Fencing Around
The Sun Herald
Saturday April 4, 1992
THE Australian penchant for fences has encouraged some innovative designs in recent years. Home renovators are being encouraged to design their own fence, in consultation with a builder, resulting in some seemingly unlikely combinations of materials.
The standard hardwood paling fence has been replaced in many cases with treated pine which is more hard-wearing and is competitive in price.
Imitation sandstone products are also popular among people restoring Federation homes to their original glory but who find the cost of real sandstone walls prohibitive.
While lattice inlays in brick fences or sandstone walls have become the rage, old-style picket fences remain a confirmed favourite.
Mike Atkins, of Mike Atkins Designer Constructions, said renovators often had the fence built before they started renovation on the rest of the house.
"They do the front of the house so at least they have something nice to come home to," Mr Atkins said.
The savings from building a fence oneself aren't huge. Fencing is an exact skill, and many do-it-yourselfers run into tricky problems that usually end up costing them a lot more than they thought in both money and time.
The Sydney Building Information Centre's Dieter Mylius said problems with correct alignment on boundaries, and unexpected slopes in the land could become major time-wasters for people without the experience.
"To try to build a fence with anything but the straightest block of land is very difficult."
Mr Mylius said simple post and rail and paling fences were the best bet for amateur fence builders.
Paling fences: the traditional hardwood fence normally costs less than $30 a metre, fully installed. Increasingly, do-it-yourself fencers are using treated pine for these simple fences, because they are easier to nail and if properly treated (with copper napthalene and arsenic), are termite-free.
Treated pine also resists rotting and will generally last about 40 years. Treated pine usually costs about $30 a metre fully installed.
Fencing contractors might advise painting of treated pine, because it tends to yellow after a couple of years. If you want the natural look, waterproofing paints are available.
Picket fences: these are by far the most popular fences. Pickets themselves come in a variety of shapes, and can include custom-made cut-outs to match a detail on the awning of the house or a favourite flower design.
Ornate picket fences are usually designed for the front of the house only, and are often made from treated pine. The price will vary depending on the specification, but an average of $65 a metre applies.
According to Mike Atkins of Designer Constructions, a 12m long, 1.2m high dressed and shaped picket pine fence with rails and posts would cost about$660, and installation costs would be around $250, depending on the land specifications.
Paling/lattice/brick: a combination of paling fence with lattice detail at the top generally costs about $70 a metre. Brick and lattice combinations are more expensive. A 12m fence of this nature might cost more than $2,000 compared with $800 for a simple picket fence (including gate).
Lattice: A dressed pine lattice fence of about 1.2m in height and 12m in length (with posts set in concrete) would cost about $760, including a lattice gate, said Mike Atkins and installation would cost from $250.
Lookalike sandstone: this relatively new product is actually concrete masonry with quartz mixed into it. It looks very much like sandstone, but is a lot cheaper.
A 12m length of fencing, with 15cm width blocks, reaching to 1.6m will cost around $72 a sq m fully laid, compared with $295-$591 a sq m for unlaid sandstone (depending on width of the block).
There are some other costs associated with preparing foundations and installing piles (which are reinforced piers).
According to Boral Besser's Ken Smith, the total cost of this size of wall would be around $1,380, provided there were no problems with the slope of the land and the soil type.
The beauty of this product is that it can be installed with reinforced concrete piles (like piers) for extra strength.
REGULATIONS
THE Dividing Fences Act, which came into effect in February, specifies the many rulings on fence-building.
Each council is allowed to specify its own rules about fence heights, types and materials.
Check with your local council for details and remember that any fence beyond the standard paling fence specified in the Act requires approval from your neighbour and council.
Also, neighbours don't have to pay the extra money it costs to build something other than a standard paling fence.
© 1992 The Sun Herald
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