How to Build a Privacy Fence - Part 2 -Installing the boards

More tips and tricks learned while building a 6 foot wood privacy fence. This is Part 2. The fence is built following the slope of the land. Wooden posts are 4x4 with the corners being 6x6. The wood rails are 2x4, and the wood boards are 1x6 inches. All wood is pressure treated (wolmanized). I show you how to fit the boards around the corner posts.
Watch Part 1 -Installing the rails
• Building a Privacy Fen...
How To Install A Gate Latch On A Wood Fence
• How To Install A Gate ...
Fence Hardware
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[@wildernesswordsmith]

Good tip about using a full fence board for the end piece, W.

[@Woodified]

Thank you Sir.

[@jameshaydel8262]

I can tell by the way you hold the drill and saw this is a left hand fence. Great video .looks good.

[@Woodified]

You are correct. Thinking about it now if I was right handed I would have worked in the opposite direction.

[@goldmouth100]

Hello ..please respond...Did you leave those 4x4's sticking out at the top or did you cut them off to be even with the actual fence??

[@Woodified]

Thanks for the question. I shot a video recently cutting the tops off the last four posts but cut the footage from my last video (Gate Latch.) I cut the posts off even with the top of the boards.

[@goldmouth100]

@@Woodified okay thank you so much ♡♡♡

[@k-nemo]

What a great video! Very well done. Straight to the point and not over-complicated. Easy to follow.

[@Woodified]

Thanks for the nice feedback.

[@k-nemo]

You're welcome

[@Mixwell1983]

I love my impact but id go with a drill and set the clutch on those shorter screws. You dont have to worry about over driving them. I have about a 6ft fence i need to replace between the neighbors garage and my house so ive been refreshing my memory on youtube.

[@Woodified]

I find the bit slips out on my drill driver and strips my screw heads where the impact driver can finish the job without slipping. It could be Robinson bits I'm using. Good luck with your fence build.

[@Mixwell1983]

Woodified could be the robertsons. I use torx but decided to embrace the canadians and got a 5lb box of 3" robertsons. While they are better than philips i dont think theyre as good as torx. I totally know what you mean thougg when using an impact. Its soo effortless and rarely slips. Ill be using some robertsons to attach my stretchers to the ledger 2x4s on the wall. Just want to use em up and go back to torx head.

[@Woodified]

I'm in Canada so almost every screw comes in robertson. Torx heads are not as common currently just specialty screws have them but I hear they're the one of the best.

[@IngridKaur]

Some say it's necessary to notch the fence boards, cut the corners off ona diagonal. Is that true?

[@Woodified]

What reason do they give for notching the corners? Seems like it would only be for aesthetics.

[@allanjames2744]

I got a closed board fence fitted around 2 months ago and it no longer looks closed baord, the slats seem to have lost about 1cm in width leaving gaps between all my slats. Is this normal ?

[@Woodified]

Yes this is normal. The boards would have had a higher moisture content when they were installed. After 2 months the boards have dried out and as a result they shrunk.

[@raesunnyshine8524]

Very Nice work,Thanks for sharing!😀

[@Woodified]

You're welcome.

[@kbabbitt4115]

How are your pickets so smooth? The ones I purchased through my local hardware store are rougher than yours.

[@Woodified]

Sounds like yours might be rough sawn. Pressure treated only comes in smooth boards where I live.

[@AmburLynn]

Hello, Did you install a string line for each 8ft section separately or one string from one side of the fence to the other?

[@Woodified]

One for each side except the rear yard as it had a 3 survey markers along the rear property line.

[@ramirocastillo2148]

Good tips buddy.

[@Woodified]

Glad you enjoyed

[@Crotal_Karma]

I have the same Salomons! Love those shoes!

[@Woodified]

My favorite shoe company for at least the last 10 years!

[@davidfrancis1082]

Nice video. What's the distance you used between 4x4's?

[@Woodified]

Hi David, I spaced the posts no further than 8 feet apart. Most sections are 7 feet 6 inches apart and the shortest distance is 6 feet apart. I tried to keep the spacing in each run of the fence equal. I ran into a large rock and a stump while digging the holes along the back section but I was able to shift the post spacing down to six feet to avoid both the rock and stump.

[@davidfrancis1082]

Thanks for the reply. gonna be building mine soon, and will be using this video as a model. Good work.

[@woodsmandan]

Hi mate, you will find this job a lot easier with a Paslode nail gun.

[@Woodified]

Yes a nail gun would be really fast.

[@robertswift6101]

how come it moves so much when you stand on it? its in solid concrete

[@Woodified]

Yes it did move when I climbed on the fence. It may have been the fresh dirt in around the sona tubes. I tried drilling but my ground was too rocky. I had to get in a small excavator to dig the holes.

