Sure, your house is primarily a place of shelter, but for psycholgoical reasons, the way the outside of your home looks is very important. But even more than that, it’s important for the impression you make on people. The outside is the first place people look at; even passersby see the outside of your home. It is therefore important that the outside of your home looks as good as the inside looks. Believe it or not, the outward appearance of your home tells a lot about the kind of person you are.
With that in mind, how do you upgrade the appearance of your home’s exterior? One way you can do so is by installing an attractive fence. There are many fences available on the market today, some more attractive than others. One type of fence that can be both attractive and quite functional is a PVC fence. Most people find PVC fences to be quite attractive; they almost look like wooden fences, however with a somewhat flashier look.
A PVC fence is also easy to install at your home. No need to hire a professional fence installer; with a little initiative and the right tools, you and your family can install it on your own. In fact, installing one with your family might even be fun! Let’s take a look at the steps involved in installing your own PVC fence.
When installing a PVC fence, you want to make sure you have on hand the following tools and equipment. First, you need paint (It’s used as a marker), string, a saw, a post-hole digger, shovel, spirit level, duct tape, tape measure and cement mortar. Once you have all the material and equipment necessary, you’re ready to install your fence. Before you plunge right in, though, remember that the placement of your fence might not depend totally on your personal tastes. In many cases, the community has set zoning laws which require that the fence be a certain amount of space from the road. So be sure to check into this before you start the actual project.
There are two methods often used for installing a PVC fence: One is by setting all the poles first and allowing the poles to become firmly established (as the cement dries), then followed by putting in the sections of the fence. The other method is by putting in two poles first, followed by a section of the fence, and then another pole, followed by another section of the fence, and so on, until you are done with the entire fence. The latter method is the preferred method for persons who have never installed a fence before.
Examine your area; make sure the ground where you’re going to place the fence is clear and free from dangerous things such as electric cables or underground water pipes. If there was a fence there before, it is important that you dig out all the old poles, along with their concrete reinforcements. Once you’ve done this and all is clear, use your string to form the straight line guide; your goal is to ensure that the ground is not distorted by any stones or other obstacles. Using your tape measure, go along the string, marking after every 95 inches with your marking paint. The points that are marked are the points where you will place the poles. For this reason, it’s important that your poles are placed a distance apart equivalent to the length of the rails. If the distance between them is too long, you will have to pull out the poles; if it’s too short, then you’ll need to cut the rails. Once you have marked the points correctly, and they are the size of your rails, you can dig holes about 10 inches deep. As you’re digging the holes, make sure that you don’t move the string too much, as this will result in you making a crooked fence. Accuracy is of the utmost importance. One word of advice: Sometimes it’s wise to have a second person helping you with installing the fence. This is not just because of the manual labor involved, but so that you have a second pair of eyes checking to make sure everything looks straight.
Once all the holes have been dug, you place the poles in the holes, holding the posts level and putting in dirt so that all the poles are upright yet still adjustable. If there are any poles that are standing taller than the others, you can dig deeper, or you can cut the poles. Check all the poles to make sure they are in a straight line by checking with the string. Once this has been done, you then put concrete on all the poles. Make sure that all the poles are firm and straight. Once they are, you can then cover the concrete with dirt so it does not show. When finished with this step you should allow for the poles to dry and become firmer. Ideally, you should put the panels in the next day. The panels are quite easy to install. Simply slide them in; if they’re too long you can use a saw to cut them to the right size.
One of the reasons that PVC fencing has become so popular is that it is more resistant to adverse weather. A wooden fence, by contrast, tends to rot and get attacked by insects. A brick wall might crack when there are drastic changes in temperature. A PVC fence, on the other hand, withstands attacks from the weather quite well. And those pesky termites and other insects generally aren’t that fond of the stuff like they are with wood.
If you’re still not sure that you have adequate knowledge or skill for installing your PVC fencing, then give us a call and we’ll be happy to do it for you.
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