Privacy fence tools

[Buzzard217]

Alright folks, Im going to be putting up a privacy fence at my house here soon and need to get my ducks in a row. I was all set on buying some nail guns and going to town but now im not so sure. After some searching its been recomended to use a strip fed screw gun to install the pickets. I know most fences are nailed together but in the long run I do think that screws would be better.

So what say ye? a framing nailer for the 2x/4x work and a finish nailer for the pickets? Or a screw gun for it all? or a combination of the above?

And then theres this drill attachment
http://www.toolbarn.com/quickdrive-qdpro250g2.html?ref=base

cheapest route if itll work for me.

 

[Bull]

I'm not positive, but I think I paid less or not much more for my Ridgid bandolier screw gun than that add-on costs, and it came with a battery and charger.

 

[Stuart in MN]

How much fence are you putting up, and do you have other plans for the power tools for future projects? Unless you have hundreds of feet of fence to construct, a regular old hammer still works pretty well and costs a lot less money.

I personally would stick with nails - the cedar fence in my back yard is close to 20 years old, and it hasn't fallen apart yet. On the other hand, screws would be better choice if you're building a gate.

 

[tonydanzah]

screws don't pull out and I doubt he using cedar which lasts a long time due the oils

 

[Buzzard217]

I have 255 ft of fence to build and 2 gates; one just a walk through and the other a drive through.

I figure I have 4 dogs and 2 kids that will fall onto the fence, throw footballs at it, ect. Screws just seem like the deal. And its lookin like 1 screwgun will be cheaper than 2 nail guns.

As for future projects... who knows. Id like to build a storage shed but those prebuilt ones look very appealing.

 

[sammm]

I just put a phillips bit in my drill and went to town. I used screws for everything, including attaching cross-members to post brackets.

Screws won't work their way out and you can easily remove them if you need to.

 

[zer0cell]

I'd say if you build the fence well out of treated wood or wood with some natural rot resistance like cedar and make sure to keep some distance between the fence boards and the soil (at least 3") then you should be okay. You could use screws if you want but a hammer and some hot dipped galvanized nails would be quite a bit cheaper and probably work just as good. Hot dipped galvanized nails are not only better at resisting corrosion than common nails but also hold better as there is more friction. Stainless nails/screws would also be an option for the longest life but expect to pay like 5x to 10x the cost vs galvanized nails. Screws may hold better and I'd definitely use them over nails for things like drywall or a subfloor but for a fence I personally wouldn't bother with it. When the wood reaches the end of its useful life it won't matter if it was screwed or nailed... rot is rot regardless.

 

[reptilezs]

ring shank, spiral shank and glued nails have excellent holding power

 

[ecotec]

robertson screws are a lot easier to work with than philips

 

[ecotec]

also... if you use screws, the fence will be easier to service.

 

[canuckian]

if you go with screws, I agree with ecotec, robertson are easier to work with. no matter if you choose robertson or phillips, make sure you invest in high quality bits, not the ones that come in the $10-$20 sets in big box stores. they strip out too quickly.

 

[Keep]

Screws all the way. I put up a fence in NC with "coated nails" Well after the first summer, I was back out there with a bunch of screws to fix what the nails didn't hold.

Robertson screws and a good impact driver.

 

[Rockerbox1]

I put up a privacy fence around part of my yard at my old place
only tools I used were circular saw, cordless drill, posthole diggers, level and a square

no need to buy specialty tools

 

[Buzzard217]

I put up a privacy fence around part of my yard at my old place
only tools I used were circular saw, cordless drill, posthole diggers, level and a square

no need to buy specialty tools

No doubt about it, but I dont need much reason to buy new cool tools. Im an just trying to streamline some things for my 1 man crew working on this fence.

 

[neverenoughtools]

robertson screws are a lot easier to work with than philips

X2. Philips **** BIG time

 

[JeremyManning]

Anytime you can talk your wife into a new tool to finish a project got for it heck buy and nail and screw gun, you need them both to build the fence right?

 

[zer0cell]

if you do go with screws i also think the robertson tips are better... although they are a bit harder to find. it just seems that the bits last a lot longer than the phillips because the phillips keep camming out and/or shattering under load...

 

[bigdummy30]

I just put up about 250ft. Of fence and I used my framing to simply secure the cross pieces so I could lag bolt them easier.....and as far as the pickets I hung them all using my finish gun but went back and screwed them afterwards......

The assembly line technique worked well for me since I was working alone....

