Likely going to be replacing the pickets on a wood fence. Would putting Thompson's water seal or the like on them before installation prolong their service life?

I used cedar planks back when I rebuilt my fence after Ike and they are still good.

yeah, i was wondering if the extra work to do that would pay enough dividend on the back side...

I used a 1X6 treated "sacrifice board" that runs along the ground between the upright posts. The fence is 12 Years old and looks like new. McCoys called it a corral board and it is a true 1"X6"if not mistaken. This gets the pickets off the ground, which improves their life expectancy and keeps the pickets from getting ripped up by the weedeater. If the sac boards do start to show wear and tear, it's a hell of a lot easier to replace them that's the individual pickets!

Something else an Aggie engineer told me and I've done it, though it could be a wives tale.. Even If using 4X4 treated posts, throw some gravel in the post hole, to get the post off of the dirt. His claim was that sitting in the dirt, the post wicked moisture from the ground and rotted them from the inside out. By setting on gravel and then pouring concrete around it, it effectively sealed, to a small extent, the post from the dirt.

Called rot boards for a reason. 1x6 or 1x8 along the ground and cedar pickets up top. Rot board craps out u just replace it. Cedar pickets should last awhile

Quote:

---

Would putting Thompson's water seal or the like on them before installation prolong their service life?

---

I would say no. My experience with picket fences is that it doesn't prolong life much and only makes the weathered wood look trashy. Pine and Cedar will age and gray over time no matter what you do.

Here's some ideas to make your fence last longer:
1) Use cedar pickets if possible.
2) Always use cedar 4x4' or metal posts if you like the look.
3) Use three rails, upper, lower, and middle to prevent warpage.
3) Use screws, not nails.
4) Never let pickets touch the ground. Stop them an inch or so from the soil. Also allows you to weed-whack without tearing up the pickets.
5) ALWAYS use cedar 2x4's for your gate. Also try these Homax No Sag EasyGate You can thank me later!!

Good tips, thanks

Back in the day (like 1987-1989), my dad forced me to dual coat cedar pickets for our new fence. All 600' of it. I think we went through like 10 or so 5-gallon metal buckets. Every free moment was painting Thompson's Water Seal.

The fence looked new. Like that fresh cut, reddish tint color for easily 10 to 15 years. Sold that house in 1992 and I could drive by in 2002 and it looked freshly installed.

I will probably do that again when I replace my fence, but I'll spray it on instead of painting it with a brush. But it did prevent the grey color creep on the cedar pickets. And find a lumber yard around for #1 cedar. My dad paid cash and was able to get no-knothole pickets, which also helped with the look.



Another tip for posts is to coat the bottom portion plus 8-12" above the concrete in roofing tar. Slope the concrete away from the posts and have some roofing tar show above that. Helps prevent water from attacking the base and rotting there.

~egon

What's the going rate for 8' fences these days? $20-30 linear foot?