How To Make Your Own Picket Fence

This won't guarantee good neighbors, but it's a start

In the July 1994 issue, Popular Mechanics published a timeless how-to on making your own picket fence. We've updated the approach since then, but many of the ideas, tactics, and tools remain the same three decades later.

There's nothing like a fence to help define boundaries, both physical and social. Even when a fence is not designed to keep anything (or anyone) in or out, it helps draw a line between what we can impact and what we can't.

In addition to its utilitarian role, a fence is part of an overall architectural plan. Like a deck or porch, a good fence complements the visual character of your home and links its design to the surrounding landscape. And you can build it yourself with simple tools in a few good weekends.

The kind of fence you install depends on what you want it to do. If it's to corral the family dog, then it must be dog-tight, starting at ground level and rising at least 4 ft. high. If its purpose is to keep the local kids from cutting across your lawn, then a split-rail fence will do. And if it's to reduce legal liability, as when fencing off a swimming pool, then a stockade fence with a locking gate may be in order.

If, however, you just want to conceal the lawnmower and keep the neighborhood at bay during those weekend barbecues, then you're in the market for a privacy fence—a simple wooden screen that contains your outdoor life and presents an attractive façade to the rest of the community.

The most popular wooden fences are made of cedar, redwood or treated yellow pine. Redwood is the most rot resistant, but without treatment it weathers to a dull gray. Cedar is slightly more prone to rot, but can be more attractive over the long haul. When installed properly, cedar lasts many years. Pressure-treated lumber is normally quite rot resistant, but it too can fail. The problem is that fenceposts are often made of heartwood, which is the most resistant to the treatment process.

Post deterioration is also affected by the installation method. Installing a post in concrete, for example, makes an extra-sturdy fence. But the concrete traps moisture—a situation that eventually causes rot. On the other hand, direct burial provides good rigidity along with superior drainage around the post.

We opted for a cedar fence made up of 4 x 4 posts, 2 x 4 rails and 1 x 6 rough-sawn slats with dog-eared, or chamfered, top ends. While you can buy similar fencing in 8-ft.-long sections, doing this only makes sense if your yard is level. If your yard is sloped as ours is, it's best to build the fence from scratch.

Before digging any postholes, check to see what may be lurking underground. Contact your local building department and local utilities to find out what's buried on your property. Usually any interested party will be more than happy to come and locate its lines. It's then up to you to avoid digging through them. As for legality, it's your job to know where your property lines lie, and to set your fence a distance inside the lines that complies with local requirements.

After locating your boundaries, drive wooden stakes at the corners the appropriate distance inside the property lines. Then, stretch a string between the stakes to establish the fence line. Measure each straight run of fence and divide by the width of the slats plus the slat spacing to determine whether full-width slats will complete the run. While you can make minor adjustments to slat spacing over a long length, short fence sections require careful measuring.

Then, divide each run to produce post spacings of about 8 ft. You may have to vary the post spacing slightly from one run to the next, or modify the size of the fence. Plan gatepost positions based on multiples of your slats and slat spacing, less one-half of the slat width. This allows one-half of a slat to overlap a gatepost.

Use a posthole digger to dig the holes. To protect the grass, place the soil on a piece of plywood. Dig each hole to a depth recognized in your area as being adequate for the frost line. (In our area, this was 28 in.) Plan for the bottom 4 in. of the hole to be filled with sand for drainage. After digging all holes, paint each post with a sealer formulated for new wood [1].

After the sealer is dry, shovel 4 in. of sand into each hole and drop in the posts. With the string line in place, level and plumb each post while tamping loose soil against it [2]. Use a shovel handle to tamp 2 to 3 in. of soil at a time. Mound the soil around the post for water runoff.

After the posts are in place, mark the rail locations and cut the rail notches. If your lawn is relatively level, you can position the rails by marking the positions on a corner post and then transferring the positions to the other posts with a line level. If your lawn is sloped, mark the rail positions on each post by measuring up from the grade. For a roughly 4-ft.-high fence, measure up 12 in. for the lower edge of the bottom rail and about 36 in. for the lower edge of the upper rail. Drive nails partway at the marks on each post [3]. Then, rest 2 x 4 rails on the nails and scribe the rail notches [4].

Set your circular saw to cut 14/2 in. deep, and make several cuts through the waste area of each rail notch [5]. Then, chisel out the remaining waste [6]. With each post notched, cut the rails to length and fasten them with 3-in. deck screws [7]. At a corner post, cut notches on both sides, screw the first rail in place and screw the second rail to both the post and the first rail [8].

To attach a post to the house, bore a 12-in.-dia. x 1/2-in.-deep counterbore into the post. Then drive a 3-in. deck screw through the post and into the siding [9]. Finally, cut the top of each post a uniform distance above the ground. If your grade is level, use a line level to match the post heights.

We aligned the slat tops 134 in. above the posts. First, drive a nail into the top of each post, leaving 134 in. showing. After stretching a string from nail to nail, use this line to sight the tops of the slats. To maintain uniform spacing, place a 34-in. piece of cedar between slats when nailing them in place [10].

After nailing each slat to its top rail, move the spacer down to the bottom rail [11] and nail it in place. Use two 6d galvanized nails at each rail location.

Our gateposts were spaced so that one-half of one slat overlapped a post and served as a stop. The crossmembers are made from slat stock.

Lay the slats out on a flat surface. Butt the slat ends against a wall, and space them to match the fence. Then, cut two crossmembers equal to the distance between the gateposts and lay them across the slats flush with the hinge-side slat. Fasten each slat to the crossmembers using one 1/4-in. deck screw at each juncture [12]. Then, use a large square to check the assembly and add three more screws per joint. Cut a diagonal brace to fit between the crossmembers, and screw it in place [13].

We used ornamental steel hinges and hardware to mount the gate. The hinges required 14-in. galvanized lagbolts. Bore pilot holes for the lagbolts, and then drive them in with a socket wrench [14].

To keep the gate closed, we installed an adjustable gate spring mounted diagonally on the hinge side of the gate. After mounting, adjust the tension by pulling the pin from behind the large hexnut at the bottom of the assembly [15]. Tighten the hexnut with an open-end wrench, and, with the spring under tension, replace the pin. Finally, install the gate handle [16]. It's a good idea to nail a cedar strip to the inside of the gatepost to act as an additional stop. Place this so the gate's crossmembers bear the impact of the spring-loaded closing [17].

No matter which type of wood you've chosen, it's a good idea to seal it as soon as possible. In this case, rot is less an issue than warping and twisting. If you want a weathered look, give the fence an immediate coat of Seasonite, which seals against moisture but doesn't resist UV light. When you see the degree of weathering you like, treat the fence with a UV-screen penetrant such as CWF-UV, also manufactured by The Flood Co. To apply the finish, use a vacuum-pumped garden sprayer or a brush and roller [18].

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