Mr Skill

The easiest way to put up a wooden fence these days is to set a few poles in concrete and attach pre-fabricated panels to them. In practice, there is a bit more to it than that though. In fact, unless you really do enjoy hard work, perhaps you should Find a Carpenter instead? These are the basic steps involved.

o Contact your local council first to check out whether there are any rules involved, or whether you could be crossing over underground services. Obtain agreement from your local neighbours too – who knows, they might even decide to make a contribution.

o Select your fence panels first. Taking account of the spacing of the poles between, determine how many of each, and how many cross braces you will need. As a general rule, you will need one more upright than the total number of pre-fabricated sections, and three times as many cross braces as you have panels. Order this material in, plus enough bags of ready-mix concrete and enough screws, nuts, bolts and nails.

o Hammer in temporary corner pegs (use anything that comes to hand) and connect these with twine. After the inevitable discussion with the neighbours, lay the poles out on the ground at the correct spacings. Begin at the more prominent corners, so that odd-sized panels are less obvious. Dig out holes for corner poles. If your ground is heavy, perhaps you should reconsider the decision not to get Carpenter Quotes?

o Set the corner posts into the holes, making sure that they are vertical and braced by scrap timber as need be. Fill the holes with concrete around them, and leave strictly alone for the next twenty four hours. The next day, stretch twine between the corner posts to ensure straight lines, dig the balance of the holes, and set the other posts in concrete too.

o Two days later, bolt the cross braces to the posts, making sure that they are perfectly horizontal. Attach the pre-fabricated panels as you go along so that you can see some actual progress.

That’s it really, although my mate who works for Carpenters in London refuses to believe that amateurs could the job themselves. I say they probably could, presuming that they are not perfectionists, and are determined, fit, energetic and strong.