When it comes to security fencing, most people think in terms of keeping people out, but in fact keeping people or animals in is often more essential. When you think what would happen if your toddler or your doggie friend got out onto the street, you will soon see the need for the kind of fencing that will keep them safe. So how do you choose this kind of fencing?
Not all so-called safety fencing is going to do what it is supposed to. Here are 4 tips to choosing the right kind of fence.
- The first thing to do before choosing any kind of fence is to check with the council to see if there are any rules and regulations about fencing in your suburb. It could well be that certain kinds of fencing are required, in which case you won’t have much of a choice.
- If you do have a choice you will need to think whether privacy is also a requirement. Steel cladding fencing – or any kind of fencing that cannot be seen through – is the best for privacy. It can keep your dog from seeing another dog over the fence and barking at it all day long. And it can keep nosy neighbours from seeing what you are doing, while still keeping your animals and children safely contained.
- Make sure the fence doesn’t provide a hiding place. Fences you can’t see through will provide a place for any burglar to hide so they cannot be seen from the house. This is the kind of fence that burglars like best, since if you don’t know they are there they can work out how to get over the fence and you won’t know anything about it. They may even be able to spy on your house through a crack – or the gate – and find out if anyone is home or not.
- The fence should be hard to climb over. To ensure it is, choose one that is as high as possible, has a spiked top or razor wire along the top, and few horizontal bars, which can give any burglar a leg up. While top and bottom horizontal bars are needed for strength, make sure there are none at waist or knee height.
- It should be impossible to dig under. If you want to be truly safe, cement footings right around the perimeter are best, but it does make the fence more expensive. However, if you have each post cemented in, that will at least ensure the posts can’t be dug out and will strengthen the fence.
- The fence should be one that is not easily bypassed. That means it cannot be cut through, as mesh can. It also means the gates should be made of the same material and style the fence is, it should be padlocked and have strong hinges and supporting structure. Just as a chain is only as strong as the weakest link, a fence is only as strong as the gate.
Many people seem to think that a mesh fence is good for security, but in reality, even thick mesh can be cut through quite easily with bolt-cutters. And the mesh can actually support the toes of a climber. Most mesh fences have razor wire along the top, which is good for security, but not so good for aesthetics, so they are really better for industrial applications.
For around the home, a steel post fence where each post has a pointed top seems to be the best bet as it ticks all the above boxes.