Let’s Fix the Fence With Shiplap!

We have a nice-sized, fenced backyard. Our fencing is wood. Weathered wood. I love the look of our fence! Over the years, we have replaced many of the boards, and those we have not replaced, we have nailed and screwed back in several times. The posts are still nice and solid so when our neighbor to the East of us asked if we wanted that section of our fence removed and replaced with the vinyl one he was installing, we declined.

Fence history

If you’ve read my posts about the projects I have done with reclaimed wood, you know that a section of the West fence fell down during a wind storm and had to be replaced. Since the planks were pretty weathered, we bought new ones to be used in the replacement of that part of the fence. The new planks looked very out of place for a year or so but have greyed nicely, matching the old planks now. I used the old wood to create a tree bench and planter boxes, you can read about those projects by clicking on the names.

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Vicious dog

Our neighbors to the South and West of us have large dogs, 3 to the South and 2 to the West. It’s common, in fact, it happens every single time, for the dogs to bark while I am working in the yard. The barking doesn’t bother me, I actually like that they are protective. Usually, they’ll calm down after a while and if they don’t and the neighbors are home, they’ll be told to stop barking. However, one day a couple of years ago, I was weeding along the South fence when one of the dogs must have gotten spooked and charged the fence. Since the fencing is older, the plank right by my face came loose and I was staring into very large teeth as the dog was trying to come all the way through the fence to get to me.

I quickly shoved the Home Depot bucket I was using for the weeds against the fence and stood up to lean my full body weight against the bucket and plank. Not to be deterred, the dog began charging the fence and I started yelling at him to stop since I could barely hold the plank in place. After what seemed an eternity, the owner came out of the house and also starting yelling at the dog to stop as he ran to grab him by the collar. It took quite an effort for him to get the dog away from the fence. Both the owner and I were pretty shook up. After the dog and owner were in their house, I added more screws to that plank and then leaned a large log against it to help prevent that from ever happening again.

How to fix the fence?

When it was time to weed along the fence line again, I started thinking about how I would reinforce the planks without having to replace them with new ones. I thought that if I bought some boards and screwed them along the bottom of the fence, it would prevent the boards from falling down and also keep the dogs from being able to push them from the other side. I went to Home Depot to see what my options were. The fence posts are 8′ apart so I was looking for 8′ boards. When I saw shiplap, I decided to use it instead of plain boards. I bought 14 of them and brought them home.

Installing a bottom rail

After installing all the boards to the South fence line, I stood back to see how it was going to look. The wood that is used to make the shiplap is light and I wasn’t certain it would weather to match the fence. Since it needed something to protect it from weathering too quickly – stain, waterproofing, etc, I decided to paint the wood with one of the colors I had used on the deck and deck chairs.

We liked the color so I decided I would paint the wood I had installed to the bottom of the fence and then be done with this project….until my son stopped by for a visit that is. He asked what I was doing and I told him I was shoring up the fence to keep the boards in place and prevent the neighbor dogs from breaking through. He said ‘What about the dogs on the other side?’ Hmmmm, well, now I thought it would be wise to add support to the West fence line too….AND, if I was going to do THAT, I might as well do the rest of the fencing. Then he said ‘You’re going to add those boards along the top of the fence, too, aren’t you?’ I said ‘No. Why would I do that?’ ‘Because it would look better’ he replied. Oh, man, he was right. So, like many, ok, ALL of my projects, this quick fix was evolving into a much bigger, longer project.

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Getting more shiplap

Installing a top rail

Connecting top and bottom rails

Covering the gap

While installing the shiplap to the fence posts, I discovered that the posts were not spaced exactly at 8′. That meant that there were gaps between the pieces of shiplap where they were attached to the posts. Although the fence is old and weathered, I couldn’t leave it looking tacky with those gaps. I decided to cover them with pieces of wood. The board I used to cover the gaps between the shiplap was 1″ x 6″. I cut them with a skill saw**, gave them a light sanding and two coats of the coordinating paint that I had used on flower pots and deck furniture. It was easy to install them with a couple of screws. To add interest to the fence, I installed solar lights on the 1″ x 6″ pieces of board on every other post and then added some fence art. **You can also use a miter saw**

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Finished project

I just love the look of the fence now and the neighbors have commented on how nice it looks too! The added strength this project gave to the planks gives me peace of mind in regard to the dogs next door. They still bark at me when I’m in the backyard and come right up to the fence to do so but it’s comforting to know they will be staying on their own side of the fence while they check out what I’m doing.

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Update

It’s been 3 summers since I installed the shiplap onto the fence. We live where there are all 4 seasons and I am so pleased that I have not needed to do any paint touchups!

Supplies Used

• 8′ shiplap boards – 2 per section of fence
• 6′ cedar fence boards – 1 for each post
• 1″ x 6″ board for decorative plaques
• Drill
• Screws
• Paint
• Paintbrush
• Skill saw or miter saw
• Sanding blocks
• Solar lights
• U shaped holder – 2 per solar light

Instructions

• Apply two coats of paint on all boards
• Cut decorative plaques from the 1″ x 6″ board to the size that works for your fence. Mine are 6″ x 6″ and 6″ x 9″
• Install shiplap with screws along the top and bottom of the fence
• Install fence boards to each post using screws
• Attach the U holders to the small decorative plaques
  • Center the holders on the plaque
  • Place the holders 1″ from the top and 1″ from the bottom
  • Attach with small screws
• Install decorative plaques on the posts where the shiplap boards meet
• Place solar lights into the U holders on the plaques

If you need supplies

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