[@disco324]

Did you leave a gap between the boards?

[@Woodified]

No. I butted the boards tight as my boards were still wet when I installed them. Now that they're dried out I have about a 1/4 inch gap.

[@earlcousins6635]

I was actually able to follow everything you said. WOW! What made you go with the "Impact Driver"? Thanks.

[@Woodified]

I had decided on using screws and the impact driver works sooo much better than a cordless drill.

[@earlcousins6635]

Thanks. I'm going with screws as well. I'll ck. out the impact drivers at H-D. How high did you keep your fence off ground level?

[@Woodified]

The spacing off the ground varies from approx. 1 inch to 3 inches as I have a sloping yard. The boards are stepped to follow the slope but are at a consistent step between posts so some spots the ground was closer to a 6 inch gap. However I came back and filled in those larger gaps with soil. My goal was to keep the gap small enough to keep the cats out and toys in the yard without the boards sitting directly on the ground. For the impact driver you'll want one with two batteries so you can continue to work while one battery charges. How big is the fence your planning to build?

[@earlcousins6635]

Fence is 240-250' and will have 2 gates. I did a "Test" section using the Saki "Foam" and it worked pretty good. Quikrete is 1/2 the cost, but I'm an old guy, and those 50 lbs. , a bag, seems like a 150 lbs. I'm placing the "Post" on 8' centers and THE POST will be the "Front Part" of the fence with the "Pickets" set behind, and between the post. I saw a photo of that and it looked good. I'm using 3 "Rails" like you did.

[@Woodified]

Sounds like it will be a nice looking fence. I hired two young guys to help me with the concrete. The extra help made the task go so much faster and I didn't kill myself doing it myself -worth the extra expense.

[@StickShot24]

Why wouldn’t you have cut the post down first??

[@Woodified]

I used the posts for my string line for the top of the pickets.

[@thelegendkillergus7451]

Are the boards 1x6

[@Woodified]

yes the boards are 1x6s

[@antonia1945]

The rules continue together after a while?

[@Woodified]

I'm not sure what your question is.

[@zacharyleonard100]

How did you keep your string line for the pickets straight across the entire length? Putting in a fence at my house and having a hard time keeping the string line at the top straight for the entire length. Mine is also on A slight downgrade which makes it even harder.

[@Woodified]

I used mason's line and pulled it tight. I then marked the location of the line on each post and sandwiched the line between two screws so it couldn't move up or down. On the sloped areas I did the same thing but adjusted the line using the height of a picket at each post. Basically the top line was angled to follow the general slope between two posts then used screws to hold the line from moving.

[@zacharyleonard100]

Woodified makes sense thank you! I am using redwood pickets. What gap do you recommend I leave between pickets to allow room for expansion/shrinkage?

[@Woodified]

I don't have redwood where I live so I'm not familiar with that wood. I used pressure treated spruce. The boards I used came almost dripping wet there is so much moisture in them. I made sure to keep the pile covered so the sun didn't dry out the boards before they were installed. Because my boards were wet I butted them together knowing they'd shrink once installed. I now have gaps between the boards that are about 1/8 inch.

[@austincrum7919]

If you had that small of gap you should of ripped two boards, butted up, that would look way better.

[@Woodified]

That's a good suggestion thanks

[@CandleMFG]

Backwards, The tool belt that is.

[@Woodified]

I think I'm missing something. My tool belt is on backwards?

[@CandleMFG]

@@Woodified Nothing to be distressed about but framers (Old School) wear their tool belts with the pouches to the back. This allows you to bend over and move around more comfortably on a job site with out tools in the pouches digging into you stomach and other areas. ---> kzbin.info/www/bejne/iXO6hJSLlLWpfsk

[@Woodified]

@@CandleMFG Yes! Thanks for the tip. Bending over is difficult with a full pouch. I'm going to try wearing pouches back next time.

[@jayatwood5856]

Any vids on adding a door?

[@Woodified]

Sorry not currently. I've been thinking about shooting a vid on how I made my gate. I had tried something different and I wanted to see how it would hold up before finishing.

[@Woodified]

Sorry not currently. I've been thinking about shooting a vid on how I made my gate. I had tried something different and I wanted to see how it would hold up before finishing.

[@MegaBenglish]

your pickets are "plumb" , thats level up and down

[@Woodified]

Ahhh, thank you :)

[@beckysimpson3364]

All the fence companies in the area where I live in the SF Bay area don't cut the boards to fit around the raised concrete fencepost footing. That takes too much time. They just dump more concrete around to raise the footing above ground AFTER all the fenceboards are on. A huge crew comes to your house, tears out your old fence, sets posts in DRY concrete mix, builds the fence, all in one day. The fenceposts are always the first thing to fail. It's so wastefull.

