Fence installation in Smyrna, TN

Privacy fences in Smyrna subdivisions

In many Smyrna neighborhoods, the covenants spell out what a fence can look like. Common rules cover height and material, and many also say which side of the fence faces out. Some communities want the fence to start at or behind the back corner of the house instead of running toward the front. Others prefer a matching style so the backyards read as one line from the street. Read the covenants before you pick a design. It saves a round of revisions with the review committee.

The usual choice is a wood privacy fence, either board on board or a simpler stockade style with the finished side facing out. Board on board costs more, but the overlapping pickets leave no gaps as the wood shrinks. Shadowbox, with boards alternating on each side of the rail, lets some air through while still blocking most views. Horizontal boards give a more modern look. Some HOAs only allow one or two styles, so check yours before you settle on one. Our guide to privacy fence options compares these styles side by side.

Finding the property line before digging

Whether the house is in Hickory Hills or a few blocks from Smyrna Town Centre, the line comes first. Newer subdivisions have one advantage here, since the lots were surveyed fairly recently and the corner pins are often still in the ground, even if they are buried under sod or mulch. Your closing papers may include a plat or a survey that shows the lines. If the pins cannot be found, a surveyor can reset them. That costs less than moving a fence that ended up a few feet onto a neighbor's lot. Our guide on fences and property lines in Tennessee goes through the steps.

Look for easements on the plat too. Many Smyrna lots carry a utility or drainage easement along the back or side, and the HOA or the town may limit what can sit inside it. A fence that crosses a swale should leave room at the bottom so water keeps moving. Before any hole is dug, Tennessee 811 has to be called so buried lines get marked. The call costs nothing, and Tennessee law requires it before digging.

Setting fence posts in Smyrna ground

Posts decide how long a fence stays straight. In Smyrna the auger often goes through dense clay and then hits limestone somewhere below. Clay holds water against the post, so the post needs to be rated for ground contact and set so water runs away from it instead of pooling around the wood. Where rock shows up shallow, the hole can be drilled into it or the post spacing can shift a little to find better ground. Any fence company you talk to should explain that choice before the crew starts, not after.

Gates take more strain than any other part of a fence. A wide gate on a clay lot can sag if its posts are not set deeper or heavier than the rest. If you need a gate wide enough for a mower or a small trailer, say so early so the posts on each side are planned for it.

Fencing a lot near Percy Priest Lake

Some Smyrna homes back toward Percy Priest Lake, and those yards tend to slope. A fence on a hill can be stepped, with each section level and a drop at every post, or racked so the rails follow the ground. Stepped sections leave triangle gaps at the bottom that a small dog can slip through. A racked fence hugs the grade but looks different from a flat run. Our guide to fencing a sloped yard explains both.

The back line on a lake lot is often the edge of Army Corps of Engineers land, not the water. A fence has to stay on your side of that line, and cutting trees or brush on Corps property to make room is not allowed without their approval. Many lakeside owners want a lower or more open style along the back to keep the view. Check what your HOA allows and where your pins are before settling on a layout.

Fence installation around a night shift

Many Smyrna households have someone working nights at the Nissan plant or on another rotating schedule. Fence installation is loudest on the days the post holes get dug. After that, hanging rails and pickets is steadier work, though a nail gun still makes plenty of noise. If someone in your house sleeps during the day, say so when you request an estimate. Then the loud days can be planned around that sleeper instead of discovered on the morning they start.

People on nights sometimes hope a privacy fence will quiet the yard for daytime sleep. A wood fence blocks sight lines well, but it does little for noise from a busy road or a neighbor's mower. It does help with light. A tall solid fence can keep a neighbor's floodlight or passing headlights out of a ground floor bedroom window.

How wood fences age in Smyrna weather

Humid Middle Tennessee summers keep a wood fence damp for long stretches. Most wood fences in Smyrna subdivisions are pressure treated pine. It is strong and affordable, but it can twist or check as it dries, and it turns gray within a season or two if left bare. Cedar is lighter and more stable, though it costs more. Posts usually fail first, right at the ground line. In newer Smyrna yards with irrigation, aim the sprinkler heads away from the fence so the bottom boards are not soaked every morning. A stain or sealer slows the graying and helps the boards shed water.