How to Build a Post-and-Rail Fence With Wire on a Slope

Measuring and Staking

• 1

  Measure your property lines and drive stakes into each of the corners where you want to erect the fence. Mark any gates with stakes.

• 2

  Attach strings to the stakes to get a line where the fence will go. Leave the space between the gate stakes open.

• 3

  Calculate how many posts you'll need by measuring each length. Draw the fence line on a piece of paper and arrange the posts. Aim for posts that are 6 to 8 feet apart.

• 4

  Drive a stake every 6 feet into the ground where you want the fence posts to go. Ensure each stake touches the line when you hammer it into the ground, to align it properly.

Dig Holes and Install Posts

• 5

  Drill holes into the ground where each corner post will go. Use an auger or fencepost digger. Ensure the holes are centered over the fence line. Dig holes that are 1 foot wide and 1/3 the length of the post plus 6 inches.

• 6

  Fill the postholes with 6 inches of gravel to help drainage.

• 7

  Check that the post is plumb and level with a post level. Set the level on top of the post and adjust the post until it's aligned.

• 8

  Backfill the posthole with dirt. Mound the dirt around the base of the post to encourage water to run off. Tamp the soil down.

• 9

  Attach a string at the top of each corner post to connect them together. Ensure the string rests on the inside of each post.

• 10

  Install the remaining posts in the same manner as the corner posts.

Install Top Boards

• 11

  Cut the boards so they're long enough to cover three fence posts. Measure from the end of the first fence post to the middle of the third. Cut the board to fit with a chop saw. Cut all the boards before you start installing them.

• 12

  Hold the boards to the posts. Align the top of the board until it's flush with the top of the fence post.

• 13

  Join the boards together in the middle of every third post with a butt joint. The butt ends of each board are pressed flush together in the middle of the post and nailed in position with four nails -- two for each board.

• 14

  Angle the boards so they follow the natural slope of the land if you install them on a hill with a low grade. If the slope is steep, bevel the board edges to make them fit easily together. Continue to add the boards at the top of the posts until you complete the perimeter.

Attach the Wire

• 15

  Start stapling the wire into position at a corner post. Hammer a fence-post staple into the outside of the post at the height you want the wire. Work the staple into the wood at a diagonal; this stops you from hammering it into the wood's grain and potentially splitting the post. Install all staples so they do not move in the post -- but ensure there's about a 1/4-inch gap between the center of the staple and the post. This gap allows the wire to move slightly within the staple.

• 16

  Feed the wire through the staple and wrap it around the post. Wrap the short end of the wire through itself, as if you're knotting it. Twist the short end tightly around the long end to make a coil, until the short end is completely wrapped.

• 17

  Smooth the wire across to the next post and align it to the same height as the original staple in the starting post. Pound a staple around the wire at an angle. Continue installing the wire in this manner until you finish the row.

• 18

  Install the remaining rows of wire in the same manner as the first. Leave at least 2 inches between the ground and the bottom wire. This makes it easier to groom the grass and maintain the wire.