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Treated Pine posts and planks painted white for a new front fence inspired by American ranch style.
The project
My family has a property in Central Victoria in need of a facelift. After cleaning up the overgrown yard, I decided to build a white timber fence, inspired by the classic ranch-style fences in the US.
Thankfully, one of the trickiest parts of the job was handled for me - my Dad had put treated Pine posts in place many years earlier. These were spaced at approximately 1800mm which was perfect for the fence I had in mind. I don't have any details on the exact method he used when putting these in, other than to share the advice that these should be as deep as possible for added stability.
The farm had plenty of recycled timber laying around, including some old, treated Pine planks which were originally hiding the foundations of the house. I sanded these down before cutting them to size and followed the advice in some YouTube videos when spacing these out, before attaching them with treated Pine screws.
Attaching the first planks to the existing posts.
The top rail was completed first, which made positioning the lower two rails easier.
I then gave the entire fence two coats of white exterior paint. We used rollers for the planks but found the posts to be a bit of a nightmare. I'd use some form of spray if I was doing this again.
Painting complete.
To finish the job, I decided to try my hand at a pair of gates to match the fence. I again took inspiration from the classic American ranch style here and found a common design I was keen to emulate. I used a thicker treated Pine for this job, securing the timber with cup head bolts. I pre-painted the timber before assembly to avoid getting paint on the bolts.
Gates in progress.
Adding cross beams and cup head bolts.
Given the weight of the gates, I searched for the heaviest duty hinges I could get my hands on. I decided the hook-and-eye-style hinge was most appropriate for my needs, with a through-post style gudgeon. Along with the strength of this style, it also offers to ability to make post-installation adjustments to ensure the gates are level and swinging correctly.
I tracked down three brands in Victoria which were suitable for my purpose: Gallagher, who had strap hinges and gudgeons, Rotech Rural, who have timber gate hinge and gudgeon sets and Blackwood Country Gates, who have custom strap hinges and gudgeons. I went with Gallagher.
Installing the through-post gudgeons to hang the gates.
Now I just need to paint the house to match.
Before and after
More inspiration for your front fence project
After many hours planning, Workshop member Hazel took less than two hours to put together her front fence.
Community member Rodney created this D.I.Y Merbau front fence using decking boards and Whites Screen Up posts.
Check out our Top 10 most popular fence projects and 10 ways to improve your home's street appeal for more ideas from the Bunnings Workshop community.
