Self-production of a wooden wicker fence

A fence made of intertwined boards looks attractive, creates a unique color for the hedge on the site. The technology is slightly different from the usual designs. The owners of land plots build a wicker fence of boards with their own hands in order to make an original fence, to save on payment for the work of specialists. The installation method is suitable for outdoor hedges, as well as a division within the site into functional areas.

Pros and cons of a wicker fence

The technology of installing boards has features that can be considered as positive and negative characteristics. The fence is assembled quickly, the space between the posts up to 15 - 20 meters can be closed in 1 day with the participation of two workers.

Positive aspects of installing braided boards:

• for self-construction, special professional skills are not needed;
• use natural, environmentally friendly materials;
• an unusual appearance that attracts attention is obtained;
• low cost of raw materials;
• you can use used sawn timber with subsequent painting.

The disadvantage of a fence made of interwoven planks is that long elements are needed for horizontal installation, which are not always available on the market.

Wood requires preparation, soil treatment. Reinforcing impregnations are applied regularly after 2 - 3 years of operation.

Building materials

Weaving is performed with planed boards; wood of the third grade is suitable for fencing a summer cottage area. The fence of a private cottage is erected from hardwood and coniferous species of the first and second quality categories. They put boards, use lumber in the form of a lath, a bar, but their thickness should not be more than 20 mm.

Vertical supports are made of tree trunks, a square bar. They use metal racks, for this they take pipes, channels. They put elements of a small section to facilitate the installation of curved boards. Brick pillars are rarely used, since they have a minimum size of 25 x 25 cm.

Prefabricated concrete pillars are used, prefabricated reinforced concrete beams and crossbars are placed as racks. Supports should be made of a material that resists wear and tear and resists moisture. Wooden posts are treated with oils and antiseptics.

What is the braid made of?

Any long boards are suitable for braiding, but they must have the same cross-section so that the knitting turns out to be even, without protruding parts of different widths. Flexible species include spruce, oak, pine, birch. It is recommended to put raw material, in the summer it is better to heat it in the sun to make it easier to bend the strips.

After drying, the curved elements remain in a fixed position and there are no destructive stresses inside.

It is not recommended to use unedged lumber, since it will not be possible to install it accurately, the appearance will suffer.

Classification of hedges

Small fences up to a meter in height are placed in the form of a decorative hedge on the area of ​​the site to separate the areas of recreation, vegetable garden, cattle farmer.Picturesque fences look beautiful as yard zoning. If a wicker fence is built with a height of more than one meter, it is considered as a full-fledged fence on the site.

There are vertical weave options, in addition to the horizontal arrangement of the braided elements. Combined versions are popular. In this case, sections with recumbent beams alternate with sheer installed elements of a wicker fence from a board. A complex option will look very original and picturesque, but it requires a preliminary drawing up of a drawing with a calculation of the dimensions and a study of the installation scheme.

Board fence - vertical weaving

Pillars are installed along the line of the location of the fence, concreted into the ground. In the spans, three or more (depending on the height) horizontal bars are attached at the bottom, top and in the middle. Weaving is carried out so that vertical branches are formed from the boards, and horizontal runs are visible in the intervals. Each subsequent element is wound in front of and behind the lower, middle and upper bar.

The lower bar is on the stops. Vertical boards are attached to horizontal rails, depending on the place of passage. After the end of knitting, the gap at the bottom is laid with a brick or stone. If desired, a covering of a wide board is placed on top, which will cover the ends of the vertical boards, protect the structure from rain and snow.

Horizontal braiding

The design is characterized by a simple installation scheme. The pillars are dug in at a certain distance, long boards are laid between them, which are alternately wound up in front of the counter, and on the second support they are laid behind the element. The upper and lower horizontal rows alternate in a checkerboard pattern, alternately placing different boards behind the supports.

The lower elements are placed at least 100 mm from the ground surface in order to reduce the influence of soil moisture and snow drifts. On gentle slopes and in mountainous areas, the soil is leveled so that the fence section along the length of the board between the main supports is horizontal, and the next one is lowered or raised in relation to the previous one.

In this case, the installation of two vertical racks side by side is required. The rows are laid tightly to each other, so sometimes hardware is not used for fixing, since the boards are held due to friction and bending forces.

Do-it-yourself wicker fence construction

To make a wicker wooden fence look organic, you need to observe the geometry of the structure. Vertical racks are level. To mark right angles, use building squares or invite a surveyor with a level and a theodolite.

