How Long is a Fence Panel?
Most fence panels you buy from a garden centre will be a standard six feet long. Still, you can also purchase various types of panelling and opt for custom fencing if you have a particularly large, small or unusual shaped space.
The easiest way to determine how many fence panels you need is to measure your garden or the area you'd like to fence.
You then divide that measurement by six feet (or 1.82 metres), so you know you have the exact number of panels required.
Let's discuss the other dimensions in garden fencing and what you can do if you need fence panels that fall outside the industry standard.
The Dimensions of a Standard Garden Fence Panel
As we've mentioned, a basic garden fence panel is six feet wide. However, you can usually buy packs of panels (or individual panels) that are:
- Three feet - 91 cm
- Four feet - 1.22 metres
- Five feet - 1.52 metres
Trellis panels have a similar standard, so these are usually one or two feet high, used to top your fence panels, build a planter trellis or fit a framework running up a wall.
How to Choose the Right Size Fence Panels
Fencing comes in a huge variety of colours, woods, textures, finishes and coatings, so the ideal place to start is establishing what you need your fencing for.
If it's purely decorative, you can opt for an intricate trellis design or choose based on a colour that matches other panels or blends nicely with your garden.
Panels intended to stop children or dogs from escaping the garden should be sturdy, supported by quality fence posts, and decent timber properly treated against dampness and rot.
Other Considerations in Selecting Your Fencing Panels
Planning permission and property boundaries with neighbouring homes are often crucial in erecting new fencing, depending on where you live and the local regulations.
Most UK fencing is sold in a six by six-foot size because you need planning permission for any fencing over two metres high - six feet is 1.82 metres, so it slides nicely under the threshold.
Fences need a gravel board, which improves the durability of your fence, so there's also the capacity to fit this without tipping over two metres.
Gravel boards run horizontally underneath the fencing, prolonging the life of the fence by creating a shield against water.
You'll also need to think about fence posts - usually timber or concrete.
Concrete fence posts are much heavier and difficult to fit, but they're often used on commercial properties, farming land or public spaces to ensure any fencing is tamper-proof.
A timber fence post with the same colour and treatment as your fence panels is the best choice for a back garden since this matches nicely with the wood and provides a universal finish.
Buying Irregular Sized Garden Fence Panels
While there's a good reason for the standardised length of fence panels, you can order made-to-measure fencing.
It's more expensive to have fence panels custom made, so it might be more cost-effective to buy a normal six-foot board and cut the fencing down to fit the space.
Close board fencing is another alternative, whereby you fit overlapping vertical boards fixed to horizontal supporting beams.
This type of fencing is often used to create a screen around a perimeter and can be more robust than a lightweight fence panel.
FAQs - How Long is a Fence Panel?
Here we'll answer some commonly asked questions about the size of fence panels available to buy in the UK.
What Size Are Garden Fences?
Most garden fence panels have a standard measurement of six feet wide by six feet tall.
You can cut panels to size, but you'll need extra battens on both sides to secure the smaller fencing to the adjacent board or fencing post.
Can You Buy Four Foot Long Fence Panels?
Although six feet is the standard, most fencing suppliers also sell smaller boards of three, four and five feet square.
Bespoke fence panels are also an option if you have a particularly complex layout that you need to fence around.
How Deep Should My Fence Posts Be For a Six Foot Fence?
Fence posts stabilise your fencing, and for a standard six-foot fence, we'd recommend digging down so that your posts have a hole of at least two feet beneath the ground.
As a rough guide, the posts should be sunk so that the supporting beams have between 30% and 50% depth underneath the fencing structure.
References:
- https://www.jacksons-fencing.co.uk/fence-panel-heights-and-widths
- https://www.buyfencingdirect.co.uk/fencing-buying-guide
- https://the-sawmill.co.uk/fencing-guide/
By Johnny Fuller
Home Improvement editor at NWrenovations.com
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