Share
Easy little project at my brother-in-law's place a couple of weeks ago. Took about 5 hours and cost less than $100. Really makes a difference.
The fence is all you can see from one of the bedroom windows, so it needed something to make it less bland. However the fence is very close to the house so we wanted to do something that wouldn't take up too much space.
I made a quick video with a time lapse camera just for fun 
Thanks for checking this out, happy workshopping.
Cheers, Roy
Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community @ColinL. It's great to have you join us, and many thanks for your question on this fantastic project.
It would depend on what gauge wire you used. Personally, I use Whites 1.60mm x 15m Stainless Steel 304 Grade Tie Wire as it doesn't rust and can hold a significant amount of weight.
If you'd like to show us the wire, with perhaps a 20cm coin behind it for size comparison, I can estimate how much weight it can carry. Anything thicker than 1mm should be fine.
If you did want to consider the trellis panel, could you link me to the product? Some of the lighter weight budget trellises won't last nearly as long as wire.
Mitchell
Hi Mitchell thanks for the fast response. The trelis that I was going to use is this
The pictures here are the wires and screws I bought from Bunnings today. Do you think I would be able drill into the white posts on each side of the fence and connect 2 to 3 horizontal rows of wires to support these roses when they're fully grown? I'm hoping the posts would be more sturdy than the thin colorbond sheets.
Thanks heaps.
Hi @ColinL,
The wire looks like it would be sufficient, though you could have difficulty installing those hooks in the thin metal posts. They're designed to be screwed into timber, not sheet steel, so they might end up a bit wonky. They quite possibly would still work, but people generally screw self-tapping Buildex 12-14 x 20mm Climaseal Hex Head Metal Tek Screws in and wrap the wire around their head before driving them home.
Mitchell
Hello @joe_edgell
Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community. It's great to have you join us and many thanks for sharing your questions.
If you glanced at the earlier posts, your estimate for wire thickness is correct. It starts from 1mm + and goes as thick as 1.6mm. At these measurements, the wire is still soft enough that you can apply tension to it when wrapped around the screw. Your proposed size of 3.2mm is too thick and will be difficult to pin down unless you use bigger screws. The trick to maintaining the tension is to make sure that the wire is wrapped in a clockwise direction so that when the screw turns it applies pulling pressure to the wire as it tightens.
When you reach the last screw in your pattern twist the wire in as you normally would. Because the rest of the assembly is on tension there is no need to put extra tension on the last screw.
Excessive heat from the Colorbond fence was a concern for some of those members who were planning to build this project. You may have to do some modifications on how it's mounted and the distance it will be from the fence. I suggest installing a Porta 40 x 18mm 2.4m Treated Pine DAR as a spacer and mounting the wire on the treated pine.
Using Whites 90cm x 30m x 50mm x 50mm Flower Mesh is an excellent idea. However, unless there is a gap behind it, the climbing plants will have a difficult time finding a path through Flower Mesh. Would it be possible for you to post a photo of the fence? This will give our members an idea of your setup and possibly offer you an alternative on how to mount your wire on the fence.
Please keep us updated with your progress, we look forward to seeing your climbing wire installed.
If you need further assistance, please let us know.
Eric
Hi @EricL Thanks for the tips.
A picture of the fence is below. We are literally starting from sand and weeds and putting in new beds, lawn, etc.
So what your suggesting sounds like we'd screw some lengths of timber DAR batten down the posts and along the top and bottom (presumably with tek screws or something like https://www.bunnings.com.au/zenith-12g-x-35mm-galvanised-hex-head-metal-screws-50-pack_p2409305 to hold the timber into the metal). Then we'd screw the wire or mesh onto the wood DAR with regular screws. We might run a length down or across the middle of the fence panel as well so there is an additional point to attach the wire/mesh to. I might paint the wood as well so that it blends in with the fence.
I'll give more thought to wire vs mesh. The convenience of mesh is tempting as I don't fancy having to screw in so many wires if we end up spacing them ~100mm apart.
I just notice there is the flower mesh with the 50mm aperture spacing Whites 90cm x 30m x 50mm x 50mm Flower Mesh or the trellis mesh with 100mm aperture spacing https://www.bunnings.com.au/whites-120cm-x-5m-x-100mm-x-100mm-trellis-mesh_p3060027.
I'll post once it's done and let you know what we decide to go for.
Hi @joe_edgell,
That sounds correct, and I'm sure @EricL will get back to us if he has other ideas. Just be careful with the timber down the centre, as any screws put into the panel itself will penetrate the other side.
If you were concerned about fixing to the fence or the heat radiating from it, consider a freestanding frame in front of the fence. You could construct it from Merbau posts, post anchors and your choice of mesh or turnbuckle kits and stainless steel wire rope.
If you want to use standard wire, my recommendation is the Whites 1.60mm x 15m Stainless Steel 304 Grade Tie Wire. It's about as thick as you'd want to work with whilst using screws and doesn't rust out in the elements.
We'll be looking forward to following along with your project and seeing the results. Keep us updated.
Mitchell
I did the same as Roy
First photo Feb 2021
Second photo Nov 2021
Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community @bq. It's terrific to have you join us, and many thanks for contributing to the discussion.
That looks absolutely wonderful and is a fantastic reference for our members as to what they can look forward to after ten months. Did you fertilise or encourage the growth in any way? Did you need to assist the tendrils in finding the wire? My Star jasmine tends to find its own way, but I've noticed progress is exponentially increased if I help the new growth find the guide wires and send it in the right direction.
Many thanks for sharing your project with us. We look forward to hearing all about what else you've been up to around the home and garden. Please let us know anytime you need assistance with a project or have something to share.
Mitchell
You might also like
