Tuesday, September 7, 2010

All Fences Are Not Created Equal...

Pre-fabricated Fence
by Pauhl Gazlay












Many wooden fences are built to fail. Does this statement surprise you? It shouldn’t. Planned obsolescence is a concept which is at the heart of many of the products which we use every day. You need look no further than the car in your driveway to see an example of this. Automobile makers have designed cars to fail relatively quickly for decades. Why? Because they sell more auto parts and new cars that way, which leads to bigger profits. If they built cars that lasted for 30 years they would soon run out of new customers.


 The same is true of the prefabricated fences which you can purchase at Home Depot, Lowe’s, and other big box stores. They are designed and built to fail just a few years down the road, at which time, your options are to live with a dilapidated fence or…buy a new one. Here are the top reasons a pre-fabricated fence is doomed to an early demise before it ever even reaches your yard.

  • Gravity- Pre-fabricated fences are installed on the side of your fence posts. Over time simple physics demands that the fence’s own weight will make it lean outward.
  • Materials- prefabricated gates are made with the cheapest, lightest materials available (5/8 inch thick pickets and 2 x 3 runners).  
  • Staples and nails- the fastest, cheapest way for manufacturers to assemble a fence is by shooting it together with staples and nails which, ironically, make them fall apart faster.
  • Exposure- The most vulnerable open wood grains at the tops and bottoms of the fence pickets are unprotected from the sun (top) and up-splash (bottom).
 At gardencarpentry.com we often install, repair, or replace pre-fabricated fencing because sometimes you just need a fence. Any fence. But for those clients who have an eye on long term usefulness and value we always recommend a custom, center hung, sandwich fence. Here is why…

  • Gravity- Framework is hung centered, in between posts so there is no leaning.
  • Materials- Custom fences are constructed of  ¾ inch thick pickets, and runners are made with durable 2 x 4 lumber.
  • Everything is screwed together so natural wood expansion and contraction won’t loosen and pull connections apart (as with nails and staples).
  • Exposure- custom fences are protected from the elements by decorative 2 x 6 top and bottom sun and splash rails.
Custom Center Hung Sandwich Fence

The bottom line is that pre-fabricated fences may be a good short term solution to fencing needs. But remember, they are designed not to last so that you will have to continue buying them. In the end that will cost you more money than a long lasting and more beautiful custom built, center hung, sandwich style fence.

All Fences Are Not Created Equal...

Pre-fabricated Fence














Many wooden fences are built to fail. Does this statement surprise you? It shouldn’t. Planned obsolescence is a concept which is at the heart of many of the products which we use every day. You need look no further than the car in your driveway to see an example of this. Automobile makers have designed cars to fail relatively quickly for decades. Why? Because they sell more auto parts and new cars that way, which leads to bigger profits. If they built cars that lasted for 30 years they would soon run out of new customers.


 The same is true of the prefabricated fences which you can purchase at Home Depot, Lowe’s, and other big box stores. They are designed and built to fail just a few years down the road, at which time, your options are to live with a dilapidated fence or…buy a new one. Here are the top reasons a pre-fabricated fence is doomed to an early demise before it ever even reaches your yard.

  • Gravity- Pre-fabricated fences are installed on the side of your fence posts. Over time simple physics demands that the fence’s own weight will make it lean outward.
  • Materials- prefabricated gates are made with the cheapest, lightest materials available (5/8 inch thick pickets and 2 x 3 runners).  
  • Staples and nails- the fastest, cheapest way for manufacturers to assemble a fence is by shooting it together with staples and nails which, ironically, make them fall apart faster.
  • Exposure- The most vulnerable open wood grains at the tops and bottoms of the fence pickets are unprotected from the sun (top) and up-splash (bottom).
 At gardencarpentry.com we often install, repair, or replace pre-fabricated fencing because
sometimes you just need a fence. Any fence. But for those clients who have an eye on long term usefulness and value we always recommend a custom, center hung, sandwich fence. Here is why…

