fences--cedar vs. pine?

[bhnumbers]

Does anyone have a cedar fence? We had a pressure treated pine fence at our old house and it was fine, but the boards started warping within about 5 years of when we had in installed. From what I read, the cedar fences are much less likely to warp and will last longer overall. We just got a couple estimates and while the cedar is more expensive it's not *that* much more, especially if it's supposed to last 10-15 years longer than pine. And since we're planning to live here for quite some time, it seems like a good idea. But since we've never had a cedar fence, I wanted to see if anyone had any BTDT advice. Also, if you do have cedar, did you stain/treat it? If so, how often?

Thanks!!

[Susie]

I have a cedar picket fence that was installed in summer 2009. We always meant to stain it, but never did. We haven't really had any issues with warping. It's starting to show a little age in a few places and need a little repair, but is generally in good condition. One spot just needs a slat nailed back down where it came loose.

2009:


2020:

[redheadk]

We are replacing part of ours next week. My dad (a builder who is handling it for me) recommended cedar. The pine fences that have become popular due to their lower cost look terrible after just 1-2 years here. They are cheaper but not cheap enough to offset the cost of needing to replace them more quickly. So, cedar fence with rot board it is! In fact, we have a cedar fence on one side that is at least 10 years old and it's still in great shape minus the rot boards so we are only going to replace those for now on that side. We don't stain ours, just let it weather naturally. It's most covered by landscaping anyway.

[aprilsails]

I’ve rarely seen pine fences here. I don’t know if it’s because cedar is super plentiful, but I think most fences are made out of it by far in my regain (Southeast Ontario).

Our last house had a cedar fence installed and stained reddish brown by the previous owners at least 5 years before we bought the house. About 2 years in we stained the vertical posts again, but we never needed to do the actual slats. We lived in the house for 8 years and that was the sum total of the fence maintenance that we ever did. It was still in good condition when we sold, and had to be 15 years old.

I will say that if we were to put in a cedar fence and deck again (DH wants PVC and Trex), that we would just let it naturally silver. Staining decks is the worst. We did an oil treatment on our porch and are hoping it works better than staining. I despise having all the paint come off the deck within a couple of years and having to sand and stain afresh.