Timber Fence Panels
Timber fence panels from HERMEQ cover permanent boundaries, temporary site fencing and decorative screening. Larch lap panels and feather edge fencing boards, both treated in brown or green, build a wooden fence line either as made panels or board by board. Structural plywood sheets go up as temporary and semi-permanent fencing around construction sites, fixed to posts that are usually concreted into the ground. Square and diamond lattice trellis panels carry climbing plants such as ivy and screen areas in domestic and commercial grounds.
Types of timber fence panels
Larch lap fence panels
A framed panel of horizontal, overlapping boards, known in the trade as overlap or waney edge as well as larch lap, arrives ready to fix between posts. Choose larch lap fence panels for a solid, private boundary that has to go up quickly, because each panel fills a whole bay in one lift. They are the usual panel for rear gardens, plot boundaries and the edges of landscaped grounds.
Feather edge fencing boards
Boards tapered across their width are nailed vertically to rails, each one overlapping the next, to build the closeboard fence seen on boundaries, roadsides and farmland. Feather edge fencing boards are the choice when the fence is to be built in place from posts and rails, and the same boards are used as cladding on sheds, stores and outbuildings.
Structural plywood sheets
Sheet plywood fixed to timber posts makes a solid, continuous face around a construction site, compound or works area. Structural plywood sheets suit temporary and semi-permanent site fencing where the boundary has to block views into the works and carry signage or a painted finish, and the sheets come down with the job when it ends.
Square trellis panels
An open grid of square timber gives climbing plants such as ivy a frame to grow up against a wall, along a fence top or between posts. Square trellis panels suit landscaped schemes that need a structure for planting, and partial screening around seating, bin stores and plant areas, with a choice of widths so a panel can be matched to the space.
Diamond lattice trellis panels
Diagonal lattice reads as a lighter, more decorative screen than the square grid. Diamond lattice trellis is the choice where a garden area or boundary needs some privacy while still letting light through, or where a decorative panel for climbers is wanted at eye level.
Larch lap panels or feather edge closeboard
Larch lap panels suit level runs that divide into whole bays, while feather edge closeboard suits sloping ground, awkward run lengths and fences that are repaired a board at a time. Made panels arrive finished, so a run on level ground goes up as fast as the posts can be set, one panel to each bay. The run has to be planned in whole panel widths, and on a slope each panel steps down from the one before, which leaves a triangular gap at the base of every bay to fill.
A closeboard fence is built on notched timber posts, with arris rails let into the notches and the boards nailed to the rails. The rails can follow the fall of the ground, so the top line and the base run parallel to it. Because the fence is built in place, it fits any run length without cutting a panel down, and a damaged board is replaced on its own without taking out a bay. Notched posts, plain posts and rails are in timber posts and arris rails.
Timber fencing for sites, developments and landscaping
The type to use depends on how long the boundary has to stand and who it is handed over to.
Construction site boundaries
Plywood site fencing is planned around the build programme: posts set in concrete for a semi-permanent line that stands for the length of the job, or shorter runs that move as phases complete. Complete timber hoarding systems for longer frontages have their own range. Where the boundary also has to cut noise from plant and breaking out, acoustic barriers do that job.
Housing developments and plot boundaries
Rear and side boundaries between plots are handed to buyers as permanent fences, so they are built in larch lap or feather edge closeboard, with the same style used across a phase so the street reads as one scheme. Front boundaries, railings and other garden fencing sit in the permanent fencing range.
Fence panel sizes, treatment and fixings
Sizes and heights
Larch lap panels are made in the standard 6ft bay width in a choice of heights. The trade names a panel by its height, so a 3ft fence panel is a full width panel 3ft high, used on low front and side boundaries or with trellis fixed above it, and a full height panel gives full privacy.
Brown or green treated timber
Larch lap panels, feather edge boards and notched posts are each supplied treated in brown or green. Green is the colour of the preservative itself, and brown has a pigment added for a darker finish from the start. Panels, boards and posts for one run are best ordered in the same finish, because mixed colours show as a patchwork along the line.
Gravel boards
A gravel board fixed along the base of each bay keeps panels and feather edge boards off the soil, so the board takes the splash and damp at ground level and can be replaced without disturbing the fence above. Timber gravel boards are pressure treated and come in lengths for panel bays and long closeboard runs.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need planning permission for a timber fence?
Most boundary fences go up under permitted development rights, which set a maximum height that is lower beside a road used by vehicles. An application to the local planning authority is needed above that height, for a listed building, and on estates where a planning condition has removed permitted development rights, which is common on new housing developments.
How do I measure a run for fence panels?
Measure the full length of the boundary at ground level and divide it by the bay width, which for a panel fence is the panel width plus one post. A straight run needs one more post than it has panels, with extra posts at corners and either side of a gate. For closeboard, the length sets the number of posts and rails, and boards are counted by how many cover each metre once overlapped.
Can I replace just one fence panel?
A panel fixed between posts with brackets or clips can be unfixed and replaced on its own, provided the posts on either side are sound. Where a post has rotted at ground level, the post is replaced first and the panel refitted to it.
Do pressure treated fence panels need painting?
Pressure treated timber does not need paint or stain to protect it, because the preservative is already in the wood. A water based fence stain or paint can be applied for colour once the timber has dried out after treatment. A painted or stained fence then needs recoating as the finish weathers.
Is tanalised timber the same as pressure treated?
Tanalised is a trade name, taken from the Tanalith preservative, that is widely used for any pressure treated fencing timber. Pressure treatment forces preservative into the wood in a sealed vessel, so it reaches further into the timber than dip treatment, which coats the surface. The larch lap panels, gravel boards and square trellis in the range are pressure treated.
What affects how long a timber fence lasts?
Ground contact and standing water decide most of it, so drainage around the posts and a clear gap between the timber and the soil matter more than anything else. Timber in or near the ground lasts longest when it is treated for ground contact, which is the treatment on the square trellis.