Creating a Safe Play Area with Fencing
One benefit of having a yard is having space for kids and pets to play. Even if they’re supervised, though, both children and pets can find infinite ways to get into trouble. One way to reduce worry is to install a fencearound the play area or the entire yard. With fencing and a good gate, little ones won’t wander into the street or a neighbor’s yard, and can be safe from neighbors’ pets as well.
Choosing a Fence
The most important job this fence has is to safely keep the vulnerable members of your family inside its perimeter. To do this, a fence must fulfill some basic needs.
Luckily, many kinds of fences can fit these requirements, so you’re bound to find something that fits both your aesthetic and safety needs.
Rail Fence
This is the least-secure option on this list. Rail fences are wonderful for marking perimeters, but act as mere guidelines for kids—they can slip right through the horizontal beams or use the beams to climb over. However, if you line the fence with chicken wire on the back side, this type of fence can be used to keep some dogs contained.
Picket Fence
Like the rail fence, the picket fence is used largely for aesthetic reasons. It can be used to keep small dogs in your yard, but is a little short to ensure children’s safety. If you decide on a picket fence, make sure the pickets are close enough together so dogs and toddlers can’t sneak through. Also be sure the bottom of the fence is close enough to the ground that small dogs can’t wiggle underneath.
Chain-Link Fence
It’s not the prettiest option on this list, but it’s tried and true. As long as the openings are too small for your kids’ toes, it won’t be easily climbed, and chain-link fences are already commonly used in dog kennels, making them a good option for pets. Some people decorate these fences with climbing vines or create elaborate, mural-like works of art in the links.
Semi-Privacy Fence
This is sort of a cross between a picket fence and a privacy fence. At 4 feet tall, a semi-privacy fence will keep kids and pets in, but won’t totally wall off your yard. If you want or need something taller, decorative wood panels atop the existing fence are both functional and beautiful.
Privacy Fence
Privacy fences are taller than the other options here, usually about 6 feet. This could also be a 4-foot fence with a 2-foot privacy panel on top. Either way, this is a solid fence that will keep children and pets safe and sound inside your yard. The solid wood panels are also a good option for pets who are anxious seeing other dogs or people walking by.
Other Considerations
There are just a few more items to keep in mind when it comes to building a fence.
Is it time to install a fence in your yard? Let the experts at KG Landscape help. With over 15 years of landscaping experience, we can help you choose the perfect fence to complement your yard and lifestyle. Give us a call at 763-568-7251 or use our quote system to get in touch today.
Ready to Start on Your Next Project?
Call us at (763) 568-7251 or visit our quote page.
Struggling with side yard water problems in Minneapolis–St. Paul? See when French drains or re-grading works best for small yard drainage fixes.
Protect your Plymouth patio and deck from frost heave by installing French drains that keep clay soil dry around hardscape and footings.
One Edina family had a 25-foot slope and nowhere for their kids to play. See how we turned it into a lawn, sport court, and fire pit.
See how one Plymouth project turned an overlooked side yard into a design feature that matches the rest of the property.
A Plymouth family turned a steep, unusable side yard into a private hot tub area with stone steps, drainage solutions, and boulder walls.
See how a Plymouth family replaced basic builder landscaping with a custom flagstone walkway, strategic plantings, and a front yard that matches their home.
Learn how French drains solve drainage problems in tight Minneapolis side yards without sacrificing walkway space or function.
Stop roof water and sump pump discharge from saturating your Plymouth yard. Learn how to tie everything into one drainage system.
Where All That Water Is Actually Coming From Your backyard stays wet. You've noticed the soggy spots, the mud, maybe some frost heave damage to your patio or fence. You're thinking about French drains. But before you start digging trenches, look up. A huge amount of water hitting your yard isn't coming from rain falling on the lawn. It's coming from your roof. A moderate rainfall on a typical Plymouth home puts hundreds of gallons through your gutter system. Every bit of that water exits through your downspouts. Where it goes from there determines whether you have a drainage problem or not. Then there's your sump pump. Every time it kicks on, it's pushing water out of your basement and into your yard. On a wet property, that pump might run dozens of times a day. All that water has to go somewhere. If your downspouts dump water next to your foundation and your sump pump discharges into a side yard that drains toward your backyard, you're adding water to an already saturated situation. French drains alone might not be enough. You need to manage the sources. The Problem With Surface Discharge Most downspouts in Plymouth end with a splash block or a short extension that dumps water a few feet from the foundation. That's technically moving water away from the house, but not far enough.
Why wooden lake steps always fail—and why Minnetonka and Orono homeowners are switching to stone. A contractor explains the replacement.