Fencing, Gate & Decking Guides
Straight answers on cost, materials, planning rules and maintenance — written from what we actually find on site.
Costs & pricing
Reading a Fencing Quote: What Sets the Price?
A fencing quote is really four separate line items dressed up as one number — the boarding itself, the post system holding it up, how far a crew has to carry materials, and what happens to the old fence.
What Does a Bespoke Wooden or Metal Gate Cost?
Gate pricing is dominated by the opening size, the timber or steel section, and the ironmongery — not by the design drawing.
What Does Garden Decking Cost?
Around half of a good decking price is under the boards. Substructure, levelling and ventilation are what decide whether a deck lasts five years or twenty.
Comparisons
Closeboard vs Panel Fencing: Which Should You Choose?
Closeboard is stronger, longer-lived and follows uneven ground; panels are cheaper, faster and easier to replace one at a time.
Composite vs Timber Fencing: An Honest Comparison
Composite buys you fifteen-plus years without staining at roughly double the up-front cost; timber is cheaper, warmer-looking and easier to repair.
Composite vs Hardwood Decking
Hardwood gives you natural grain and repairability; composite gives you grip, stability and no annual oiling. Shade and maintenance appetite decide it.
Concrete vs Timber Fence Posts
Posts decide how long a fence lasts. Concrete outlives timber comfortably; timber looks better and takes fixings anywhere.
How it's done
How a Fence Installation Actually Works, Step by Step
Survey, written quote, agreed date, strip-out, set posts, build, clear away — with the two decisions you should make before we arrive.
When Is the Best Time of Year to Replace a Fence?
Late winter and early spring are the practical sweet spot — before growth, before storm season repeats, and before summer lead times stretch.
Wind-Resistant Fencing for Exposed Gardens
A solid fence is a sail. On exposed plots, permeable designs plus heavier posts at tighter centres solve what stronger panels can't.
Gate Hardware: Hinges, Latches and Getting It Right
Gates fail at the ironmongery and the post long before the joinery gives up. Rate the hinges for the leaf, and set the post for the swing.
Decking Substructure: Joists, Spacing and Ventilation
Boards are the visible half. Joist centres, airflow and drainage decide whether a deck stays flat and dry.
Rules & permissions
Fence Height Rules and Planning Permission
2m at the rear, 1m where the boundary adjoins a highway — with important exceptions for conservation areas, listed buildings and covenants.
Who Owns the Fence? Boundary Responsibility Explained
Your title plan and its T-marks decide responsibility — not the common myth about the left-hand boundary.
Fencing and Gates in Conservation Areas
In conservation areas the material and detail matter as much as the height — traditional close-board, painted picket and railings are the safe ground.
Care & longevity
How Long Should a Garden Fence Last?
Panels on timber posts: often under a decade. Closeboard on concrete posts with gravel boards: comfortably double that.
Fence Maintenance and Treatment: A Simple Schedule
Two short jobs a year — a spring check and a treatment coat every second year — add several years to a timber fence.
Should You Repair or Replace Your Fence?
Judge the posts, not the panels. Sound posts mean repair; posts snapping at ground level mean the clock has run out.
Fixing a specific problem?
Diagnosis and repair options for the faults we're called out to most.
- Leaning fence
- Rotten fence post
- Storm damage
- Broken panel
- Rotten gravel boards
- Waterlogged ground
- Tree roots
- Gap under fence
- Green algae
- Warped panels
- Fence too low
- Sagging gate
- Gate won't close
- Rotten gate
- Slippery decking
- Rotten decking
- Bouncy decking
- Cracked concrete fence post
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