Vinyl Fencing: Privacy and Picket Fences That Never Need Paint

Vinyl fence is a post and panel system. Routed posts are set in concrete, rails slide into the posts, and pickets or tongue and groove boards lock between the rails. There are no exposed fasteners on the face and nothing to rot.

It is a common replacement for a wood fence that has reached the end, and a common first choice in neighborhoods where the HOA calls for white or tan. One of our customers, Nick in Charlotte, says he had a quote the day after he called and his vinyl privacy fence was up within two weeks. His video review is on the Charlotte fence contractors page.

• Privacy: solid tongue and groove panels, usually six feet tall.
• Privacy with a lattice or picket accent across the top. See lattice top fences.
• Semi-privacy: spaced boards that screen without closing the yard in.
• Picket: scalloped or straight top, for front yards and gardens.
• Post and rail: two, three or four rails for long open runs.

Vinyl costs more than wood to install and less to own, because the upkeep is an occasional wash. It will not take a stain or change color later, so pick a color you can live with. Dark colors show heat and scuffs more than white.

Panels come in fixed widths, so slopes are handled by racking the panel within its limits or stepping it down at each post. A solid vinyl fence is also a large flat surface in the wind. Posts need to be set deep in sound concrete, and gate posts are reinforced inside so the hinges have something to hold.