We'll be putting in a fence in the near future and was wondering what the pros and cons for both wood and vinyl are. I'd appreciate any feedback/info.
Thanx!
vinyl will be more materials cost but less labor to install. vinyl will be very low to no maintenance, wood will require regular cleaning and restaining or repainting. vinyl can be put directly on the ground, wood requires a couple inches of space between the wood and the ground. i'm working on the same project.
Depending on the neighborhood, vinyl can be a real eyesore in some people's opinion. I put vinyl in and my neighbors hated me for a while until they got used to it.
For sure, vinyl is about twice the price of wood up front. If you don't get posts that have a thick wall, the mfr. will require that you fill the posts with concrete. Even if they don't, I'd recommend filling them up at least to a couple feet above ground for stability.
Don't think that vinyl is maintenance free. After the second year, you will have to powerwash or brush scrub mildew off on the shaded areas. I guess that beats powerwash AND staining though.
My patio fencing for my condo was replaced with vinyl a few years ago. It looks nice and is very low maintenance. It seems to be holding up really well. The only thing is trying to find hangers to go over the top instead of drilling holes in it.
I work for a fence company for the past 11 years. I have installed alot of both. Aside from the price difference there are a few things you need to consider. First where are you purchasing your material from? The Vinyl fence from home improvement stores (Lowes, HD, ect) are generally of less quality than what fence companies will have. Same thing goes for the wood fence as well. I'd only use cedar for your fence. Don't waste your money on the treated pine. It will warp and bow within a year or 2. Cedar will last much much longer but will gray after time if not stained or sealed.
Also depending on the style of fence your looking at, remember that you need a proper sized concrete footer and wood posts set in concrete tends to rott out due to retaining water. I'd suggest you dig the hole, set the post in the ground, then pour the concrete around the post leaving the bottom of the post on the dirt allowing the post to be able shed water out. Vinyl doesn't have that problem.
Personally I like the Vinyl fence due to the low maintenence. Vinyl fence doens't have to be plain and white. Check into some colors or even wood grain/textured.
Don't get me wrong, I would love wood, but nobody does any maintenance on this fence, ever. It's shared with 5 other neighbors, and i don't think the current fence has been stained. ever.
If you are not sure if you want a wood or a vinyl on your fence, think about it this way: would you want a hard-wood floor or a vinyl floor in your living room? And how would you feel today if you'd put in a vinyl floor 5-10 years ago, because it was so "maintenance free" and "clean looking"?