  • Gravity- Framework is hung centered, in between posts so there is no leaning.
  • Materials- Custom fences are constructed of  ¾ inch thick pickets, and runners are made with durable 2 x 4 lumber.
  • Everything is screwed together so natural wood expansion and contraction won’t loosen and pull connections apart (as with nails and staples).
  • Exposure- custom fences are protected from the elements by decorative 2 x 6 top and bottom sun and splash rails.
Custom Center Hung Sandwich Fence

The bottom line is that pre-fabricated fences may be a good short term solution to fencing needs. But remember, they are designed not to last so that you will have to continue buying them. In the end that will cost you more money than a long lasting and more beautiful custom built, center hung, sandwich style fence.

Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Product Review: Ecolife

by Pauhl Gazlay

Green is the new Gold. It seems that every company out there these days is clamoring to push out new products labeled as "green", "eco-friendly", or ""all natural" onto the market as quickly as possible. The question is, "is green always good?"

One of the newer products on the market is something called Ecolife Stabilized Wood. Made by Chemical engineering giant Viance, it has essentially been powered onto the market to replace traditional pressure treated wood as the new standard for rot and insect resistant outdoor lumber applications.

The good news is that traditional pressure treated wood needed replacing. It was effective, but contained a number of toxins which were unfriendly to people and the environment. The bad news is that the jury is decidedly "out" on Ecolife's effectiveness and eco-friendliness.

As a wood-working professional my personal opinion about Ecolife is that it is an inferior product. Here is why...



First and foremost, it doesn't work! As you can see by the picture above, mold is pervasive on ecolife products. We often find ecolife lumber covered with mold before it ever makes it off the shelf at the lumber yard. The product pictured above was less than 6 months off the shelf when the photo was taken! Should 6 month old wood be covered in green and black mold?

As far as being insect resistant. I have noticed that fresh Ecolife wood takes on the aroma of a sewer (yes, that's right, a sewer) when it gets wet. When we have used Ecolife lumber on projects, our stacks of lumber seem to attract large numbers of insects. Specifically, cockroaches, bottle-flies, and ants. This calls into question whether it is effective against carpenter ants and termites.

In addition, the epoxy stabilizers in the wood treatment make the lumber more prone to splitting and cracking than traditional treated lumber, as the stabilizer prevents the wood from expanding and contracting naturally. This can allow moisture to infiltrate the wood and cause rot over time.

If you are thinking of using Ecolife for a do-it-yourself project you can expect to have a difficult time cutting and shaping the lumber accompanied by a high degree of wear and tear on your tools.

So what is one to do for outdoor building projects? There are some alternatives. Treated, stabilized lumber such as Ecolife remains the cheapest option, so if cost is the determining factor, we recommend spraying a mist of 6 to 1 water/bleach solution on Ecolife prior to using it outdoors.

Otherwise, for applications where the lumber is not in direct contact with the ground, Cypress, although more expensive, is a great alternative. It is beautiful, and has a natural resistance to insects and decay and can be stained to add additional protection. A bit more expensive, Cedar also provides similar natural protective traits, and is a visually attractive wood.

In the end, consumers will determine the fate of Ecolife. There needs to be an environmentally responsible, yet effective, treatment for lumber. Let your contractor, lumberyard, or home improvement center know that Ecolife is not the answer. In time, it can result in a better, more effective alternative.

Tuesday, June 29, 2010

East of Eden

Product Review of Eden Brand’s “Venetian” Pergola.




Retail Price-               $1, 599.00
Bolt Down Kit-                  99.00
Tax-                                 118.00
Installation-                      647.00

Total                          $ 2,463.00

There was a time when Gardencarpentry.com would refuse to have anything to do with pergolas which were made of vinyl. “We are craftsmen, and pergolas made out of plastic are beneath us” we declared! We also objected on the moral grounds of vinyl being an environmentally unfriendly product of petroleum. Never-the-less, as businessmen, we eventually decided that if a client insists on vinyl then so be it! Different strokes for different folks, right? If they buy it, we will build it… or assemble it in this case.

