Horse Fencing Requirements

While the technique and process for erecting a three- or four-rail horse fence is relatively straightforward and requires only basic carpentry skills, planning such a project can be complex. The requirements for building a horse fence, from checking local regulations to estimating the materials needed to getting the labor, can be as varied and complicated as the rest of the work to be found on a horse farm.

Most places where a horse fence would be built are on established farms in rural areas, and no special permission is required for fence construction of any kind. However, it is always possible that a horse fence could be built on a large suburban property, or that the zoning of a longtime rural property has recently changed. Zoning regulations are different in every state, and sometimes in every county. Any major construction project should always begin with checking the property's zoning code and its requirements.

Note the four rail post and plank fence behind this thoroughbred.Horse fences are typically three- or four-rail post and plank designs. Holes are dug, and posts set into them. Then planks are installed in an alternating pattern to a height that the horses cannot jump. The planks always meet in the center of the posts. The design combines enough strength to contain horses with ease of maintenance.

The materials are relatively straightforward: treated posts and lumber and nails or screws. Making an estimate of how much of each is required will require a little math: take the perimeter of the fence, and divide that by the length of the typical plank. This will give you a raw number. For posts multiply that by two, for planks, by three or four, depending on the number of rails, and for nails by six. Then increase everything by a wastage margin of between 3 and 6 percent. If, for example, that number is 100, and the fence project is a three-rail job, it will require 200 posts, 300 planks, and 600 nails or screws, increased by between 3 and 6 percent. Sometimes it is desirable to set some fence posts in concrete. For example, posts that hold a heavy gate or adjoin a busy road might need to be reinforced. One 25-pound bag of concrete should be enough to set three to six posts.

Building a horse fence requires a group of tools. Laying the fence line and marking post spots requires stakes and twine. Setting the posts requires a shovel, mattock, post-hole digger, level and tamping rod. Putting up the lumber requires a level, hammer and drill. Dressing the lumber and posts requires a circular saw.

Putting up a horse fence requires the work of at least four hands, so at a minimum the job needs two people. Setting the posts while keeping them level and nailing long fence planks while supporting them is just too hard for one person to do alone.

While the classic look of a horse fence is to be painted white or black, modern weather treatments make painting a fence a matter of aesthetics rather than necessity. The lumber will last almost as long if left unpainted.

These days, many three-rail fences are made of PVC lumber. The costs are dramatically cheaper, at 45¢ to 78¢ per foot compared to $1.35 to $2.34 per foot for an all-lumber fence. Installation for the posts is identical, while the PVC rails are usually fastened using screws and washers. The one distinction is that to have a uniform look, it does become necessary to paint the fence posts to match the color of the PVC rails.