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Closeboard fencing
Built board by board on site, the long lasting choice for Crawley back gardens.
A closeboard fence is assembled in place: posts, two or three horizontal rails, then vertical featheredge boards overlapped and nailed one at a time. With nothing to slot out, it is far sturdier than panel fencing and copes better with ground that moves.
Crawley clay. Heavy clay soils are common across much of Crawley. Clay holds water in winter and shrinks in dry summers, so posts need to go deep and be set firmly, and timber should be kept off the wet ground.
Typical Crawley prices
Around £165 to £255 per panel width, or roughly £90 to £140 a metre, for a fence about 1.8m tall, supplied and fitted. Most gardens take a day or two.
What to ask your fencer
- How deep the posts will go. In clay, deeper and well concreted posts are less likely to lean as the ground swells and shrinks
- Whether a gravel board is included, so the featheredge never sits in wet soil
- Whether the rails are mortised into the posts or fixed with brackets
- What treatment the timber has had, and whether the cut ends are treated too
Pros and cons
- Strong, and easy to repair one board at a time
- Follows slopes neatly, useful on the hillier streets around Tilgate and Pound Hill
- Costs more and takes longer than panels
Common questions
Is closeboard the same as featheredge?
Yes, the terms are used for the same fence. The boards are thicker on one edge so they overlap neatly.
Will my neighbour see the rails?
Usually the rails face the side the fence belongs to. Agree it with your neighbour before work starts.