Wooden Fencing- Wood types

Once you have decided you want a wooden fence, you need to decide what type of wood you would like to use. The common wood in the Raleigh Durham area is pressure treated southern yellow pine. It is available at all lumber yards including home improvement stores. Southern yellow pine is used for privacy fences, picket fences, post and rail fences, 2 and 3 rail fences, and more. Although this is the common material used, there are other lumbers available. Cedar is a popular choice for post and rail fencing. The cedar is slightly more expensive in this application, but has some good features to mention. Cedar post and rail fencing has a more rugged look than southern yellow pine. The rails are all different as it is not milled through a saw. Cedar also has natural oils that resist the elements, similar to pressure treated lumber. It will gray over time if a uv protective sealant is not applied. Cedar can also be used in privacy fencing. It comes in regular pickets and a tounge and groove. Cedar privacy fencing is expensive! Another option in wood type is bamboo. It seems to be a growing tend and accents pools and tropical gardens well. Bamboo is considered “going green”, as it too has natural properties that resist the elements and is not treated with chemicals.

When it comes to southern yellow pine, it comes in different colors, so to say. It depends on the chemical used to treat it. Traditional pressure treated lumber is a brownish green color. Most decks are built out of this lumber. This types of lumber is treated with arsenic. Although tests have shown it does not leak enough of the chemical in the ground to be harmful to humans, it is not reommended for use near live stock drinking water, or a human drinking supply. Using this lumber on a property that has city water or even well water is considered safe. Another option is the bright pressure treated lumber. It has a much lighter appearance and almost looks as if it is not pressure treated. The lighter appearance is from what it is treated with. The bright pressure treated lumber is treated with copper. Both materials can easily be bought from local home improvement stores and lumber yards. The pressure treating qualities and life of the lumber are the same. We have installed both types and have found that the design of the fence plays a major role in the color of the wood used. If you would like your fence to blend in with the woods and have a more subtle effect, the traditional pressure treated lumber is a good choice. If you want your fence to stand out, the bright pressure treated lumber is a good choice.

For people in the Raleigh/Durham area, we try to keep a sample of both with us when we come out to do an estimate or consultation. If you are not in this area or want to do the research on your own, its easy to do. Home Depot carries bright pressure treated lumber, Lowes carries traditional. One more thing- Never burn pressure treated lumber! The chemicals are not healthy to breath! Dispose of it in land fills where pressure treated lumber is accepted!

Thanks for reading! Please feel free to comment with any suggestions on articles you would like to see!

Scott