Most people decide based on how the fence looks, which is the least useful signal available. Here is the order we actually check things in, and you can do the first test yourself in about two minutes.
Start with the posts, not the pickets
Grab a post and push. A post that moves at the base has either rotted at grade or lost its concrete, and no amount of new pickets will fix it. Do that along the run and count how many move.
Then look at where each post meets the soil. Wood posts rot at grade first — the wet-dry line — and a post that looks fine at eye level can be hollow six inches down. Push a screwdriver into it. If it goes in easily, that post is done.
What the answers mean
Posts solid, pickets tired. This is the good outcome, and it is more common than people expect. Replacing pickets and rails and re-staining gives you years more fence for a fraction of a rebuild.
A few posts gone, the rest solid. Also repairable. We reset or replace the failed posts and re-picket the affected sections.
Most posts moving or rotted. Replace. Patching a failing frame moves the problem a few feet down the line and you pay twice.
Rails sagging between posts. Check whether it is the rail or the fixings. A sagging rail on sound posts is a cheap fix.
The gate tells you a lot
Gates are the early warning system. A gate that has dropped, scrapes the ground or will not latch is usually reporting that its post has moved, not that the gate is badly built.
If the gate has gone out of square and the rest of the fence is sound, that is a targeted repair — reset and brace the gate post, rehang the gate on decent hardware.
What a repair actually involves
On a fence with sound posts, repair usually means resetting any post that has moved, replacing rails that have sagged or split, re-picketing the affected sections, then washing and re-staining the whole run so the new wood does not read as a patch.
That last step is the one people skip and then regret. New cedar against weathered cedar is obvious, and staining the entire fence afterwards is what makes a repair invisible rather than looking like a plaster cast.
What we will not do
We will not sell you a repair we know is going to fail so we can quote the replacement six months later. If the honest answer is replace, you get told that at the estimate.
Equally, if you have been quoted a full replacement and your posts are sound, it is worth a second opinion. See fence repair, staining and restoration, or get a free measure in Benbrook, Keene or anywhere else we work.
- Push-test every post
- Screwdriver test at grade
- Check rails and fixings separately
- Treat gate sag as a post problem
Frequently asked questions
How do I know if my fence posts are still good?
Push each post firmly at chest height. If the base moves, the post has failed. Then press a screwdriver into the wood right at soil level — wood rots at grade first, and a post that looks fine at eye level can be hollow six inches down.
Is it cheaper to repair or replace a fence?
Repair, when the posts are sound — replacing pickets and rails on a good frame costs far less than a rebuild. Once most posts have failed, repair stops being economical because you are patching a frame that will keep failing.
My gate has dropped. Does the whole fence need replacing?
Usually not. A dropped gate is nearly always reporting that its post has moved or was never braced properly. Resetting and bracing the gate post and rehanging on good hardware normally fixes it.
Get your project measured
Grace Construction builds fences, gates, decks and outdoor living across Johnson, Tarrant and Ellis counties from our shop in Alvarado. Free on-site measure, written price, no obligation.