A fence price is the sum of several conversations
Before any company writes a number down, a fence has already been talked over: with yourself about what it should do, with the city about the plan, with the crew about the ground, and with whoever will place the notice before digging. Each of those talks can move the total. Treating them one at a time can help you see where a price comes from, and why two companies can land on different figures for what sounds like the same fence.
The talk with yourself
Settle your own priorities first, because they set much of the material and labor. Ask yourself:
- How long is the run, and how many corners and ends does it have?
- How tall should each stretch be, and how solid should its face look?
- Which material do you want to live with, and how much upkeep are you willing to do?
- How many gates, and how wide?
- Is there an old fence, a hedge or a pile of debris in the way?
Write the answers down. They become the brief you hand each bidder.
Corner lots in the city's zoning guidelines
Mansfield's zoning guidelines bar any fence, wall, landscaping or other obstruction to vision above two and one-half feet from street grade within the triangle formed 15 feet back along each right-of-way line from the intersection of two streets or alleys.
Ask Building and Codes whether that passage reaches any part of the fence you are planning, and ask each bidder to price the plan you settle on after the city's answer.
Pools in the city's zoning guidelines
Under Mansfield's zoning guidelines, a family swimming pool, or the yard it sits in, must be completely surrounded by a fence not less than five feet nor more than six feet high, and the pool may only be in the rear yard.
If a pool is part of your plans, take that passage to Building and Codes and ask how it reads for your yard. Then ask each bidder to price any stretch you plan near the pool on separate lines, gates and hardware included, so you can see what each piece adds.
The talk with the crew about labor
Labor covers far more than hanging boards. Ask each company to walk you through its part of the work:
- what the posts are made of, how far apart they stand, and how deep each hole goes;
- what each post is packed in once it stands, such as concrete, gravel or tamped soil, and why;
- whether end, corner and gate posts are a heavier size than the line posts;
- on a yard that is not flat, whether the sections stair-step or lean with the ground;
- whether the crew can reach the whole route easily, or must carry material a long way by hand.
A company that explains its reasons can be easier to compare than one that gives only a total.
What Ohio law says about notice before excavation
Ohio law requires an excavator to notify the protection service of the excavation site and planned start date at least two working days, not including the day of notification, but not more than sixteen calendar days before excavation begins, with some exceptions in the statute.
Ask each bidder who will place that notice for your fence, when it will go in, and how the start date in the bid allows for it. If you know of private runs on the lot, such as a drip line to a vegetable bed or a wire to a lamp post by the drive, draw them on the sketch and hand a copy to whoever leads the crew.
Gates and tear-out, priced on their own
A gate brings its own posts, frame, hinges, latch and fitting time, and a wide or double opening can call for heavier posts and bracing. Ask for each gate as its own line with its width, swing and hardware named. If an old fence stands on the route, ask whether its posts are pulled or cut off, whether old concrete comes out, and whether the debris leaves with the crew.
Mansfield/Lahm wind, rainfall and freeze-thaw figures
NOAA's engineering weather data for Mansfield/Lahm lists a 50-year basic wind speed of 90 mph (3-second gust at 33 feet), a 100-year rainfall rate of 2.8 inches per hour and about 54 freeze-thaw cycles in an average year.
Mansfield's drinking water
Mansfield city water is a blend of surface water from the 4.4 billion-gallon Clearfork Reservoir and ground water from ten municipal wells within 1.5 miles of the plant, blended at approximately 22% surface water and 78% well water, according to the city's 2025 water quality report.
The Building and Codes registration checklist
Contractors registering with Mansfield's Building and Codes Department must show liability insurance of not less than $100,000 per person, $300,000 per occurrence for bodily injury and $50,000 per accident for property damage, plus proof of Ohio workers' compensation; the fee is $100 new or $75 renewal, and registration runs January 1 through December 31 each year.
Ask each bidder whether that registration applies to its work, and if it does, to show you the current registration. Put the same three questions to every company:
- "What state license or registration, if any, covers this work, and what is the number?"
- Can you send proof of liability coverage and workers' compensation?
- Who on your staff will answer my calls once the job begins?
If you are unsure how your own policy treats a crew working in your yard, ask your insurer.
Payments and changes
Ask how much is due when you sign, how much once the posts are set, and how much when the last gate is hung and the yard is cleared. Ask whether materials are ordered before or after the deposit, and what happens to the start window if they arrive late. Agree that any change once work begins, such as a gate moved or a stretch made taller, is written up and priced, and signed by you before the crew does it. Pay by check or card so each payment leaves a record.
Lining the bids up
Pick one subject, such as the posts, and find what each bid says about it before going on to the next: length and corners, height and face, material, posts and holes, gates, tear-out, the notice before digging, the plan that fits the city's answer, warranty and payments. A subject one bid skips is a written question for that company. The totals are easier to judge once every bid covers the same fence.