Month: December 2017

Securing Your Residence with a Fence

Security Fencing for your Home

There are many reasons people install fences around their home.  Some people may be looking for privacy, others may have small children or pets or some may be looking to add curb appeal.  When purchasing a fence for any of these reasons, you should consider one more very important one—security—which is the motivation for many residential fence installations.  Hiring an experienced and reputable fencing company, like Pittsburgh Fence Company located in Carnegie, PA, is essential to creating a secure environment for your family.

 

Things to Consider when Installing a Residential Fence

Effective security fences require you to consider many factors when choosing one that will truly protect your home and family.  When shopping the wide array of options available, ask yourself the following questions?

 

Is the fence durable and made of a material that is difficult to break through or cut?

When securing your residence with fencing, you want to choose the most durable materials.  Realizing this is a big investment, there are many options to choose from.  Unfortunately, chain link fencing, a common purchase among homeowners, can easily be breached with bolt cutters.  Metal security fences and wire meshing are the preferred options.  Additionally, steel and wrought iron are among the strongest, but can be quite costly.

 

Is it see-through? Does it have open spacing?

Avoid solid fencing, as it provides an easy hiding place for burglars and vandals.  Often, solid fencing attracts burglars because they feel they can go unnoticed.

 

Is it difficult to climb over?

The ideal fence height for protection is 8’ tall, but many HOAs have height guidelines when it comes to residential fence installations.  A quick review of the policies will ensure that there will be no issues later on.  Consider fences with limited horizontal rails to prevent fence climbers.   Fence-top deterrents, such as anti-climb spikes, points or barbed wire make it more difficult for intruders to scale the fence.

 

Can the fence be easily bypassed?

You want to choose a fence that is difficult for outsiders to go through, over or under.  The first line of defense is to padlock the gates and doors on your fence.  Make sure you have a sufficient locking system that prevents a hand from reaching in to unlock the door or gate.  As previously mentioned, add fence-top deterrents to discourage fence climbers.  An overlooked area for many homeowners is the area under the fence.  Improperly securing this area opens the possibility for intruders to bypass your barrier.  Adding concrete under the fence is the preferred method of prevention, but it can be quite costly.  An alternative is to secure all of the posts in concrete.

If a large wrought iron fence with fence-top spikes cemented into the ground is not feasible, don’t underestimate the protection of a smaller fence.  Even though it won’t be impenetrable, it will provide the appearance of potential obstacles such as a barrier to be unlocked, hurdled or to be noticed.

A professional fence installer, such as Pittsburgh Fence Company will closely work with you to find the best security fencing solution for your home, property and family.

 

Fence Installation in Pittsburgh

Pittsburgh Fence Company, western Pennsylvania’s premier fencing provider, has been delivering top-tier quality craftsmanship to residential properties in Allegheny, Beaver, Butler, Washington and Westmoreland Counties for over 50 years.  From small, simple projects to large, complex ones, careful consideration of design, and the use of the highest quality brands and products, can provide piece of mind for years to come.

 

Contact one of our four offices:

North: 412-276-4822

South: 724-228-9755

East: 412-784-1400

West: 724-775-6550