept fence rails. Top of post is 1150mm above ground and tops of notches are 65 and 620mm from top of post. Working one at a time, stretch a stringline between these points and use a square to mark all the intermediate posts. Make top of the post square and if, on a slight slope, as here, make the line of notches follow

the slope of the stringline.

STEP 10 To create notches for rails, use circular saw set to cut 30mm deep and make multiple passes through the posts between marked lines.

STEP 11 Use hammer and sharp chisel to knock out waste timber and smooth bo om of all notches.

STEP 12 Cut rails to length, making joins between rails sit over a post. Treat cut ends of timber with wood preservative, then seal them with exterior paint before si ing inside notches. Predrill and screw rails to posts using 75mm screws.

STEP 13 To protect rails from water entry, fill any gaps between rails and posts with exterior gap filler. Let dry, then apply 2 coats of exterior paint. Allow to dry a er each coat.

STEP 14 Apply a coat of paint to uncut paling timber. When dry, cut palings using mitre saw, making them 40mm longer than the distance from the retaining wall to top of fence posts. You will need to cut about 13 palings for every metre of fence. Use sander to slightly round corners on 1 end of each paling, which will sit at the top. Treat all the cut ends with wood preservative and, prior to installation, apply 2 coats exterior paint to seal palings.

STEP 15 Install palings on the edge at each end of fence, flush with outside of posts. Sit them on 10mm plastic packers to create a gap to retaining wall below. Predrill through facing edges into fence using a countersinking drill bit and screw into posts using 100mm screws.

STEP 16 To prepare to fix remaining palings, set a stringline between tops of palings on end posts and cut two 48mm spacing blocks from scrap timber. Position paling against rails using spacing blocks, with packer underneath, so it is just off the stringline. Use nail gun to nail through rails to hold in place, then predrill and screw through rails into paling using 75mm screws.

STEP 17 Work your way along the fence, screwing through front of palings with 100mm screws where they sit over posts. Occasionally check palings are plumb and stringline is not caught on any of them. About three-quarters of the way along, calculate whether the 48mm gap between palings will mean the final gap to the end paling will be even. If not, slightly adjust the size of the spacing block so the gaps all the way along will be even and then keep monitoring distance.

STEP 18 Create an opening to house the letterbox by removing palings and cutting them down. Join the cut sections with horizontal pieces at top and bottom of the opening. Reattach shorter paling sections to rails. Insert letterbox into opening and screw into horizontal pieces to secure, using 30mm screws.

STEP 19 Where screws go through front of palings, fill holes with epoxy. Let dry and sand smooth with sander. Give palings a second coat of paint.

STEP 20 Apply 2 coats of stain to sleeper retaining wall at fence base. Let dry after each coat. FOR SHOPPING DETAILS AND PROJECT SUPPLIES, SEE OUR STOCKISTS PAGE

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RETAIN THE GOOD BITS By adding a retaining wall at the bo om of the fence, you can keep your existing garden beds or take the opportunity to add statement plants such as the glistening olive here.

BEFORE

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