Planning an Atlantic City fence from the gate outward
A fence plan can begin with the long runs: the back line, the side lines, the height of the boards. Try starting somewhere smaller. Think about the places where something has to get through, whether that is you with the trash bins, a child heading for the street, a dog on its way out for a walk, or a car rolling into a side yard. The openings can decide where the posts gather and how the rest of the line falls into place, so settle them before anything else.
Start where people and things pass through
Stand at each spot where you expect to walk, wheel or drive through the finished fence and answer a few questions on paper:
- What is the widest thing that has to fit: a mower, a cart, a wheelchair, a vehicle?
- Which way should the gate swing, and what is in the way on that side?
- Should it close by itself, and should it lock from one side only?
- Will someone carry bags or bins through it, leaving only one hand free for the latch?
Measure your widest item instead of guessing. Then ask each company what width it would build to, whether a single leaf or a pair suits the opening, and how the posts on either side are set to carry the gate's weight over the years.
Decide what the fence should stop
A fence can keep something in, keep something out, or simply block a line of sight. Name the job before you name the material. A pet that squeezes through gaps may call for tight spacing low down. Privacy for a patio may only matter along one stretch. A front boundary might be about marking the edge, not closing it off. Will the new line wrap around a pool, hot tub or spa? Then put a question to the city early: what does it expect from a barrier around one? Carry that answer to each bidder and ask, in writing, how its gates, latches and design respond.
A conversation with the people next door
Before any stakes go in, find your deed, plat or survey and look for the corner markers it shows. If they are missing, or the ground seems to disagree with the paper, a land surveyor can locate and flag the corners for you. Then show your plan to the neighbors on each side. They may care which face of the fence points their way, how tall it runs near their windows, or where a gate opens. If anyone offers to share the cost of a fence on a common line, write the terms down and have both households sign. Ask each bidder how far inside your line it intends to set the posts, and who will check the layout on the day digging begins.
NOAA's figures for the Atlantic City station
For the station it calls Atlantic City, at 66 feet of elevation, NOAA's engineering weather data gives a 1% summer design temperature of 88°F, paired with a mean coincident wet-bulb temperature of 73°F, and a 99% winter design temperature of 12°F. The same data set lists, for that station, a 50-year basic wind speed of 120 mph (3-second gust at 33 feet), a 100-year rainfall rate of 3.0 inches per hour and about 66 freeze-thaw cycles in an average year.
Marking what's buried before the auger turns
Ask who will request a utility locate before digging, how much notice the request needs, and whether the crew waits for the marks before starting. A public locate may stop at the meter, so think about the lines on your side of it: a sprinkler system, power run to a garage or lamp post, a gas line feeding an outdoor grill, an invisible dog fence. Mark what you know on your sketch and walk it with the crew lead.
Questions about posts, rails and hardware
Much of what holds a fence upright ends up in the ground, out of view. Put these to each company, in writing:
- What material and size are the posts, and for wood, is the stock rated for burial?
- How deep are the holes planned, and what is that depth based on?
- What fills the hole around each post, and how is water directed away from the base?
- Are corner, end and gate posts heavier than the line posts?
- How many rails does each section carry, and what fastens the rails and boards?
- What are the hinges, latches and fasteners made of, and what finish protects them?
Ask the company to explain any answer you do not follow.
Review, paperwork and one license question
Ask the city's permit office whether a fence like yours goes through any review, and what that review looks at. If a homeowners association covers your street, ask whether its approval comes before the city's. Ask each bidder whether it prepares and files any application, and whether the fee is in its price.
Then ask every company the same question: "What state license or registration, if any, covers this work, and what is the number?" Write down the answer and the name of the person who gave it.
Before work starts, request proof of liability coverage and workers' compensation from the company you choose, and ring your own insurer about anything you are unsure of while a crew is on your property.
A one-page brief for every bidder
Put your decisions on a single page and give an identical copy to each company: the route with corners and openings marked, gate widths and swing, the job the fence has to do, the height you want on each stretch, any old fence to remove, and the buried lines you know about. Ask that each written bid follow the page in the same order. When the bids come back, any missing line is a question for that company, and compare the totals after every bid describes the same fence.