Fence Blown Down Advice Guide

10 July 2016

What to do when your fence blows down

In this post we are going to give you some helpful advice if you have been unfortunate to have your fence blown down due to high winds, who is responsible to replace and how to improve the strength.

Fence Blown Down

What options do you have with a blown down fence?

Nobody can prevent bad weather and if you’ve been unfortunate enough to have your fence blown down because of a storm, you really have two options -repair the fence or replace it. The choice is going to be down to the severity of the damage and wether the fence posts or panels are beyond repair.

In most cases its probably going to be more economical and sensible to simply replace your fence with a new one. We always recommend installing a high quality fence that will withstand strong winds and suffer minimal damage even under the strongest of conditions. A well installed closeboard fence with concrete posts from Peterborough Improvements should last 10 – 15 years.

If your fence has come down in a lot of cases it will be down to the fence posts themselves snapping at the bottom of the post, usually due to moisture from the ground rotting the post.

Economical Fencing Repair For Broken Post

Concrete Spur Post Repair Peterborough
Concrete Spur Post Repair example

One economical repair you can do in this situation is to keep the existing posts in place and install a new concrete spur post to it.

This is then concreted into the ground giving the strength of a concrete post without having to take the entire fence down or replace it and keeping cost to a minimum. You should expect to pay somewhere between £75-£100 for each spur post to be supplied and fitted.

Below we have included an instructional video showing how to install a new concrete spur post should you have the confidence to do this sort of work yourself.

 

 

Economical Fencing Repair for broken Arris rail

The arris rail is the horizontal timber that runs along of the back of a straight through closeboard (featheredge) fencing section. This can become damaged in high winds especially if a post has snapped causing the arris rail to take the weight of the fence.

An arris rail can be fixed relatively easily with the use of an arris rail bracket. This is a bracket made of galvanised steel that is specifically shaped to fit around the rail with holes in place for you to secure with screws. The bracket comes in two different designs flanged and non-flanged (flanged design shown below), which one you will need to use will depend on where the break is.

arris rail repair

 

There are two areas where the arris rail can break – close to the post or in the centre.

Here you can see how the repair is made using the arris rail bracket and for most this will be a repair that can be completed without the need to hire a professional.

The steps below will show you have to fix a broken arris rail near the fence post (common repair) using a flanged arris rail bracket. Simply use a non flanged bracket if the repair is near the centre placing the centre of the bracket over the break and attaching with screws to both broken parts.

Fixing an arris rail using a repair bracket

Step 1

Hold the fencing in place ideally with someone to help and place the broken arris rail back into its original position.

Step 2

Place the arris rail repair bracket into position as shown in the image above and check the level using a spirit level.

Once you are happy that the rail is level secure the bracket into position on the arris rail and post using decking screws ideally with a power drill driver.

What makes a fence weak to the weather?

General Wear and Tear
The main reason for a weak fence is usually down to wear and tear. If the fence is more than 10 years old it likely that the posts (if wooden) will have become weakened at the base due to moisture in the soil soaking through into the wood.

Poorly Installed
If the fence has been poorly installed this is obviously going to affect its ability to stand up to adverse weather. It may be that the posts have not been set deep enough into the ground, or not concreted in.

Fence Responsibility

Who’s responsible for a fence? Is it you or your neighbour ?

Despite what many people might tell you, there is in fact no general rule about you owning the fence on the left or the fence on the right as you look out onto your garden. The truth is that the property developer who built your house originally would have divided the land into plots and each plot would have had its own boundaries assigned. This is something you should be able to find on your conveyance deed or “transfer deed” under “the boundaries for which the buyer is responsible.”

You can find more information about boundaries and your responsibilities at this link

Some useful hints and tips

  • If you are living in an area that is prone to high winds you might want to consider a fence that allows the wind to pass through it. Installing garden railings or a picket fence will allow the wind to pass through whilst still giving an amount of privacy and security.
  • Make sure that your posts are set at least 2 foot into the ground and secure with concrete to increase the stability.
  • Treating your fence with a fence treatment product will increase its resistance to moisture and prevent it from rotting away over time.

Replacing Blown Down Fence

In most cases if more than half of the fence is damaged it is economically best to replace a damaged fence with a new one. If your fence does need replacing we will happily give you a free quotation and advise on the best fence to install. All our fences are professionally installed to the highest standard and are built to last. You can find more information about our fencing installations in Peterborough here.

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