How to install fence panels?

Do you want to fence the plot with a panel fence? Installation of fence panels can be done by yourself or use the services of professionals. If you do not want to pay for labor, you have technical skills, free time and helper support, build a fence on your own. In this article you will find some practical advice on how to fix the fence panel and what to keep in mind during the assembly work.

Installation of garden panels – where to start?

Attaching the fence panels to the posts is the last stage of the construction of the fence, which precedes several other, very important stages, such as:

• measurements and delineation of fence lines,

• leveling the terrain, clearing from roots, debris and stones,

• excavations for posts or foundation,

• concreting and waiting for concrete to be tied.

Do you prefer to avoid costly fence defects and problems in the future when installing panels for fence posts? Make sure that each post is accurately leveled and aligned with the other elements – for this purpose, use a regular spirit level, a water level, a meter and a string with which you will mark the fence line.

Tools, materials and accessories for mounting fence panels

Before you proceed to the installation of panels for fence posts, find out what accessories and tools you will need. Remember that most Polish and foreign manufacturers of panel fences have developed their own, proprietary fastening systems and tailored to them, ready-made sets of mounting accessories, which you can purchase together with the spans. It is also obligatory to pay attention to how many ready-made drillings you have on the posts – their number corresponds to the number of clamps needed.

What will you need at the stage of connecting panels with posts? Prepare:

• metal clamps for the starting, corner and middle posts (match the dimensions of the clamps to the dimensions of the post, choose products in the same colors, with an anti-corrosion coating),

• bolts with tear-off nuts – for fixing clamps with panels and posts,

• panel connectors – if you want to combine several spans into one,

• mounting supports in the form of wooden boards.

Also complete the necessary hand tools: pliers or crimping machine, nut wrench and cordless screwdriver.

How to fix the fence panel in a few simple steps?

As we mentioned at the beginning of the article, you do not need to have specialized skills or professional education to install fence panels on your property yourself. If you already have concrete posts and concrete has tied well, you can proceed to further work and put on spans. How to do it? Start the assembly from the starting post and head successively to the next middle and corner posts.

The fence panel must form a compact structure along with the pole. For its fastening you will use the initial clamps with screws. 

How many clamps should you put on one post? It depends on the height of the fence. For panel fences with heights: 1.2 m – 1.5 m, 2 clamps are enough, and for higher spans (1.7 m, 2 m) use 3 clamps. Tighten the mounting bolts to the limit, leaving no backlash, and then remove the nuts from them. To stabilize the spans from the side of the foundation, use support boards.

How are fence panels mounted using fittings?

System panels can be attached to the posts in different ways, depending on where the mounting holes were drilled on the metal profile. You do not need to install spans on the clamps one at a time, between individual posts, because there is an alternative way of mounting. It consists in combining several panels into one using special clips.

Metal fittings perform a twofold function: they are used to connect spans and attach them to the post. How to mount fence panels with fittings? Below are 2 methods:

• Method No. 1:

connecting the panels with clamping fittings (you need a crimping machine or pliers for this) and assembling the finished structure to the posts using fittings with a screw.

• Method No 2: 

express connection of two panels to the profile by means of a connector, screwed directly to the post.

As you can see, the assembly techniques are different, which is due to both the peculiarities of the materials used and the instructions of the manufacturers of fencing systems.

Installation of fence panels – the most common mistakes

During the installation of the panel fence, various technical errors occur, which makes the newly built fence unsightly and unstable. What are the mistakes? Their list is really long, and below you will find the most common shortcomings:

• too short concrete setting time – fixing the panels to unstable posts,

• failure to maintain the symmetry of the fence, poorly measured vertical or distance between posts,

• incorrectly tightened fixing screws,

• weakly clamped fittings,

• drilling additional holes in the finished profiles (in unprotected and unused holes, rust foci are formed, which also negatively affects the appearance of the fence).

Even a small mistake, made at the stage of measurements or concreting posts, makes the fence cease to perform a protective and decorative function. Remember that the construction of a fence is an expensive investment, requiring precision, knowledge and time, so if you do not have them, entrust the work to an experienced assembly team.