Tuesday, June 01, 2010

Vinyl Fencing Sucks


Being and owner of both large and small animals; fencing is something that is in mind. I need to keep horses inside the pasture. I need to keep chickens out of the gardens and I need to keep predators out of the chicken coop. It’s amazing what one can do with electric braid wire, chicken wire and hardware cloth.

I am surprised to see a few farms using vinyl fencing, especially horse farms. I have yet to see a vinyl fence look good after two years of its installation. The three fences I see most frequently is one that the elk are constantly taking out. Horses just haven’t learned that all they need to do is lean on the rails and they pop right out. The other two fences are now totally warped by the wind. I saw them all being installed by professional installers, yet after a good wind storm they all lean like surf pines.

These white vinyl fences turn green faster than any wooden fence I’ve ever seen. It looks like not only does one have to reset the posts after a good wind storm, but pressure washing is also necessary. It seems to me that a good old wooden fence is the best value and lowest maintenance of all ridged fencing.

Vinyl fences look artificially good when first installed, however with their components being so uniform any mistake stands out like a sore thumb.

6 Comments:

Blogger JustRex said...

The one and only reason they are so popular is that they are easy to install. I thought that part of the pride of having a farm was it was a place that you built with your own hands, not installed by a subcontractor from Lowes. But maybe I've got it all wrong. If given the opportunity, I will take pride in having my own evil overlord secret lair. Now where are my flunkies?

5:19 AM  
Blogger mark said...

I'm trying to think of things that vinyl improves. Fences? Nope. House siding? Not even a little bit. Go-go boots? Toss-up.

8:27 AM  
Blogger richpix said...

"Vinyl Fencing Sucks" Yup.

Plastic in general sucks.

5:09 PM  
Blogger g said...

I can't afford vinyl. Mine is made from cedar rails and pressure treated posts. It's about due for a new paint job.

7:12 PM  
Blogger The Guy Who Writes This said...

Darev, they are called kids

Mark, vinyl windows are easy to hang, and let's not forget about the cars with the vinyl tops back in the 70s.

Rich, It's surprising how much plastic surrounds up.

g, if you had vinyl you'd have to pressure wash it every year.

5:28 AM  
Blogger A Perfect 10 Fencing said...

I agree that vinyl may not be the best choice for horse farms, but in everyday neighborhoods it holds up pretty well. You definitely can't buy the materials at your local home improvement store because they are far more inferior than a big manufacterer. I have seen fences we have installed 4-5 years ago that still look brand new. I'm sure the home owner has put some care into it though. Point is, it's not as care free as it is advertised to be, but overall a pretty good fence.

6:11 PM  

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