Fences give any home more privacy and security but they have limited lifespans. The old fencing must be removed to make room for the new fencing, and there are right and wrong ways to remove fencing. Doing it in an organized way with the correct tools will make the job easier and faster. The labor to remove fencing is extensive, but worth it. Removing fences is a job that does not take a lot of skill, just a strong back and the need to get it taken down and disposed of to make room for a new fence.
Pre-Removal Checklist
- Make sure that a rotted fence that is falling apart is actually on the property and belonging to the homeowner and not the next door neighbor. Check with the neighbor to see if they own the fence. Check where the home’s property lines actually are. The new fence should be located within the home’s lot lines.
- Contact the local power and utility companies to make sure they do not have lines for power, phone, or water near the old fence.
- Get a dumpster or other container to put the old fence materials in and have hauled away. If you plan on using a truck, make sure the bed is large enough to hold everything.
- Consider the amount of work this will take and check on the cost of having a professional do the job. Sometimes the cost is small enough that it is better to hire the job to be done, then to use your own labor.
Physical Removal of Fencing
- To remove a wood fence, start with the vertical boards. Use a hammer to knock each board away from the frame. Next, use the claw end to remove the nails. Last, stack the boards in neat piles ready to haul away.
- The next step is to remove the horizontal frame wood from the fence posts. Again, the hammer is used to knock them free of the fence posts. Removing the nails from each piece of wood makes them easier to handle and cuts down on the risk of someone stepping on the nails or injuring the hands when handling the wood. Sometimes parts of the wood can be reused and removing nails makes working with the wood easier and safer.
- Removing the fence post comes next. Determine if they are buried in dirt or if they are surrounded by concrete. If they are buried only in the dirt, removal involves digging around them to remove as much dirt as possible then pulling them out using leverage if needed. Rope and a pile of bricks and wood give some leverage. Consider hiring a professional to do this part of the job.
- Fence posts buried in concrete are difficult to remove but can be gotten out by digging around the concrete as deep as possible then using a mattock to dig further down to the base of the concrete. Now pull them out using the same leverage as for those buried in dirt.
Tearing down and installing new fencing surrounding your home can be quite the task for a homeowner. If you have plans to install new fencing in the West Michigan area, contact your fence professionals at Straight Line today.
