Garth Allen Fence Builders installs cedar privacy fences across Allen and nearby Collin County cities, built on galvanized steel posts the way the City of Allen requires. Most projects are a 6 ft backyard fence in board-on-board cedar with one or two gates; some are 8 ft against a two-story neighbor, a side-yard run with a gate to the alley, or a replacement of an older wood-post fence that has started to lean. The work is carried out by insured fence contractors registered with the City of Allen.
What happens on the first visit
The first visit is about the line, not the boards. The run is measured corner to corner, gate openings are marked, and the slope along the fence is checked so the plan can say whether sections will step or rack. The drainage easement along the back and side lot lines is noted, because that stretch has to keep a 3-inch gap at the bottom. Sprinkler heads near the line are flagged, since the trench for a post hole is the most common way a sprinkler line gets cut. If the old fence is coming out, the posts are checked to see whether any are steel and worth keeping. The visit ends with the material, the height, the gate sizes and the style settled, which is what a price can be built from. For the steps after that, see how long installation takes.
Why Allen fences sit on steel posts
The City of Allen Residential Fence Guideline says it plainly: all fencing requires metal posts, and metal caps and hardware are required. Brick, wood and wrought iron are the accepted fence materials, so cedar is welcome, but only above ground on steel. Posts go at least 18 inches deep in concrete.
The rule matches what fails first on wood fences here. A wood post sits in soil that stays damp after rain and sprinklers, and in a city whose building code rates termite pressure “Very Heavy,” the ground line of a wood post is where rot and termites meet. Galvanized steel removes that weak point. It also gives a straighter line, because steel posts don’t twist as they dry. The steel vs wood posts guide goes through the options for finishing the steel, from brackets hidden behind the boards to a full cedar wrap.
Building on Houston Black clay
Federal soil surveys map Houston Black clay across most of Collin County. It has a linear extensibility up to 12 percent, which puts it in the very high shrink-swell class: it swells hard when wet and shrinks and cracks when it dries. A post footing in that soil gets pushed up in a wet spring and left loose in a dry August.
Three details keep cedar fences straight here. Footings go deeper than the 18-inch minimum for 8 ft fences and for every gate post. Holes are dug straight-sided or slightly belled at the bottom, never wider at the top, so the clay can’t grip a mushroom-shaped collar and lift it. And the concrete is crowned at the top so water runs away from the steel instead of pooling against it. The clay soil guide explains the mechanism in more detail.
Board-on-board, side-by-side or shadow box
Cedar shrinks a little as it dries. With side-by-side pickets butted edge to edge, that shrinkage opens thin gaps within a season. Board-on-board overlaps a second layer of pickets so the gaps stay covered, and both faces of the fence look finished, which is why it is the most common choice on shared Allen lot lines. Shadow box sets the two layers on opposite sides of the rails, letting air pass at an angle while still blocking most views.
The trade-off is lumber. Board-on-board uses roughly a third more pickets than side-by-side, which is the main reason typical DFW-area pricing runs $35 to $50 a foot installed for 6 ft board-on-board against $18 to $35 for side-by-side. A top cap and trim board add to the cost but protect the end grain and give the fence a finished top edge. The style comparison guide and the Allen fence cost guide break this down further.
Slopes, easements and 8 ft sections
Most Allen backyards fall gently toward the alley or the street for drainage, and the fence has to follow. Board-on-board can rack, with each picket set plumb and the rails following the grade, so the top line slopes smoothly. Framed panels and some cap details step instead, in level sections with a small drop at each post.
Along the standard 3-ft drainage easement on the lot line, Allen allows the fence only if the bottom member sits at least 3 inches above finished grade so storm water can pass. That rules out a buried rot board on that stretch; instead the pickets stop short of the ground. Owners with diggers in the family can add a barrier on the inside face, covered in the fences for dogs guide.
An 8 ft fence is allowed in back and side yards and is common against two-story houses. It needs longer posts set deeper, because a solid 8 ft wall of cedar takes a larger share of the 105 mph design wind Allen’s code uses. Typical DFW-area pricing for 8 ft runs about 25 to 40 percent above 6 ft.
Permits, HOA approval and the property line
Allen requires a fence permit for new and replacement fences, applied for through the city’s Citizen Self-Service portal with a $75 fee. Most subdivisions also have an HOA that sets the style, height or stain, and the city asks owners to get that approval first. The fence must sit on your property and cannot cross the property line at any point, so where the line is uncertain a survey or the recorded plat settles it. The Allen permit rules guide lists the details, and the property line guide covers shared fences.
Keeping cedar looking right
New cedar is bright orange-tan and turns silver-gray within a season of Texas sun. Some owners like the gray; most stain. A penetrating semi-transparent stain applied once the wood is dry slows the graying and keeps the boards from drying out and cracking as fast. Fence staining covers the work, and gates for the new fence are planned at the same time so hinge posts get the deeper footings they need.
