Even with many other materials available today, wooden fences have lasted through the centuries, and remain highly sought after today. It’s easy to see why, they’re affordable, easily obtainable, and are just aesthetically pleasing. But since there are so many types of wood, it’s easy to get lost trying to find out which one is best for you. If you’re doing a fencing job in North Wales, here is a guide to the best types of wood for use in fencing that you’re probably looking for.
#1. Pressure treated pine
In terms of popularity, this is at the top when it comes to materials used to construct fences. There are many reasons, chief among which being how affordable and easy to get a hold of it is. Pine is one of the most common woods in America, so there is plenty of it to go around. However, it is not a perfect material. Pine is not nearly as strong as its brethren and can break very easily. However, it gets the job done as well as most people need it to, so it remains a mainstay.
#2. Cedar
The more expensive alternative to pine, cedar makes up for it by being a far sturdier and more durable material than pine. Cedar also contains natural oils that deter insects from getting too close, cutting down how many insects get into your yard by almost half. These oils also make cedar a rot-resistant wood, making it have a significantly longer lifespan than pine as well. It’s harder to break, wards off bugs, is completely immune to rotting, so what’s the problem? Simple, while cedar makes great material for panels, it loses its durability when placed in soil, so cedar posts aren’t nearly as strong as their pine brethren. When you use cedar for your fence, limit its usage to the panels, and use pine for the posts.
Any alternatives
There are many other kinds of materials to make fences out of. From plastic, to metal, to pretty much any kind of normal building material. Some are cheaper, some are much more expensive, some are more durable than wood, some aren’t. But this article is about wood, so they are not discussed here. But they are out there.
Whatever wood you choose, you have to be responsible and maintain the fence however you can. A good way to start off would be a good balance of the two main kinds of wood, cedar and pine, with cedar used to make the panels, and pine used for the posts. Keeping this in mind will ensure that you have a good, healthy fence for decades to come. For more information about fencing, get in touch with the professionals at Morton & Jones for help and any questions related to fencing.