Fences add curb appeal to your home and offer security to your property. It limits the movement of stray animals and unwelcome guests to invade your place. Over time, your fence cannot escape the wrath of natural disasters and the elements. When your farm fence gets damaged and shows signs of wear out, it is time to replace it. There are many things that property owners must consider when they plan to replace their fences. This article will help you decide when and how often to replace a worn-out fence.
Tell Tale Signs Your Property Fence Need Replacement
Whatever your fence type is, there is no guarantee that it can last forever. No matter how sturdy and expensive your fence material is, the time will come that it will show some signs of deterioration. Minor damage, if left unnoticed, will lead to permanent damage that no amount of repair can save your fence. Here are some tell-tale signs that your farm or home fence needs a replacement.
Leaning Fence
Your fence posts tend to lean over time due to ground shifts from road traffic if your property is along the road. A weakened fence post causes your fence to fall or lean over, which creates a domino effect on the fence posts and panels. If you take a leaning fence post for granted, you will realize that intruders will enter your property someday.
Moving vehicles cause the earth to shift, leading to leaning posts. There are underlying problems that might have caused the leaning, such as broken or warped boards. If you cannot remedy the post, it is about time to replace it because it becomes a health hazard. Replacing the fence is a time and life saver than trying to fix it.
Missing Boards & Parts of a Fence
Some parts, like boards and panels on your fence, start to loosen over time. The farm fence might look good outside, and it is too late to realize that it falls off after you accidentally lean on it. The structure of your property fence gets compromised with a single missing board! Children, pets, and farm animals might get hurt if they are around the yard.
There are many causes why the fence boards are missing, such as heavy pressure from pets or objects or trees falling over, causing the breakage in your fence. If the damage is beyond repair, get professional help to install a new one. Always prioritize the lives of people and animals by replacing the farm fence.
Rotten Wood Fence
If your wood fence lies on the ground and the area is prone to flooding due to heavy rains, chances are it cannot escape from rotting. Yellow, gray, or green stains envelop the wooden fence. The color formations are showing in your farm fence due to mildew growth.
Termites and wood borers have eaten the posts and boards of your wood fence. Wood borers and beetles are less visible as they do not produce tunnels, unlike termites.
Preventing wood fences from getting rotten is inevitable as the material cannot withstand natural disasters like flooding, heavy rains, or pest infestation. It is time to replace them with a different fencing material. It might be heavy on your pocket, but it saves your dollars in the long run.
Accidents Cause Fence Damage
Accidents can happen anywhere and anytime. Your fence needs replacing if, one day, a vehicular accident causes a wreck in your farm fence. The car’s owner is liable to pay you for the damage it has done to your farm fence.
Natural disasters like hurricanes or earthquakes have damaged your fence, and you have no one to blame except nature. Replacing your fence with sturdy material is the only solution to secure your farm animals, pets, and kids the soonest as possible.
You Have No Privacy
It is awkward to do your activities on the farm if neighbors can see you and unwanted guests drop by your property. The lack of privacy can also affect your schedule and mental health. You get bothered by people visiting your yard to take a sneak peek at your animals.
The best thing you can do is to replace the whole fence so that people cannot look at your property from the outside. Hire a professional installer to install a farm fence that solves your privacy concerns.
Overwhelming Multiple Fence Repairs
Minor repairs can save the life of your fence, but if you have been calling repairers to fix it, it can break the bank. Try summing up how much you have spent on fence repairs; your expenses have exceeded the price of a new fence.
That’s because you are in a state of denial that your fence needs replacement. Get your calculator and compare the repair cost and a brand-new farm fence. Say goodbye to your old farm fence and call a company to install your desired farm fence.
Splintered Wood Fence
Consider the wood fence repair cost if you wish to salvage it from splinters. You will spend a lot of dollars if you apply paint on the fragment. This minor issue can become a big problem if you cover the sliver with paint color, as the wood signifies cracks underneath it.
Repainting offers a temporary solution as the damage becomes visible in a few days or weeks. Cracks, holes, and splinters are signs of your fence deterioration, which can be expensive if you keep calling maintenance specialists to fix it. The best solution is to ask for help from a fencing company to replace the wood fence.
Holes Dot Your Wood Fence
The holes in your wood fence are signs of damage due to insects and animals that prey on the wood panels and boards of the wood fence. Rats may have eaten the wood to get into your farm.
