Fence Installation Costs UK: DIY or Professional?

GLab

Hi all,

Has anyone in the UK had new fences put up recently? We’re looking at four standard 6' x 3' panels – nothing too fancy, as we’ll add lighting/plants later on.

I was thinking of ordering the panels online and fitting them myself, but my partner feels it would be safer to hire someone to supply and install. Roughly how much have you paid for installation, and do you think it’s worth DIY or better to leave it to a pro?

Cheers!

Albermarle

Presume you will need posts to fit the panels in and that would be the more critical part of the job.
What kind of posts are you looking at, concrete ?

GLab

@Albermarle, I’m planning to go with timber posts rather than concrete, just to keep it straightforward. 

greyteam1959

You would be better find in a local timber merchant for the fence panels rather than buy them online. 
There is some absolutely appalling stuff on the market. 

GLab

Hi @greyteam1959, Harlow Timber Merchants (harlowbros.co.uk) is one I've known for a long time, always have decent stuff, so sourcing the timber online shouldn't be too much of an issue.

It's more the job it's self. DIY or spend some more hiring someone? And how much more should I expect that to be?

CliveOfIndia

It really comes down to simply how "able-bodied" you are, if that's the right phrase.  There's nothing at all difficult, from a technical point of view, in putting up a fence.  The key thing is just to take your time, and in particular make sure the posts are perfectly perpendicular to the ground and are spaced correctly to suit the panels.  It takes time, and there's a lot of faffing around to check and double-check all the measurements, angles, etc., but it's not at all difficult.

It is, however, very hard physical work.  Digging holes for the posts is surprisingly heavy work in itself, mixing concrete by hand can be back-breaking, and lugging unwieldy fence posts/panels around can be awkward.

I've put up more fences than I care to remember at various houses over the years when I was younger, both with concrete and wooden posts.  Saved a fair bit of money, and did a good job of it, if I do say so myself.  But when we needed a very large run of fence replacing a couple of years back, my good lady succeeded in persuading me that I'm not as young now as I once was, and we'd just spend the money to get someone in to do it.  Probably the right choice in hindsight!

greyteam1959

GLab said:

Hi @greyteam1959, Harlow Timber Merchants (harlowbros.co.uk) is one I've known for a long time, always have decent stuff, so sourcing the timber online shouldn't be too much of an issue.

It's more the job it's self. DIY or spend some more hiring someone? And how much more should I expect that to be?

👍👍👍.......

TELLIT01

It shouldn't be more than a single day to install, assuming they don't have to dig through concrete.  Labour charges vary across the country, but it's likely to be classed as a 2 person job.  Materials - several bags of Postcrete.

TheNorthStar

It’s not particularly difficult if you’re a semi keen DIY person I had a go at a feather edge Fence after getting a quote, I’m glad I did it myself would highly recommend the YouTube post by CharlieDIYte Who explain explains everything in detail I also followed his recommendation of using post savers. If you’re installing wooden posts, they help to stop the post from rotting. Not many tools required, just a bit of patience. Watching his video might inspire you to have a go. 

Bigphil1474

We had about 25 metres of fencing fitted a few months ago, by a mate of a mate, cash in hand job. Supplied about 15 panels and around 12 timber posts. They fitted the wooden posts down the long length from the side of the house to the end of the garden (some were bolted to a low wall and some were cemented in to the ground), and fitted the panels, then they replaced the 3 panels along the end as there were already concrete posts and gravel boards there. Did a great job, and took about 2 and a half days. Cost just under £2k. The nearest other quote was around £4k. 

For 4 panels/5 timber posts, I'd have a go myself. As above, the main bit is getting the posts upright and spaced properly. You can either get panel holders that you fit to the posts, so the panels slide in, or just screw them to the posts. I would definitely consider getting concrete posts and gravel boards in though. They will be more expensive, but in 10/15/20 years when your panels need replacing, you can just lift them out and stick new ones in.