So in keeping with our new found open arms attitude we recently took on the assembly of Eden brand’s Venetian pergola. There were some things I liked about this pre-fabricated product. There were some downsides as well. To be fair let me start with the positives.

One of the initial big advantages of a vinyl pergola is that it is clean and neat. Unlike wood it is smooth, uniform and consistent in its appearance. This example was no exception. It is also white. Very white!

For those people looking for a clean, uniform, white appearance the Eden Venetian pergola should be pleasing. And in all honesty, for the money, it has a lot of decorative details which would be hard to find at the same price in wood.

That being said let me address some concerns I have after completing the assembly.


1. Vinyl breaks down in ultra violet light. So the clean, white look will slowly give way to a brittle and faded one.

2. The rafters are made of 4 separate parts, and showed signs of sagging immediately upon assembly.


3. The vast majority of the product was made by attaching smaller components together to get larger components which would traditionally be made from one solid piece on a wood pergola. More parts equates to more weak points and a higher probability of failure.


4. The hardware which was sent as part of the bolt-down kit to attach the pergola posts to a concrete slab were not what was described in the directions, and in fact, would have met wind tolerance codes until modifications were made to them on site by gardencarpentry.com using specialized tools.


6. The pergola assembly was predicated upon the structure’s vinyl columns fitting around PT 4x4 posts and the same posts fitting into the bolt down kit’s housing. PT 4x4 posts tend to be a MINIMUM of 3 ½ inches in diameter, but are usually larger. The bolt down kit’s and vinyl column’s housings were at MOST 3 ½ inches wide. As a result, all four sides, top and bottom, of the four wooden posts (32 sides) had to be shaved down to fit the housings. This was either a clumsy engineering oversight or a manufacturing blunder on the part of Eden Pergolas. Either way it was a big time waster during assembly.


7. The pergola assembly instructions were vague, unclear, and hard to follow in some places.


Overall, the pergola looked nice when we completed the assembly. My main issues are that it took two experienced pergola builders, all of our specialized tools, and the better part of two days to assemble it. The sales literature says it should take two people with “some” carpentry knowledge 8 hours with limited tools. Secondly, the sales literature says the product has a twenty year warrantee. Reasons 1 thru 6 above should illustrate why I sincerely doubt that this product will last half that long.

Monday, March 15, 2010

What is the Real Cost of That Deal?


People have been cutting back on all sorts of items to get the most possible mileage out of a dollar. More and more often families are opting to forgo things like vacation travel and dining out in favor of spending their hard earned money on making their home and garden more comfortable and entertaining. As someone who gets to see the ins and outs of the home & garden improvement business we are often asked what to look for to get the best deal on home improvement projects.


My advice to those who would listen, regardless of the type of project, is always the same. Look for the best value. To get the best value it is important to understand the difference between PRICE and COST. Defined most simply, price is the amount of money you pay for something. Cost is everything you have to give up to obtain something. But wait! Aren’t they the same thing? No, they are not. Let me explain what I mean…


Price is the dollar amount you will pay for a product or service. For example, if you can buy a light bulb for 50 cents, then 50 cents is the light bulbs’ price. Simple! Now what about the COST of the light bulb? For that we need to consider how it will be used.


Suppose that the light that needs the new bulb is not the lamp next to your bed but is an exterior fixture which is twenty feet up the side of your house. You can pay the price of 50 cents for a bulb, but for the cost you also need to include the extra effort of setting up an extension ladder, climbing 20 feet up the side of the house, disassembling the fixture housing, changing the bulb, reassembling the housing, and then putting the ladder back in the garage. Wow! That was a lot of work. So while a 50 cent light bulb which needs to be replaced every few months may be a good value for the lamp next to the bed, the added cost of climbing up the side of the house every time it needs replacing means that the better value for the exterior light is in a higher priced bulb of better quality and with a longer life span.


