Wood Fencing
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Most people don’t think of a wood fencing as being temporary, but depending on the type of wood used, a wood fence averages 8 to 15 years of useful life. The species of wood generally used are Spruce and Western Red Cedar.
Spruce, (also referred to as pine, white wood or SPF) has the shortest lifespan. Spruce will have a more yellow appearance and generally will have more knots and imperfections than Western Red Cedar. Spruce is the most economical wood material but is also considered the lowest quality wood material. The average life span for a Spruce fence is 6 to 10 years.
Western Red Cedar (WRC), is a longer lasting, higher quality material. Cedar generally has a more attractive appearance with less imperfections in the wood. WRC is available in Clear, #1 and #2 or better grades. The grade indicates the amount of knots and imperfections in the wood. The more knots the lower the cost. The average life span for a WRC fence is 10 to 15 years. A WRC fence can last longer if it is sealed initially and kept sealed throughout its life.
At Future Outdoors we recommend Western Red Cedar for our wood fence customers. We prefer WRC because we want to be proud of the fences we build. We always use galvanized metal posts and always recommend posts that are 3 feet in the ground with concrete. Fences with posts not installed deep enough are more likely to lean and pull apart prematurely. Most of our competitors use 8’ posts on a 6’ tall fence and do not build there fences on the best foundation. At Future Outdoors, we believe that no matter what material you choose, the manner of the installation is where we excel over our competitors.
Warning: Beware of Incense Cedar, Chinese Cedar or other species of wood. These species of wood do not fight off bugs, warping and rot like Western Red Cedar. Make sure your estimate doesn’t just say “Cedar” or any of these other cedars or you may not be getting Western Red Cedar.