Residential Fence Installation: New Backyard Fences Built on Site

Installing a fence on a lot that has never had one starts with the line, not the lumber. We need to know where the property corners are, where the gates go, what is buried along the run, and how the ground falls. Once those are settled, the build itself is straightforward.

QC Fence Contractors installs residential fences from offices across the Charlotte metro in North Carolina and in Rock Hill, South Carolina. Most installs are wood or vinyl privacy fences, black aluminum, or chain link, and most yards get at least one walk gate wide enough for a mower.

1. 1. Measure and lay out. We walk the line, measure each run, mark the gate openings and note where the grade changes.
2. 2. Written estimate. You get the fence style, height, footage, gates and price in writing. Nothing is ordered until you approve it.
3. 3. Mark utilities. Buried power, gas, water and cable lines are located and marked before digging.
4. 4. Set posts. Holes are dug, posts are set plumb in concrete, and the tops of the footings are shaped to shed water.
5. 5. Build the fence. Rails and pickets go up on wood fences. Vinyl and aluminum go together as panels between the posts.
6. 6. Hang gates. Gates are hung on their own posts, latched and checked for swing and sag.
7. 7. Clean up. Dirt from the holes, wrapping and offcuts are removed and the yard is raked out.

For privacy, a six foot wood fence is the common answer. The picket layout is the real choice: dog ear is the standard, shadowbox looks the same from both sides, and board on board stays closed after the boards dry and shrink. Vinyl privacy fence costs more up front and needs no paint or sealer afterward.

For a view, aluminum is the usual pick around pools and on lake lots because it does not rust. For keeping a dog in on a budget, chain link does the job, and black coated mesh is much less visible than galvanized. On larger lots, split rail with welded wire fences a lot of ground without closing it in.

• A survey or plat, if you have one. Fences get built on the line you show us, so it pays to know where it is.
• Your HOA fence rules and the approval, if your neighborhood requires one.
• Where you want gates, and what has to fit through them: a mower, a trailer, a pool service cart.
• What the fence is for. A fence for a dog that digs is built differently from one that only needs to block a view.