Fence Design Ideas

A spacious and secure backyard is a standard fixture throughout America's neighborhoods. Most homeowners use their private spaces for all manner of recreation and relaxation. Thus, they prefer to be unseen by prying eyes of nosy neighbors and passersby. Luckily, many stylish privacy fence designs exist to let property owners get the best of all worlds. Thanks to these ingenious innovations, it is possible to secure the backyard against intruders without going bankrupt. Below is an overview of the residential fencing backyard design quintet that provide a backyard makeover, privacy and security at the same time.

Privacy Fences

Privacy fences primarily function as physical barriers between your backyard and the outside world. Many locales have ordinances that limit the maximum height. Generally speaking, however, ideal residential privacy fencing is around six feet high. That is usually sufficient to obstruct both visual and physical access by outsiders. As for frontage style, a vast assortment of privacy fence designs and colors are available from which to choose and create a personalized look. You may even have a fence custom-built to suit any preference or peculiar taste. Another option is online shopping to find attractive and distinctive wood fence designs to recreate. Also note that even though most residential privacy fences are offered in wooden fence designs, other formats may be found as well. Popular alternatives are vinyl and metallic decorative strips that work well for garden fence designs.

Picket Fences

Many people visualize living in a house that has a white picket fence, which resembles a perfect version of the American Dream. Most picket fencing is around three feet high and made of redwood or cedar. Of course, such fences serve to accessorize more than protect the backyard. Thus, picket fence designs typically vary the most and afford best chances to customize.

Deer Fences

Despite being beautiful to behold and graceful movement, deer can destroy the most well-kept lawn within minutes. To avoid such catastrophe, you can install wrought iron fence designs or wood fence designs to make the backyard inaccessible by wildlife.

Security Fences

Making your premises secure from entry by trespassers begins with erecting a security fence. Installing wrought iron fence designs around the entire perimeter of the backyard works best. Its height should be as tall as legal maximum to deter thieves from even thinking about climbing over onto your land. While you're at it, don't forget to weld or bolt reinforced gates onto appropriate places along the backyard security fence.

Split Rail Fences

If the backyard is large and contains farm pets like horses, split rail fencing is your best bet. Such fencing is seen very frequently in rural locales and is most often made from wood. The main drawback to split rail wooden fence designs is frequent painting. It is also common for horses to attempt escape by eating their way out of wooden fences. Besides putting a dent in your pocket, this can be quite hazardous to equestrian health. The bright side is that installing vinyl split rail fencing easily solves both problems. Vinyl fences stand up to decades of exposure to the harshest elements with no sign of rotting or rusting. Not to mention that vinyl needs virtually no maintenance.

There are three wood privacy fence designs that rank among the top. These include the lattice-top, shadowbox and your basic privacy fence. Cedar, cypress and pressure treated pine are the most common types of wood used to construct these fences which usually range from 6 to 8 feet tall. You will sometimes see these privacy fence designs used for fences that are less than 6 feet tall, but they aren't really considered privacy fences. Any fence less than 6 feet tall is usually there for decoration or to keep in a pet and are not recommended for privacy.