The majority of ornamental fence is made from welded or assembled steel for strength to endure extreme conditions including weather, children, or vehicle damage. In addition to steel, both residential and commercial property owners are finding aluminum ornamental fence to offer low maintenance and provide superior corrosion resistance.
Black (non-galvanized) steel components are first welded together to form a section of the ornamental fence and the each section is primed and painted. The sections are then welded to the post at the construction site and touched up with primer and paint. It is possible that these welded systems can start to show rust within a 2-3 years of installation depending on factors including climate. Welded steel ornamental fence require maintenance and must be wire brushed and repainted from time to time.
Assembled component ornamental. fence systems use galvanized steel components (minimum G-60 zinc coating) that are machine punched and receive a polyester power-coat finish. After the coating process is complete, the components are joined into sections and then attached to posts using brackets all while protecting the coating. These steps help to protect the ornamental fence from future rust problems.
Different ornamental fence materials require different amounts of maintenance.
Ornamental Fence – Welded, Painted Steel – Welded or painted steel requires the most maintenance and requires wire brushing and painting every 3-4 years .
Ornamental Fence – Assembled Component Systems – Assemble component systems provide a tough powder-coated finish that adheres to the galvanized steel and minimizes potential rust problems while requiring little or no maintenance. These systems typically have a 10-15 year warranty covering the coating and the system from defects in material and workmanship.
Ornamental Fence – Aluminum Ornamental Systems – Aluminum ornamental systems typically have a limited lifetime coating warranty that is available on the majority of systems.
Ornamental fence allows you to customize the fence to your liking. Many choices for customization include rings situated between horizontal rails, finials or picket tops and many other adornments that will enhance the design of your ornamental fence.
The majority of fences are made from wood as wood fences are affordable, versatile and easy to build. Wood fences come in uniform sizes and are very easy for the average homeowner to install. A wood fence can be painted, stained, or aged to a natural color.
The key to an attractive, long-lasting wood fence is proper installation. The biggest problem of a wood fence is the early failure of wood posts. When a wood post is inserted into the ground it begins to deteriorate. Over time, the overall appearance of the wood fence is affected. To prevent this problem, it is recommended that steel posts are used as opposed to wood posts. If steel posts are not an option, it is important to use high quality posts made from softwoods including cedar or redwood. These woods are naturally rot resistant.
An attractive wood fence is uniform in design. The grade of lumber you choose will determine the number as well as the size of the defects in your wood fence. Lower cost grades will have more defects as opposed to higher cost grades. If you are building your wood fence, some retailers will allow you to sort through their lumber stacks and select only the best pieces. If a contractor is building your fence, the contractor should reject wood that does not comply with the grade you have selected. It is important that both you and the contractor agree on how your wood fence should look when completed. This will help you select the proper grade.
The upkeep of a wood fence depends on how you want your fence to look in the future. Your style and taste will help you determine the maintenance cost of the wood fence.
Fabric gauge
The chain link’s gauge (GA.) or diameter of wire shows how much steel is actually in the fabric. The smaller the gauge number is indicates that the chain link is made of more steel and higher quality wire. It also indicates the strength of the wire. Common chain link gauges are 13, 12-1/2, 11-1/2, 11, 9, and 6. It is recommended that a typical chain link fence use 11-1/2 to 9 gauge. Light weight, temporary chain link fence can use 13 or 12-1/2 gauge while heavy, industrial chain link fence requires 6 gauge.
There are several different surface treatments that help protect and beautify steel chain-link fabric.
Zinc is the most common protective coating for chain link fence. Zinc protects chain link at all costs. For example, if the chain link is cut, the zinc “heals” the exposed steel surface and protects from rust by developing a white oxidation layer. Typical galvanized chain link fabric has a 1.2 ounce per square foot coating. A fence project that requires greater than average longevity may require more zinc coating. The longevity of the chain link is directly related to the amount of zinc that is applied.
Extruded: This chain link coating is suitable for most residential or light commercial chain link fence applications as the vinyl jacket is wrapped around the steel core.
Extruded bonded: This chain link coating is an extension of the extruded coating as an adhesive bonds the vinyl jacket to the core wire.
Thermally fused: Suitable for all applications, this chain link coating fuses the vinyl coating to the galvanized steel core.
It is important that you understand the gauge and steel core wire of the finish product. It is recommended that the diamond size mesh for normal chain link installations be 1-3/4” to 2-3/8”.
The diameter of chain link fence fabric is the width of the pipe and is another factor that determines the strength of the fence. The wider the diameter of the pipe, the more steel is required, and the stronger the chain link fence framework is. Common diameters of chain link fence framework include 1-3/8”, 1-5/8”, 1-7/8” and 2-3/8”.
Like chain link fence fabric, there are different types of protective coatings for chain link fence framework.
The most commonly used chain link framework coating used is inline flow-coat galvanized. The steel flows through a pot of molten zinc, coating its exterior surfaces, as the pipe is formed. Following this step is an organic polymer treatment that provides additional exterior corrosion protection. Then a zinc paint coating is applied to protect the exterior of the pipe.
Unlike inline flow-coat galvanization, the metal of pre-galvanized pipe is galvanized before forming it into round pipe. The pipe is then re-metallized with a zinc coating for extra protection.
Chain link fabric gauge
The chain link’s gauge (GA.) or diameter of wire shows how much steel is actually in the fabric. The smaller the gauge number is indicates that the chain link is made of more steel and higher quality wire. It also indicates the strength of the wire. Common chain link gauges are 13, 12-1/2, 11-1/2, 11, 9, and 6. It is recommended that a typical chain link fence use 11-1/2 to 9 gauge. Light weight, temporary chain link fence can use 13 or 12-1/2 gauge while heavy, industrial chain link fence requires 6 gauge.
The two main ways chain link fabric is galvanized or coated with zinc include Galvanized After Weaving (GAW) or Galvanized Before Weaving (GBW). GAW requires the steel to be formed into chain link fabric first before it is galvanized while GBW galvanizes the strand of wire before being formed into chain link mesh. GAW is the main galvanizing method for larger manufactures as it is more efficient.
In addition to zinc, chain link wire can also be coated with aluminum. Unlike zinc which is a sacrificial coating, aluminum coating acts as a barrier to the chain link. As a result, aluminum chain link can quickly rust from cut ends, scratches and other imperfections.
If you want your chain link fence to have color then look for polyvinyl chloride applied in addition to zinc coating. The polyvinyl coating provides a second layer of corrosion protection and blends in with the chain link fence’s environment. Color chain link coatings can be done three different ways:
Just like chain link fabric, it is important to keep in mind three factors when selecting framework for the chain link fence: gauge or thickness of the steel, diameter of the pipe, and type of protective coating.
The strength of chain link fence framework is directly related to the gauge (ga.) of the steel. Common gauges of residential chain link fence include 20, 19, 18, 17, 16 and 15. Residential chain link fence framework should be manufactured from steel that has minimum yield strength of 45,000 pounds per square inch.
Chain link fence color framework
The protective coating of pipe can be enhanced with polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and polyester color coating. These additional coatings provide protection against corrosion and add aesthetic appeal that will help the chain link fence framework blend in with the environment. Standard colors of chain link color framework include black, brow, and green.
Several mesh designs: small openings – no toe or finger holds.
Several framework types: “C” posts; round posts; square posts – whatever works best.
Sophisticated European Style: Used at the EuroTunnel, Heathrow Airport and elsewhere.
Selection of coatings and colors: plain steel; galvanized; galvanized plus marine grade PVC in standard colors: black and dark green.
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Los Angeles County 91356
USA
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