Building your own fence is not a difficult task, but there are a few simple directions that you will need to follow if you want to have a fence that looks good and lasts a lifetime.
Before you dash out and start digging holes, you need to check that your fence meets all the local building standards.
Sometimes they can be quite strict about the height of a fence and the last thing you want is to finish your fence and then be told that it has to come down.
Depending on exactly where you live, it is important to find out how far down into the ground the frost will reach in the winter.
This is because you will have to dig the holes deep enough to get past the frost level or else the first hard frost will force the posts straight back out of the ground.
Next thing to do is to make sure that your fence follows a straight line.
There is nothing more unsightly than a fence that wanders all over the place.
To build a straight fence, first of all dig the holes for the posts at each end of the fence.
Make sure that these posts are plumb by using a spirit level and then concrete them in place.
Once the concrete has set, you can fix a string between them.
Make sure that the string is taught as you will be using it to line up all the remaining posts in between the two end posts.
Now measure out the distance between each post along the string line and mark the position on the ground.
This will give you the correct spacing between posts and will make sure that the holes are in the right places.
Then dig out the holes, set in your posts and concrete them in place just as you have done with the end posts.
Finally, fix the horizontal rails to the posts using at least two rails but preferably three.
One rail should be close to the ground, one close to the top of the posts and the other rail somewhere in the middle.
Finally, fix your vertical slats to these rails and the job is done.