Fence Progress – April 18, 2011

The guys wrapped up most of the finishing touches on the fence project during the weekend. Erin and I are really excited about how good it looks. The front slat screen went up yesterday afternoon. As we pulled back in to our driveway from the White Rock Home Tour, we saw the completed screen for the first time. And it’s lovely!

Work left to do:

  • Finish staining the inside-facing sides where needed, touch-up stain
  • Touch up the screw marks on the house numbers (we may just leave it… haven’t decided yet)

Next projects:

  • Landscaping (this is a biggie)
  • Lighting (another somewhat biggie)
  • Drip hose irrigation for the perimeter of the foundation. This is a not-so-sexy upgrade, but it’s super-duper important
  • Picnic table for the back. We’re still figuring out a plan here, so stay tuned.

Horizontal Slat Screen

Horizontal Slat Screen

Horizontal Slat Screen

17 comments

  1. Hi– I found your blog while looking for a “modern fence company in Dallas”– who did you use to build the fence. We are getting ready to put in a pool, and we love the look of your fence!
    Thanks for your recs.

  2. @Jake Yes… it was 2 friends that helped out over the course of a month. Want me to connect you? Comment back and I’ll get in touch with you via e-mail. -B-

  3. I like the fence. I just had 2 companies out today to price a new fence. I had printed pictures from the Kirsch-Korff website. Just found your blog. Nice work! I was going to ask what dimensions you built to (saw in your other post (6′ o.c. with 1″x6″). What’s the top cap size?

  4. Hi Eric! I think the front slat screen is 2 X 3 (actually something like 1.5 X 3 when it’s really measured). The fence pickets are 1 X 6. And the end-caps… dang.. I’m not sure. I’d have to go measure them. I think they are all 2 X 6. Also, along the bottom the builders used pine.. 2 X 6.

  5. Hello Ben

    I am loving the fence what company did you use to have this worked completed? or did you do it on your own?

    Thanks

    1. Hi there! We contracted with a friend and told him exactly what we wanted. If I were you (assuming you’re in the Dallas area), I’d check out Casa Linda Fence Co. http://casalindafence.com/services.html — They are one of the few that I have found that has a horizontal picket project on their site. I’m sure that any fence company could do the work… I’d just lean toward one that has more experience doing it.

  6. Hi Mey-ling. The fence is western red cedar. And the stain we used was oil-based (be careful, it gets messy). I’m not quite sure of the color we used. It had an orangey tint to it.

  7. Awesome screen! My husband and I just got back from a quick weekend trip to Palm Springs and were very inspired by some similar screens we saw in the Racquet Club Drive Estates. We have a cool desert MCM in SoCal, really looking forward to building our own version of this. Lovely home 🙂

    1. Thanks, Jess! We are still very happy with it – just enough privacy for our fish-bowl glass house. I’m jealous you went to Modernism Week–I bet it’s a good time! Got some pics of your house? I would love to see it!

  8. May I ask how deep the footers are and how the fence is holding up two years later? My husband and I are going to be tackling a horizontal fence ourselves after being quoted nearly $5000 by a professional. We’d love any tips or firsthand experience – especially if you’ve noticed any sagging. Thank you!

    1. Hi Ashly. We did 8-ft cedar posts. So that means 2 feet under ground, 6 above (a 6-ft fence). Pickets were installed (horizontally) 6ft on-center. If I could have re-done the fence, I think we would have used metal posts, and staggered the pickets for a more mixed up sort of look. With the drought here (and with crazy dry mixed with crazy wet weather), a couple of the posts have shifted a little bit, but nothing hardcore. Honestly, I’m surprised at how well the cedar posts are doing. We have had a few pickets sag over the past two years. A few of them sagged right away, and others have taken a slower approach. To help slow this process, you should install tweener supports (like at 3ft) on the back-side – the same side of the pickets that will connect to the posts. One good thing that our builder did was to install pine on the very bottom; it’s cheaper and more weedeater friendly. If I ruin one of those boards with my lazy yard work, it’s way cheaper to replace than a cedar board.
      Keep in touch!

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