Any contractor worth their salt knows that you measure twice, cut once. Still, projects tend to come with unexpected deviations. Underground utilities, tree roots, rocks, & indecisive customers are common reasons for deviations.
Fortunately, the more planning and material prep you can offload to other parties, the more you can lower your risk of unwelcome surprises as you build.
That’s true for vinyl fencing, too. When you order the right amount of materials and have them customized to specifications, it eliminates a lot of the finessing required with other materials like wood.
Theoretically, you can order the precise numbers of panels and posts you need, handle customization, and then be off to the races for assembly. That assumes you get the right amount of material, though. To help there, we built this guide.
In order to get the most out of your investment, we do recommend that all fences be installed by professional installers. Vinyl Craft can help connect you to the best suited installing contractor in your area.
Start with the basics: Turn linear feet into your panel requirements
First things first, you need to figure out how many linear feet you need to fence. Stake out the fence perimeter, then get out your tape measure.
As you’re measuring, make note of any irregularities, like a slope you need to navigate over.
Once you have your linear foot measurement, you can figure out how many panels you need. The general calculation here is:
Number of panels required = Linear feet ÷ Panel width
For most vinyl panels, the standard width is 6 or 8 feet. Talk with our team about your property owner’s requirements and we can help you figure out the appropriate panel width for your project.
Finessing your calculations: Gates and slopes
The above calculation works if you’ve got a simple project. Say you’re fencing in a flat yard and the homeowner doesn’t want a gate.
If they do want a gate, you need to factor that in. That makes your panel calculation as follows:
Number of panels required = (Linear feet – Gate width) ÷ Panel width
Again, our team can help you figure out the gate width based on the project’s requirements.
Also, talk with us if you’re navigating any steep slopes along the fence line. That might require staggered panels, which adds to your material needs.
Crunching the numbers on posts
Once you know how many panels you need, figuring out your post requirement is easy.
Number of posts = Number of panels + Number of end/corner/gate posts
Drawing out the fence usually makes it easier to identify where you’ll need corner and end posts. For each gate you plan to put in, you’ll need two gate posts (one for each side).
Getting precisely what you need
Our team can help you calculate the panels, posts, and gate kits needed for your specific project. We also offer fabrication services for any cut panels the project requires. With multiple computer numerical control (CNC) machines and specialty saws on-site, we make it easy to fill in any gaps where you can’t fit a full panel.
We can also make sure you get a complete gate kit for any gates and the right kind of fence post caps for the property owner (e.g., decorative, solar).
The only additional material you should need is concrete for the post holes. Here’s a handy table from a concrete mixer company that can help you estimate what your project might require.
For help with everything else, we’re here. To work with an experienced team to precisely estimate the material requirements for your vinyl fencing project, contact us.
