Laying Rails

With new fence posts in, it was now time to add fence rails.

One major change I made with this new fence design was to use of OWT Ornamental Wood Ties 2 x 4" Top Rail Saddles. The saddles are powder-coated metal and very solid. 

They could be installed at 90 degrees or perpendicular, allowing them to be used for the top rail and the bottom rail design I am employing.

They were easy to install. By placing one end of the 2 x 4 into a saddle while I worked at the other end, it allowed me to install the rails without any human assistance. 

They should also reduce a rot issue I encountered with the old fence design. Originally, I attached each rail with two screws from the top. Over a decade, water seeped into the screw holes and compromise the ability of the screws to support the rails, especially along the bottom rails which were often below the snow line in the winter. These saddles should reduce the likelihood of that occurring.

Another change I made was to use two 2 x 4s, one vertical, and the other horizontal, for the bottom rail support (similar to the fence I built last year in the stroll garden). 

I did this because this new design will use cedar boards instead of bamboo. Originally, the bamboo looked great the first two or three years after installation:

2018

Eventually the bamboo faded with age and was starting to look sad. 

2021

I am also hoping to keep some continuity between the fences throughout the garden areas, especially after the design change used in the Stroll Garden fence. In addition, the strengthening of this bottom rail will help lessen the possibility of the bottom rail bowing, a constant problem of the old fence design that had only a single 2 x 4 for the bottom rail.

I still have to attach the top portion of the bottom rail. I am hoping to recycle some of the top sections of 2 x 4s from the old fence. The bottoms, unfortunately, were in poor and rotted condition and had to be discarded. As a result, the bottom portions of the new fence consist of brand new 2 x 4 boards. The previous tops are still in great shape since they were never below the snow line, so reusing them should help save some money.