The same concept applies to home improvement projects. Simply put, you need to look for value. A home improvement project is like the light 20 feet up the side of your house. Quality counts, because once the project is finished it is not easy, convenient, or inexpensive to redo it. So again, when getting ready to hire somebody to do a home or garden improvement project ask your self the difference between the price and the cost.


A good example of this is the story of a recent project which we did for a client. The client hired us to build a custom wood pergola next to their pool. At the same time, they hired another company to build a vinyl fence. They got a good price on the fence, but as my partner and I meticulously crafted their custom pergola so that it would have strength and beauty for many years to come, we witnessed some things which made us realize that the client did not get a good value in the fence.


Why not? The cost. The cost of getting the lowest price was that they had two men on their property who were, shall we say, of dubious character. At least one of the fence builders was already drunk when they would arrive to work, and both of them would periodically retreat to their truck, which was parked in front of the clients’ home, to smoke a certain plant which is sometimes used to treat glaucoma. In addition to witnessing a constant litany of loud and vulgar language, my partner and I also watched as the two men nearly came to blows one day over a minor disagreement.


As for the execution of the job itself? The two men constantly asked to borrow our tools because they didn’t have the correct ones to do their job. They set up their work station in the neighbors’ front yard and did not even clean up their mess upon completion, and best of all they filled their post holes for the fence with dry concrete mix and forgot to add any water before packing the holes with dirt!


The bottom line is that because the homeowner didn’t take cost into account and only considered the low price, the end result was a product of very low value. In fact, in just a couple of years the poorly constructed fence will likely have to be replaced or repaired and will end up costing the homeowner more money, time, and convenience then it would have even if the contractor with the most expensive estimate had been hired the first time around.


Is this a worst case scenario of cost far exceeding the price? Probably so. But it illustrates the point that when it comes to projects which are going to be a permanent fixture of your garden, yard, or home that quality and professionalism in a contractor leads to better long term value. Because, while it may be easy to replace the bargain light bulb in the lamp next to your bed the same can not be said of replacing that bargain priced deck, fence or kitchen.


So, to answer the question “How do I get a good deal on my home or garden project?” I say remember this. Because of the lengthy recession there are two kinds of businesses who are still available to do the job. Craftsmen, who get jobs because they are really good at what they do, and crafty men who get jobs by being the lowest bidder and cut enough corners to stay alive. The good news is that these days you can usually get the craftsman to do the job for a competitive price and without all of the intangible costs of the unscrupulous crafty man. Now that’s what I call a good deal!

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Pergola Reignites The Passion!


The passion is gone. What was once new and exciting, is now routine and uninspired. It used to be that you couldn’t wait to get home from work and lose yourself by giving hours of your undivided attention and time. Now, it’s just something you do on weekends once in a while and even that has grown tired and stale. Yes, you are falling out of love…with your back yard?

What happened? You used to have such big plans for your backyard sanctuary. But now it’s just a place where the grill is kept, or a place to occasionally spend time with guests when you don’t necessarily want them inside the house. What about spending real quality time outside? Having a special place of comfort and style to retreat to from the grind of the day? A place which is just right for entertaining guests, or is the perfect romantic retreat for just the two of you. A beautiful custom pergola, or outdoor living room, can reignite your love affair with your yard by adding classic style and providing you an incredibly inviting focal point of interest.


Imagine a place to really relax during the day, where you are out of direct sunlight but still in the open air. A pergola gives you beautiful dappled light, but still allows heat to escape up and away from you while letting a natural flow of cooler air to enter from below.

At night time there is nothing so beautiful and intimate as a pergola accentuated with climbing vines and subtly illuminated by soft lighting hidden within the rafters. You can even comfortably enjoy it in the depths of summer by installing any number of attractive and functional ceiling fans to keep insects on the run and the cool breezes flowing.

You can still recapture that excitement you once had for your yard. In this day and age of staying close to home, let us help you rekindle your love affair with your outdoor spaces by creating the look and feel of your favorite bed and breakfast nook or resort style poolside spot. As for you and your significant other? Where things go from there is up to the two of you!