We have been in this business awhile now.... almost the 50 year mark! We can look back and see a lot of changes over the years, (did you know we once sold/built custom swing sets?!) - change is definitely a good thing!
As new products become available and new processes learned, we equip ourselves with the knowledge and tools to give you a better end result. Both of these things apply to our Copperwood Fence Installation and we are excited to share that with you!
Copperwood Fence is simply the brand of fencing we choose to use when you ask us about installing a wood fence at your home. We choose Copperwood because it is a slow growth pine which makes it denser, stronger and more stable than traditional pine species. Copperwood is also impregnated with Copper Naphthenate (CuNap) which gives further resistance to things like fungus and insects to extend the life of the wood fibers. It offers a great 25 year warranty and requires no additional staining or sealing. In terms of offering low maintenance products, if you are going with a wood fence, Copperwood is what you want to use!
We have been using Copperwood for awhile now and while it has been a great product for us, wood is still a natural product and will always be susceptible to the environmental elements. The most vulnerable place on your fence, is the post where it meets the ground. It's there that you can best see the effects of water, insects and time. If there was a way to keep the posts in the ground from rotting, we should do that right? We agree.
Drive set wood fencing
Our process for installing wood fences has evolved to putting metal posts in the ground instead of the old wood posts. We start with driving 18-guage steel posts into the ground below the frost line. Specialty steel brackets are used to secure rails to the C-Posts. No digging holes all across your lawn and no heavy equipment to tear up your yard in the process! Because the posts are driven, it also means no concrete mess and reduced issues with frost heave!
"But I don't want a metal looking fence, I wanted a wood fence." We hear you! The metal C-Posts we use are actually hidden from view by your wood pickets! So it still looks like your traditional wood fence, but takes away the weakest point of wood fencing!
What about the gates?
So glad you asked!
It's no surprise that your gates are what take the most abuse on your fence. There are moving parts, there is weight hanging on the posts, its subjected to wear and tear by the user, and if left open, the wind can grab hold and slam your gate. So we looked to see what we could improve on for our gate builds, and similar to your fence posts, the gate post is where we saw the best opportunity for improvement. Lovewell gate posts are made of steel with a high wind load capacity and powder coated in a black finish for a long lasting polished look. The metal gates posts are cemented in the ground ensuring they have the lasting support needed to survive the abuse.
Let's Recap
The Lovewell Fence Wood Fence Installation Guide
Selection of Proper Materials - Copperwood boards for low maintenance and superior longevity. Steel C-Posts and Steel Powder Coated Gate Posts to prevent post rot.
Driven Posts - Steel C-Posts driven into the ground below the frost line. Steel posts prevent post rot and also prevent frost heave.
Framing - Rails are framed to the steel posts with specialty brackets
Installing Pickets - As in a typical wood fence build, your pickets are added in the style of fence desired and any metal posts are covered with wood to hide the metal post system. All you see is a beautiful wood fence!
Custom Gates Made - All of our gates are custom built to fit your space utilizing powder coated steel fence posts and cemented into the ground.
Combining our Copperwood material with a metal post drive set system is how Lovewell Fence & Deck is building you a better wood fence!
Ready to explore your fencing options? Call our office to schedule your appointment - 563-391-7025 Quad City Iowa/Illinois area or 319-351-9996 in the Iowa City/Cedar Rapids area.