 

[z28snksknr]

Sorry to selfishly hijack here, but is building your own fence significantly cheaper than buying the 8' sections from Lowes / HD? Just wondering if you are going custom as your own preference or if it works out to be cheaper that way.

 

[2chipped]

We use 3 1/4 nails for 2x4's and 2in for pickets....All bostich thickcoat which are triple galv and ringshank.
Make sure to use galv and ring shank for acq lumber, they hold up very well.

Installing 6ft tall with no posts showing over pickets, measurements are 68in from ground to the top of post........... top 2x4 is flush with top of post........... middle is 28in from top of post to top of 2x4...................bottom is 56in from top of post to top of 2x4

.

 

[bigdummy30]

For me the price was about equal with the" build it yourself" style a little cheaper but more importantly my girlfriends yard is sloped pretty decently from one end and 120 ft. Away To the other end so piecing it in allowed me to better match the grade of the yard....

I've seen the straight sections put in on a sloped yard and it looks like garbage and requires some kind of extensions/finish work to close off the gaps under it....

 

[2chipped]

Sorry to selfishly hijack here, but is building your own fence significantly cheaper than buying the 8' sections from Lowes / HD? Just wondering if you are going custom as your own preference or if it works out to be cheaper that way.

No it's not cheaper but...........those panels are fixed at 90 degs so if you have any grade they'll have to be stairstepped.
A stickbuilt can flow up and down any grade without the bottom being off the ground.

 

[canuckian]

Sorry to selfishly hijack here, but is building your own fence significantly cheaper than buying the 8' sections from Lowes / HD? Just wondering if you are going custom as your own preference or if it works out to be cheaper that way.

it may not be a lot cheaper but if you pick the right lumber, it'll be a lot better. I find that those pre-built sections are made with lower grade lumber and they seem a bit flimsy, or at least the ones sold around my area do.

 

[slip knot]

I used SS screws for mine. The screws weren't all that expensive @ $10/lb but they will last longer than anything else on the market when using ACQ treated lumber.

I'm gettin too old ,and am too damm busy,to be doing this fence again.

 

[Torque1st]

I just put up 270' of 6' cedar with 4 gates and a "maintenance" panel. Two of the gates were a 4' wide double for trash containers. One gate was 3' wide for a walk thru. One gate was a swing-open 11' wide for a vehicle. The maintenance panel was 2' wide for access to the backside of the rear fence so I don't have to walk around the block. Two screws hold it in place along with some metal plates on the rails.

I used cedar pickets, steel posts, and 3 ea 2x4 preservative coated rails per section. All of the rails were attached with lag screws and brackets. I used ~15# of 6d galvanized nails for the pickets with a regular hammer. We nailed each picket with two nails to position it then went back and put 4 more nails in each picket. It took 8 days for two of us to remove the existing chain link fence and put it all up. All of the pickets are above ground.

I used 3 10' long 2x4's temporarily fastened together to make a guide for picket height. I used 2x4's because I had them, 1x4's etc would have worked as long as they were reasonably straight. The first picket was fasten the appropriate height off the ground. Another "guide" picket was positioned properly and tacked on about 8-10' away. The guide assembly was placed over the top of the two pickets. Pickets were then fastened to the rails pushed up against the guide. When that section was finished the "guide" picket was removed and re-positioned another 8-10' away. Then the guide assy was slid along to rest on the new "guide" picket and the process repeated. I used a 16d common duplex nail for a spacer between pickets, checking plumb occasionally. This process leaves a fence that follows the ground contour.

I do not like the stair step look of fence put up with pre-made 8' panels.

 

[Flash21]

My vote (and what I used)..

Stainless Steel ring shank nails (the middle picture) loaded in this:

N66C - Coil Siding Nailer

WAY faster than screws. The only advantage I see for screws on the planks is to be able to remove them easily. But, except in a special application, who removes their planks after the fence is constructed?

 

[Brad54]

The boards aren't usually butted up tight together, are they?
I helped a friend build a privacy fence two years ago, and we needed a way to space the boards evenly (just like spacing deck boards).

I took a short length of 2x4 and cut a shallow slot up the center of the wide side, and made the slot just wide enough to stuff a carpenter's pencil half way down into it. Half the carpenter's pencil was in the 2x4, the other half stood proud at a 90-degree angle.
Slap the 2x4 up against two boards, with the pencil between them. Quick and all evenly spaced.

-Brad

 

[2chipped]

We nail ours tight because the local yellow wood plant sends fresh and wet pickets ,the gap when dry is 1/8 to a 1/4 in.

 

[Farma11]

We nail ours tight because the local yellow wood plant sends fresh and wet pickets ,the gap when dry is 1/8 to a 1/4 in.

