Renovation guides

How to build a low front yard fence

Draft guide written from standard practice, not yet reviewed by a licensed pro. Follow product labels where they differ.

Height, style and setback come from your city and HOA, not from a catalog.

Difficulty 3 of 5 · 2 weekends · careful

Photo of your room, the look you pick, then this guide with the materials counted for your room.

Step by step

1. Step 1 of 12

   Check the rules before you pick the height

   

   Ask your city's planning or building department, and your HOA if you have one, what a front fence may be: the height, the style (some areas want open pickets), how far back from the sidewalk or the street it must sit, the rules at a corner or a driveway where drivers need to see, and whether you need a permit. Build only what they allow.

2. Step 2 of 12

   Find the property line

   

   Find your front property line from your survey or your city's records; if you cannot tell, a licensed land surveyor finds it. The strip next to the street often belongs to the city. On a shared side line, agree with your neighbour in writing on the fence, the style, the cost, and which side faces whom.

3. Step 3 of 12

   File your 811 ticket

   

   811 is free and required nationwide before you dig, even for a post hole. Call or file online a few working days ahead; your state sets the exact wait and how long the ticket lasts. Mark your own private lines too: sprinklers and a line to a yard light.

   Before you touch the ground

   • 811 marks are in and every utility on the ticket answered
   • The height, the style, the setback, and any permit are checked with your city and your HOA
   • The fence line is on your side of the property line, or your neighbour agreed in writing

4. Step 4 of 12

   Take out the old fence, if there is one

   

   Unscrew or cut the old fence into sections, pull or dig out the old posts with their concrete — by hand near any 811 mark, and if you hit anything that is not soil, rock, or the old concrete, stop, leave it, and call 811 or the utility — and fill the holes. Old painted wood at a home from before 1978: test the paint before you cut or sand it — see the stop-gate.

5. Step 5 of 12

   String the line and mark the posts

   

   Drive a stake past each end and corner and pull a mason's line tight at the face of the posts, inside your setback. Mark the end, corner, and gate posts, then the line posts at the spacing your style or kit gives. Size each gate opening to the gate kit's instructions.

   Before you dig a single hole

   • 811 marks are in and every utility on the ticket answered
   • No hole sits on a marked line or a private line (sprinklers, a line to a yard light)

6. Step 6 of 12

   Dig the holes

   

   Dig each hole as wide as the fence maker asks, and as deep as your local frost line and the fence maker give — whichever is deeper — plus a few inches for gravel. If you hit anything that is not soil or rock — a pipe, a wire, a warning tape — stop, leave it, and call.

7. Step 7 of 12

   Set the end and corner posts

   

   Tamp a few inches of gravel into each hole. Stand the end and corner posts at the height on the string, brace each with two stakes so it stands plumb on two faces, and fill with concrete per the bag, or the system's own footing. Crown the top so water runs away from the post.

   Before the concrete goes in

   • The post is plumb on two faces and at the right height on the string
   • It is braced so it cannot move while the concrete sets
   • The hole is as deep as your frost line and the fence maker ask

8. Step 8 of 12

   Set the line posts to a string

   

   Run strings between the end posts at the top and near the bottom, and set every line post the same way, just touching both strings. Wait the time on the concrete bag before you hang anything, with the braces on.

9. Step 9 of 12

   Rails or brackets, level

   

   Wood: fasten the rails level between the posts, with screws or brackets rated for treated lumber. Metal or vinyl: fit the rail brackets or the panels exactly as the system's manual shows, checking each section for level. On a slope, follow the manual: step or rack the panels as the system allows.

10. Step 10 of 12

    Pickets, slats, or panels

    

    Pickets: set the first one plumb, space the rest with a spacer block, and check plumb every few. Slats: start at the bottom, level, with an even spacer between boards. Keep wood a little above the soil everywhere.

    Before you fasten the pickets or slats

    • The concrete set for the time on the bag and the rails are level
    • Wood bottoms clear the soil — wood must not touch it
    • The good face of the fence faces the street, or the side you and your neighbour agreed on

11. Step 11 of 12

    Hang the gate

    

    Hang the gate on the sturdier post with the hinges and the gap the gate kit gives, braced from the bottom hinge corner up to the latch side, or with the kit's anti-sag hardware. Check that it swings clear of the walk and latches.

12. Step 12 of 12

    Caps, finish, and a last walk

    

    Cap every wood post. Let new wood dry for as long as the stain or sealer can says, then finish it. Pick up the stakes and offcuts, fill low spots at the posts, and walk the fence.

    Quality check

    • Every post is plumb and the top of the fence runs in a straight line
    • The height and the setback are what your city and HOA allow
    • The gate swings clear of the walk and latches
    • No screw tips, nails, or splinters stick out on the street side
    • No wood touches the soil

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