Timber Fencing

Most Christchurch boundary fences are timber, and for good reason. Timber paling is cost-effective, straightforward to repair a bay at a time, and it looks right next to the city's weatherboard villas, bungalows and brick-and-tile homes. A well-built paling fence gives full privacy, softens traffic noise and stands up to Canterbury frosts without complaint.

The parts that matter are the parts you barely see. Posts should be treated timber rated for ground contact, set deep and packed plumb — on Port Hills sections that usually means deeper than on the flat, because wind loads are higher and the ground can move. Rails need to be straight and fixed level so palings sit evenly, and the bottom of the palings should clear the soil to slow rot.

Paling fences come in a few standard forms. Lapped paling is the classic Christchurch boundary: palings overlapping on rails for full cover. Butted paling sits edge to edge for a tidier face. Featherboard steps each paling for a shadowed finish that copes well with wind. Which one suits your place depends on exposure, privacy needs and the look of the street — Redcliffs and Sumner have plenty of all three.

Maintenance is simple but not optional. A stain or oil every few years keeps timber from silvering, splitting and soaking up winter rain. Keep gardens and soil off the base of the fence, make sure stormwater does not pond along the line, and replace a cracked paling before it lets the next one go. Small jobs early beat full replacements later.

When a timber fence reaches the end — posts rotten at ground level across most bays, rails soft, palings falling like dominoes — replacement is the honest call. Old posts come out, the line is re-levelled, and the new fence goes up straight with fresh treated timber throughout. The result should look sharp on day one and still be straight after its first decade of nor'westers.

Common questions

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Port Hills Fencing is based in Redcliffs and works across Christchurch and Canterbury. Find the business listing and directions on the contact page.

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