Case study · Heathfield
Storm damage
An early morning call to Josh from a regular client, big tree down, part way across the road we need you
Read the case studyPost and rail
Post and rail is the rural boundary fence. Two or three horizontal rails between round or squared posts, no infill, nothing fancy. Chestnut if you want it to last and look the part. Softwood if budget matters more than longevity. Priced in metres, not panels.
The service
What it is
A post and rail fence is about as simple as timber boundary fencing gets. Posts driven or dug into the ground, with two or three horizontal rails running between them, mortised and nailed in place. No panels, no boards, no infill. The fence marks a line; it doesn't enclose a view.
You'll see it on paddocks, field boundaries, driveway edges and rural front gardens across East Sussex. It's the right fence for the job where you want a clear boundary without blocking sightlines or the airflow the field needs.
When post and rail is the right call
- You're fencing a paddock, field boundary or horse enclosure.
- You want a rural front garden boundary that doesn't wall the cottage in.
- The line is long and a panel or close-board run would cost four times as much for work the ground doesn't need.
- You want to keep the view out to the Weald or the downs and a solid fence would spoil it.
- You're running a driveway edge and need something visible without being a screen.
How we work
How we build it
- Chestnut or softwood, cleft or sawnCleft chestnut is the traditional rural spec, splits along the grain, no chemical treatment needed and will see twenty years. Sawn chestnut is the tidier look. Pressure-treated softwood is the budget option; shorter life but fine for a temporary or short-run boundary.
- Posts either driven or dug inOn clay or loam a driven post goes in tight and lasts. On sandstone or rocky ground we dig in. Two or three rails as standard, four for a taller horse fence.
- Rails nailed and mortisedMortised is the traditional job, then nailed to bring it all as one with the strength to last.
- Wire stock-netting if neededIf the fence has to keep something in or out, livestock, dogs or deer, we can fit stock netting and keep everything in or out
What we won't do
We won't fit softwood post and rail and tell you it's the same as chestnut. It isn't. Softwood has a shorter life in the ground, even pressure-treated, and on a long field boundary the cost of re-doing it in ten years often outweighs the saving now. We'll quote for whichever spec you want, but we'll be straight about the difference.
Pricing guide
What post and rail costs
Priced per metre after a site visit, not per panel, because there aren't any. Number of rails, timber choice (cleft chestnut vs sawn vs softwood), ground conditions, corners and gate positions all move the number. We put a written quote in front of you within two working days.
See how we price every job, across tree surgery and fencing →
What customers say
Reviews from fencing work
5.0 across 12 Google reviews, all verifiable on our profile
★★★★★“Absolutely brilliant”
★★★★★“We asked Josh to install a new post and rail fence together driveway gates. He ordered all the materials and completed the job in 11/2 days. Realising that we had dogs to keep safe he also attached wire stock fencing to stop them jumping through the rails and onto the road. He explained that he had set the wire about 4 inches off the ground so so that we could strim the grass without breaking the trimmer cord all the time; neat touch. We were so pleased with the work that we asked him if he could plant a laurel hedge along the fence. He purchased the hedging plants cheaper than any quotes I had and had the hedge in within a day. Not an easy task digging all the holes in drought hardened Wealden Clay. Another excellent job and the hedge is thriving!”
Related work
Related work
Recent fencing jobs that involved post and rail.
Case study · Northiam
A new post-and-rail front fence with a five-bar gate.
An open front lawn off a main road. The owners wanted a soft boundary and a proper gate without losing the open feel. Three-rail post-and-rail across the frontage with a five-bar gate on the drive entrance.
Read the case study
Case study
A cleft post-and-rail line across a rapeseed paddock.
A long cleft post-and-rail run separating a paddock from the rape field next door. Hand-cleft rails, round-section posts, sat low into the slope. Looks like it grew there.
Read the case study Where we work
Post and rail across East Sussex
We cover about twenty miles around Heathfield, which takes in Hastings, Battle, Bexhill, Rye and the villages between. Each town page has what the ground and the trees are actually like there.
Fence line had its day?
Fill in the quote form or give us a call and we'll come and have a look. No charge for the visit, no hard sell.