Privacy Fence Installation in Austin: Horizontal and Vertical Fencing Built to Last
Two Styles, One Standard of Craftsmanship
Looking for a privacy fence installation that actually holds up to Central Texas weather? FenceMaxx builds both horizontal and vertical privacy fences for homeowners and businesses across the Austin area, and we design every project around your property, your budget, and how much privacy you actually need. Whether you’re drawn to the clean, modern lines of a horizontal fence or the timeless look of a traditional vertical picket, our crews handle the framing, post work, and picket installation with the same attention to detail on every job.
Privacy fencing isn’t one-size-fits-all, and the style you choose changes more than the look of your yard. It affects post spacing, framing, material use, and even how the fence performs over time. Below, we break down what goes into each style so you can talk to our team with a clear picture of what you’re getting.
Horizontal Privacy Fence Options
A horizontal privacy fence brings a clean, linear look that a lot of Austin homeowners are gravitating toward, especially on newer builds and remodels. As a horizontal fence contractor, we install two primary configurations depending on how you want the posts to look and how the fence will be viewed from each side of the property line. One of the advantages of horizontal fencing is how much you can adjust without losing the clean look, including post size and material (2×2 or 3×3 posts in galvanized or black steel), height, and mixed materials and styles, like blending steel and wood or combining horizontal and vertical sections on the same property.
Horizontal fences need to be installed level to hold their strength and alignment, so on sloped yards, we stair-step the sections rather than forcing a single run downhill. Picket spacing on a horizontal fence is one of the more flexible parts of the build, we can run it tight for full privacy or space it out for a different look and better airflow. Western Red Cedar naturally shrinks and moves after installation, especially in Central Texas heat, so small gaps can appear over time even on a tight-spaced fence. That’s expected with any wood fence, and it’s something we walk customers through up front.
Vertical Privacy Fence Options
A vertical privacy fence is the look most people picture when they think “backyard fence,” and there’s a reason it’s stuck around for so long. Boards run straight up and down for full coverage and a style that fits almost any home. Most residential vertical privacy fences in our area are built to a standard 6 foot privacy fence height, which lines up with what most Austin-area properties and neighborhood guidelines call for. We’ll always confirm height requirements for your specific property before finalizing a design, and we can build taller or shorter runs where they’re allowed.
Our typical vertical privacy fence is framed on heavy-duty 2 3/8-inch round galvanized steel posts with three pressure-treated 2×4 backer rails; we also build a more economical wood-frame version on pressure-treated posts with two pressure-treated backer rails, and a Western Red Cedar rail upgrade available. For customers who want the strength of a steel post without it showing, we offer a concealed steel post option, a 3 1/2 x 1 3/4 inch, .120 wall steel post that sits behind the pickets for an all-wood look on both sides. Pickets are normally installed touching for full coverage, unless you request extra spacing or the style you choose, like board-on-board, is built with overlap instead of a tight butt joint. All wood pickets are fastened with stainless steel ring shank nails. As with any Western Red Cedar fence, expect some natural movement over time in our climate; that’s normal, not a defect.
Privacy Fence Installation FAQs
What's the difference between a horizontal and vertical privacy fence?
A horizontal fence runs pickets side to side for a modern look, while a vertical fence runs pickets up and down in the traditional style most homeowners are familiar with. Both can be built to the same privacy standard.
Is a 6 foot privacy fence the standard height in Austin?
Six feet is the most common height for residential privacy fencing in our service area, though we’ll confirm exact requirements for your property before starting design work.
Can horizontal fences handle a sloped yard?
Yes. We stair-step horizontal fence sections on sloped ground to keep each run level while minimizing gaps underneath.
Do you install both wood and steel-post horizontal fences?
Yes. We offer a single-sided steel-post build with a beauty-board exterior and a heavier, double-sided exposed-post build with Western Red Cedar framing visible on both faces, along with custom post sizes and materials.
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info@fencemaxx.com
Built for Texas & Designed for You
Single-Sided Steel-Post Horizontal Fence
Clean Exterior. Hidden Posts.
A 16-gauge, 2-inch by 2-inch powder-coated black steel post with a pressure-treated 2×4 frame attached to the front face of the post. A beauty-board picket conceals the seams, so posts are only visible from the inside of the fence line, with a Western Red Cedar 2×2 stay through the middle for added structural strength.
Double-Sided Steel-Post Horizontal Fence
Posts That Show as Part of the Design.
A heavier 3-inch by 3-inch, 14-gauge powder-coated black steel post, visible from either side. Western Red Cedar boards are fastened to the post with the black posts visible between the boards on both faces, and a middle Western Red Cedar stay adds strength and consistency.
Vertical Privacy Fence Styles
Good Neighbor, Cap-and-Trim, and Board-on-Board.
Good Neighbor fencing is built to look attractive from both sides of the fence line. Cap-and-trim adds horizontal trim pieces along the top and bottom of the pickets for a cleaner frame. Board-on-board overlaps pickets on the same face of the rail, closing off sightlines from both directions and holding up well as wood shrinks over time.
Matching Wood Gates
Built to Match Your Fence Line.
We build gates to match nearly every horizontal or vertical privacy fence we install. Every wood walk gate is set on a 2 3/8-inch steel gate post, regardless of the fence’s own post type, and framed in Western Red Cedar to match the rest of your fence line.
Where We Work
TESTIMONIALS
WHAT CLIENTS SAY
What to Expect From Our Fence Installation Process
STEP ONE
Consultation and Estimate
Every privacy fence project starts the same way: a walk-through of your property, an honest conversation about materials and layout, and a detailed estimate with no pressure attached.
STEP TWO
Style and Material Selection
Go horizontal for a modern aesthetic or a fence that reads as a design feature, go vertical for maximum coverage with the fewest visible gaps, or mix the two, with horizontal facing the street and vertical around a pool or side yard. You can browse real horizontal and vertical builds, filterable by style, in our wood fence gallery before your consultation.
STEP THREE
Installation and Quality Check
Our crews handle everything from post-setting to the final picket, and we manage the small details that make a fence last, like proper post depth, consistent spacing, and clean, level lines even on sloped terrain.
STEP FOUR
Ongoing Support
Once your privacy fence is installed, we’re still around. If a section needs repair down the road, whether from storm damage, general wear, or just years of Texas weather, our team can restore it to match the original build.