But the worst among these culprits are termites, beetles, and wood borers who devour the interior of the wood boards, posts, rails, and planks. They are less noticeable at the onset of their invasion, but it is too late to see the damage when the fence is beyond repair.
The best solution is to call a professional extermination specialist to crack down on the culprits lurking in their hideouts. Once the exterminator has checked and controlled the infestation, it is time to replace the farm fence. Your fence replacement should occur after extermination to prevent them from returning and destroying your property.
Old Wood Fence
Updating an old wood fence by bleaching and repainting can save it from damage. If the farm fence has stood for years without the proper maintenance, it requires a replacement instead of an overhaul. If you wish to repair the farm fence due to sentimental value, check the structures before doing the makeover.
The color and type of wood can be challenging to find an exact match. Insisting on having an overhaul may lead to the poor aesthetic value of the farm fence. The best solution is to change the overall structure by hiring a fencing installer to get the most out of your investment. The repair can be more expensive than installing a brand-new farm fence.
Another thing that you should be aware of is that replacing more than twenty percent of the fence is not a practical option. A minor repair might lead to costly and time-consuming fence repair. Think of the cost of paint, labor, materials, and unexpected expense of the minor repair, including the stress you endure from overthinking.
Rising Maintenance Cost
The cost of maintaining a wood fence keeps soaring every year. If you hire a painter or a carpenter to fix the broken panels twice or thrice a year is stressful and costly. Because of sentimental value, you cannot let go of your old wood fence. It was your grandfather who installed the fence. You are afraid to lose the memories of your loved ones if you replace them with a modern farm fence. Getting a quote from a fencing company can solve the issues. If you wish to replicate your old farm fence, you can request customization according to your design.
Tips on Spotting Damage of Farm Fences
Farm fences are vulnerable to damage over time. Moisture, rains, storm, wind, and pest infestations are some causes of fence damage. A wood fence is more prone to rotting, especially on the ground. Here are some tips on detecting damage to your farm fences.
For wood fences:
- Look for cracks, splinters, and holes. You can first apply putty on the damaged area, repaint it and get authentic materials to fix it.
- Look for yellow or gray stains on the wood. It is a sign of deterioration due to the presence of pests and insects.
- Look for rotten posts. The base of the wood post is usually the first to rot if it lies on the soil. The fence post deteriorates as the water and moisture accumulate over time.
- Look for leaning posts. If there are one or two leaning posts, replace them immediately instead of the whole thing. Even wood fence posts on cement footing will get rot due to exposure to the elements.
- Begin inspecting the wood fence at the posts, where the rotting and leaning begin. From there, look upward to see cracks, splinters, stains, and holes. Calculate the number of panels, boards, pickets, and posts that need replacement. A total replacement is a good option if too many of them exist.
- Assess the extent of the damage after an intense hurricane or quake to determine if it needs DIY or minor repair. If it is extensive damage, leave the job to the professional fence installer.
For aluminum fences:
- Conduct a yearly inspection for rusting, discoloration, and corrosion. A bubbling paint requires sanding and repainting to protect it from extensive damage.
- Check the ground beneath the aluminum post fences. The soil may shift over time, causing the fence post to pull out or veer away from its original position. This scenario makes the whole fence frail due to the weak foundation.
- Look for cracks and warps at the railings and joints of aluminum posts. A professional builder should repair the damage. Hire a welder to fix it, but it is labor intensive job.
- Check for bends or dents after a tree falls, or a vehicle hits the aluminum fence. It is challenging to fix dents on metals; it is a good idea to replace them by getting professional help.
How Much is the Cost of Replacing a Fence?
The cost of fence replacement varies. It depends on factors such as length, height, and type of wood or fence material. The cost of a new wood fence will range from 1,675 to 4,082 USD. However, this price cost is subject to change due to factors affecting the fencing industry.
Conclusion
Fixing a broken fence can be daunting. Getting professional help rather than repairing it by you is a time and lifesaver. If you have no background in fencing repair, it can be relatively inexpensive in the long run. Common fence repairs like cracks, holes, dents, splinters, and rots might need a DIY or minor repair, but when the damage is over 20 percent, you must replace it if you want to save money and have peace of mind.
