Lots of people want a 6' high (1.80m) Fence and we all know that 6' fence panels are a best seller. However, what happens when you want to put a 6" (150mm) gravelboard underneath the fence panel to prevent it contacting the ground and rotting or holding back a little soil from a neighbouring garden?

The answer is that is the height will increase and you may not want a 6'6" or 1.95m high fence as you will need a longer more expensive post. Another negative reason for a taller fence is that it will also have more wind resistance making it prone to expensive storm damage, plus it may overshadow your garden.

The good news is that AVS Fencing have increased their range of 5' 6" fence panels and associated accessories, including concrete slotted fence posts which are becoming even more popular because they are long lasting and also the panel can be changed easily by lifting out and slotting in a new one.

Also, our concrete gravelboard is even better than the timber gravelboard, and can also slot snugly under the fence panel keeping it off the ground and holding back a little loose soil at the same time.

There are two main types of solid wooden fencing:

• Fence Panels
• Closeboard Fencing

Which should I choose?

The pros and cons of fence panels:

• Fence panels are not good on slopes because you will get gaps under the panels as panels need to be placed at 90% otherwise the posts will not vertical;
• Fence panels are weaker and therefore not so good with our windy British weather;
  
• The life expectancy of a fence panel is shorter for the above reasons;
  
• You will have more holes to dig, as the posts are closer together;
• The good news is that fence panels are easier to erect and also they are cheaper!

The pros and cons of Closeboard Fencing:

• Closeboard fencing is a little slower to erect;
• The initial cost of closeboard fencing is higher;
• Closeboard fencing is ideal on sloping ground as you can stagger the fencing to fit the slope.
• The design of closeboard fencing can be varied, which allows you to make certain sections stronger on exposed sites;
  
• The lifetime expectancy of closeboard fencing is much longer;
• Closeboard fencing is made of small parts which are assembled on site, therefore there are no heavy panels to lift.

Top tips
When replacing an existing fence, there is probably a short section somewhere along the fence line, alter the arrangement of this so that you do not have to dig up all the old concrete fence post foundations you can dig into fresh ground.

Erecting Fence panels
If the ground has a slight slope start at the top and work down. It makes stepping the panels i.e. adjusting to suit ground level a lot easier to get right.

Erecting Closeboard Fencing
Do this in 2 stages stage 1 Posts and rails stage 2 add the gravelboard and clad the fence with featheredge.

Talking of wood, Ronnie Wood from The Rolling Stones is expected to pay his ex-wife Jo £6.5 million after they were given a 'quick' divorce yesterday (November 11)! It's lucky that AVS fencing is highly competitively priced – at least Ronnie can afford new fence panels :)

Your home boundary needs to be defined to create privacy, improve security and to help shelter your garden from some of the elements. Garden fencing from AVS comes in a great selection of ready-made fence panels and timber and concrete posts.

Ready-made fence panels are a great addition to the DIY enthusiasts, however it takes more than sticking up a few posts and screwing a few panels! If you want your fence to last, as well as look good, it is a good idea to use concrete fence posts because they are much longer lasting than Timber posts.

All AVS fencing panels will fit into the slotted posts. Slotted concrete fence posts are great because if a fence panel gets damaged, you can lift it out and replace it with a new one without any hand tools!

Timber posts still have a 15 year life, and are visually more attractive. However, it is best to extend their life by concreting the timber posts! Who knows what weather we will have in the UK this Winter.