+1. When mine dried out there wasn't much privacy. Had to redo all of it.

 

[Torque1st]

Cedar gets spaced about 1/8" because it is usually dry. Like I mentioned above a 16d nail makes a good spacer. A carpenters pencil is a little wide in my opinion but it depends on the look you want.

Wet products & PT lumber gets butted up tight together and will have spaces when dry.

Yellawood is ACQ PT lumber. ACQ is a LOT more corrosive than the old CCA and eats fasteners.

 

[sberry]

Not sure how I would do it but if I didn't have to buy 2 nailers for this job I wouldn't, would rather invest in a good battery screw gun if it would work, might take a slight amount longer than an ultimate production method but is handy, ideally suited to one man crew or even helper and you have a tool you will use a lot in the end. As was said, I would even be tempted to start with drill and a bit if i had to (corded not difficult on fence) and see where I went from there (after I got started). Its easy to run right out and buy right tool vs trying to predict and spend on things you might not need.
Good example, I was planning a job and considered a new nail gun, ha, my neighbor spits up, don't buy one I have a good one I don't use.
With air now a comp and hoses are needed by the time you switch and move could have been done with a screw gun. I can work as hard as I can with a modern gun and one battery, can even charge at lunch or break, work all day no problem. One thing I would likely source is a powered auger. Takes a lot of time to dig holes depending on location.

 

[Bull]

For you guys doing this where you have deep freezes, how far into the ground are you setting the posts, and what are you setting them in?

 

[neverenoughtools]

Here we set them in concrete.....usually 4' which is below the frost line

 

[Torque1st]

Wood PT posts set in concrete will rot about 2" below the surface of the concrete, lasting ~ 5 years around here. Wood posts set in clean gravel will last around 10 years here. Make sure whatever PT post you use is rated for ground contact. Post life will be shorter in Formosan termite country.

I used steel posts set in concrete.

For steel posts, line posts are set in 30" of concrete and corner posts are set in 36". Sometimes gate posts are set in 48" of concrete.

 

[srmofo]

Sorry to selfishly hijack here, but is building your own fence significantly cheaper than buying the 8' sections from Lowes / HD? Just wondering if you are going custom as your own preference or if it works out to be cheaper that way.

Not really, but home built is much nicer looking, especially when going up or down any hills or slopes. It will probably last a little longer also, those pre builts appear to be so flimsy.


I put up about 250' this past summer by myself also. I used deck screws (torxhead and 2 bits come in a box) and a cordless drill. Took forever, By the time I was about done, I thought to myself that I should of just bought a strip gun. Seems like most of my time was spent loading screws or bending over picking them up.

I also braced each post before dry setting them because I just wasnt cordinated enough to plumb the post out, while pouring concrete and tamping. Then I saw pictures for a jawhorse holding posts while tamping the concrete That also would have saved me hours.

I put 1 quick clamp on the top of the picket, got it leveled, then shot the screws. The clamp really helped keep things straight.

I also made a little table with some scrap that just rested on the middle stringer. It gave me a place to set the drill, box of screws, and clamps.I just walked it down the line as I worked.

I only put 1 screw in each stringer per picket until I was completely done. That way in case I had to redo a few, it was less work.

 

[Buzzard217]

I just put a phillips bit in my drill and went to town. I used screws for everything, including attaching cross-members to post brackets.

Screws won't work their way out and you can easily remove them if you need to.

I need to know more about the posts an brackets there. I d like to use those rather than replacing 4x's when they rot.

 

[zer0cell]

Wood PT posts set in concrete will rot about 2" below the surface of the concrete, lasting ~ 5 years around here. Wood posts set in clean gravel will last around 10 years here. Make sure whatever PT post you use is rated for ground contact. Post life will be shorter in Formosan termite country.

I used steel posts set in concrete.

For steel posts, line posts are set in 30" of concrete and corner posts are set in 36". Sometimes gate posts are set in 48" of concrete.

Formosan termites will devour even PT wood?

 

[Torque1st]

Even regular termites will eat it slowly. Carpenter ants will also destroy it.

 

[sammm]

Cedar gets spaced about 1/8" because it is usually dry.

In Texas, I butted my cedar pickets right next to each other. 1 summer later and there's a perfect gap now.

 

[sammm]

I need to know more about the posts an brackets there. I d like to use those rather than replacing 4x's when they rot.

I put in 2-3/8" metal posts and used these brackets. I should never have to replace either one again.

http://www.strongtie.com/products/connectors/PGT.asp