[@Woodified]

That's part of the problem. We want things now, at the lowest cost and when it breaks or doesn't work for us we throw it away and get a new one. Some companies only care about their bottom line. Fast and lowest cost wins with consumers so that's what the companies deliver. The cycle has continued on for a few generations and now "we" have not learnt how to do things or fix things for ourselves. Thanks for your comment, sorry for the rant. My hope is that my channel will help people learn how to make and repair things for themselves.

[@jmeds_jammin]

Scrails would've saved you a ton of time

[@Woodified]

According to the website they're 8x faster!! If I was building another fence I'd consider using scrails. I'd never heard of them until your comment. thanks.

[@mikespain8655]

Enough concrete for a house footer, but fence looks good.

[@Woodified]

Thanks. I had to go below the frost line.

[@z1522]

Filling a gap at 4:30 with a narrow strip looks very unprofessional, and creates a weak area that can warp or work loose easily. Instead, trim two boards to match the one-plus-an-inch combined width, then plan each run ahead, so the 2/3 board can be used at each end. This takes more forethought but results in a far more professional job.

[@Woodified]

That's a good idea. Thanks for sharing. So far the thin strips have held up well.

[@Koobie9216]

You need to countersink your screws

[@Woodified]

They counter sink themselves

[@AnthropoidOne]

Thats a heavy duty fence. You werent playing around

[@Woodified]

LOL! It is a serious fence.

[@Timmyskills]

Is it me or does that fence look st of plumb and level

[@Woodified]

Good eye. Yes a few of the posts got away from me and are slightly off plumb. The back property line has a third survey marker at about the middle of the back property line and I inset the fence a foot off the line. I put larger posts in the corners and one at the third marker.

[@Timmyskills]

Hey I wasnt trying to bust chops. The job came out great. I just finished my fence. 2 sides are completely out of square die to posts not being lined up properly/ first time doing it.

[@Woodified]

@@Timmyskills Thanks T spiegs. I'm a recovering perfectionist, LOL. I hope you found it rewarding to have built your fence yourself. A fence can be a big job. It felt good to put that last board up and stand back.

[@Timmyskills]

I made alot of mistakes. My posts were out of line. And my tops of my fence slats go up and down because I was eyeballing it once I realized I was too high off the ground(unlevel yard) thanks for sharing.

[@TomBartram-b1c]

Gee imagine screwing in all them screws by hand!

[@Woodified]

LOL! I'd still be out there screwing away.

[@davidmoore3524]

Nail gun much faster, 5 fixings per board 2,1,2 Bang bang, bang, bang bang- done no time

[@Woodified]

I agree, a nail gun would be much faster.

[@mattt879]

Screwing lasts longer over time. That’s the trade off you face. Save time now with nails or ensure a better product over time by spending a little bit more time now by using screws? I also chose screws :).

[@virtue110]

4:50 way too much concrete

[@Woodified]

LOL! Yes, our aim was a little off on those few holes at the bottom of the slope. Better too much than not enough. Thanks for watching!

[@virtue110]

The amount of concrete you have used could build a small house

[@Woodified]

May be, LOL.

[@aaronrood4508]

You’re gonna regret using screws when it’s time to tear that thing down haha

[@Woodified]

Maybe. I'm thinking a reciprocating saw would quickly break the fence down into manageable sections. But I don't need to worry about that for a long time.

[@graybeardsage]

Actually, screws make disassembly super easy. I use torx head deck screws as Phillips strip easily. If you need to take down a section it just unscrew without damaging anything. Try taking down a fence that's been nailed. That sucks! Also screws make replacing pickets easy too. Nails suck!

[@lpz3665]

Long fence runs like that I use a nail gun on Gates I use screws. Good luck with that.

[@Woodified]

Yes nails would be SOOOO much faster.

[@ggs7747]

Concrete is not needed for every post Jeez only for the gate concrete gets pushed upwards after time and fucks your whole fence up especially out here in Florida this is what I do for a living n my customers fences live threw storms lmao just stop being lazy and dig deep son lmao

[@Woodified]

I'm down below the frost line. I couldn't go any deeper as there is bedrock in my area.

[@joerabena20]

Plum....not level!

[@Woodified]

Ya right, thanks.

[@mattkenners8944]

No thank you.

[@Woodified]

thanks for watching

[@pasnthr6251]

All these fences and no one will let trump build one☹️

[@xTWISTED_WAYZx]

Lmao sounded so sad 😂 cheer up Biden may have to use the shit for fencing anyways. :)

[@jeremiahrea8024]

This hurts my eyes

[@Woodified]

What is it about the video that hurts your eyes?