Check the height of the support pillars, they must be the same so that the tops do not protrude at different levels. The fixation of horizontal planks for sheer weaving is checked with a level so that there are no distortions during knitting.

Take boards of different widths. Large sizes give the appearance of strength and solidity, thin elements look elegant, they are placed on low fences.

A wooden fence made of boards weighs a little, so only the supports are concreted, installation of a strip base around the entire perimeter is not required.

Markup

All remnants of the old fence and debris are removed from the border where the fence will pass. Grass is mowed at the construction site, bushes are removed, roots of stem vegetation are uprooted. The root system can destroy the fence structure if spring growth begins.

Begin marking from the corners. Pegs are driven in at the points, a nylon cord is pulled between them. Two vertical posts are placed at the corners in order to position adjacent planes perpendicularly at an angle of 90 °. The same doubled supports are installed at the points of rotation of the fence, if the placement line is uneven.

Along the course of the cord, intermediate stakes are placed with the same pitch to mark the location of the pillars.Smaller distances are chosen for thin supports, and up to three meters are calculated between powerful pillars. When marking, it is taken into account that the ends of the boards go behind the pillars so that their length is sufficient for this.

Installation of support pillars

The support posts are dug into the ground with concreting. Waterproofing is provided for metal and wooden posts. They take roofing material in one layer, fiberglass, and the roofing material is installed in two layers. Sand and crushed stone are placed on the bottom as a bedding. The same materials are used for mixing concrete, cement is added to them.

Concrete is prepared in a ratio of 1: 3: 5, respectively, cement, sand, crushed stone. Instead of gravel, you can use small fragments of broken bricks, slag, expanded clay, shavings. In metal supports, a cross is welded from reinforcement in the underground part, which is also concreted. For stability, holes are drilled in the wooden posts in the underground area and metal rods are installed there.

It is better to install the supports together so that one person holds the pole in an upright position. Otherwise, wire spacers are used to secure the element until the concrete hardens.

Processing raw materials, moisture protection

Wood refers to materials that are susceptible to rotting when excess moisture accumulates in the mass. Harmful microorganisms develop, which cause the appearance of black and blue spots, loss of knots. Bark beetles undermine the wood, reduce the strength of the structure. Wood is highly flammable and burns for a long time.

A wicker fence made of wood is constantly under the open sky, it is influenced by the sun, frost, wind, precipitation. To increase the service life, the boards are treated with various means. I release the impregnations ready for use or mix them before work.

Some means perform one type of protection, and multicomponent ones provide complex protection of the surface from destruction. Apply the preparations with a brush or roller on the boards and pillars before weaving, wait until they dry.

Fastening stops for braided boards

The position clamps are installed on the posts so that the lower boards do not move downward under the weight and do not rot from moisture. The elements are made of wood, for example, a bar is fixed at the required level, which supports the wicker fabric. To the side, such details protrude at least 10 cm.

Instead of wood, they put shelves of their corners, metal curved plates with a wall thickness of 2 millimeters. The restraints are also treated with antiseptics, painted or varnished when finishing the fence.

In brick pillars, embedded parts are inserted immediately during laying, so as not to fasten the supporting shelves after. In monolithic supports, mortgages are also placed, to which the brackets are subsequently welded. The corners are attached to the prefabricated posts using anchors.

Braiding technology

The ends of the boards are connected on a support, they are fixed to the post with the help of nails, screws, dowels, bolts. It is not recommended to dock boards in a free span. On the rack, the ends are additionally fastened with metal staples. Zinc coated hardware and fixtures are used.

Boards can completely frame the pillars, or only slightly go behind them. In the first case, the fence will look the same from both sides, and the second option will please only from the street side. The inner part will not look like a solid braid.

The installation of the lower row is carried out immediately along the entire perimeter, after the end, they begin to lay the second row, it is better to do the work with a partner. The top board is not woven between the posts, but simply nailed from above.

Finishing of a wicker fence made of boards

Use colored painting or varnishing of the boards. Sometimes they make a two-color version, when the protruding and falling parts of the elements are painted in different colors. Choose materials that are suitable for woodworking and weathering well.

Oil paints, pentaphthalic paints, enamels, acrylic and latex compounds are used. The protection is renewed regularly when paint falls off or when swollen spots and films appear. To reduce the consumption of paints and varnishes, the wood is pre-coated with linseed oil.

The varnish is used to simultaneously show the natural pattern of the tree, additionally protect the fence from the influence of rain, pests and ultraviolet radiation. Paints with a heat-resistant effect are used to prevent fire if the fence is in a fire hazard zone.