Fencing
Cedar & Wood Fence Installation in Alvarado & DFW
Western red cedar privacy fences built board-on-board, side-by-side or horizontal — set in concrete, framed with galvanized hardware, and stained to hold their colour through a North Texas summer.
A cedar fence is the single most visible improvement most North Texas homeowners make to their backyard — and the one most likely to be built badly. Shallow posts, ungalvanized nails and green lumber slapped up in a day will look fine for a season and then start to lean, cup and grey.
Grace Construction builds cedar fences the slow way. We auger full-depth holes, set every post in a concrete collar crowned to shed water, frame with a proper three-rail system on runs over six feet, and fasten with hot-dipped galvanized or coated ring-shank nails that will not bleed rust down your pickets. On sloped or rocky lots — which is most of Johnson County — we step or rack the fence to follow grade instead of leaving gaps a dog can walk under.
At a glance
| Materials | Western red cedar pickets & rails, treated pine or steel posts |
|---|---|
| Common styles | Board-on-board, cap-and-trim, side-by-side, picket, horizontal |
| Typical heights | 4ft picket · 6ft privacy · 8ft privacy on request |
| Finish | Penetrating oil stain, applied 30–60 days after install |
| Typical build time | 2–3 days for a standard residential backyard |
| Included | Tear-out, old post concrete removal, haul-off, HOA submittals |
Not sure which option fits? That is what the on-site measure is for. We walk the property, show you samples and tell you honestly which material earns its cost on your job — and which does not. Call 682-456-8200 or request an estimate.
What We Build
Options, materials and how we detail them
Board-on-board: true privacy that survives shrinkage
Cedar shrinks as it dries. A side-by-side fence that looks tight on install day will show daylight between every picket within a year. Board-on-board overlaps each picket by an inch or more, so when the wood moves you still have a solid, private wall. It is our default recommendation for backyards, pool enclosures and anywhere a neighbour’s window looks in.
Where the yard drops away or a retaining wall runs the property line, we build off a natural stone or masonry base so the cedar never sits in wet soil.
- Overlapped pickets — no shrink gaps
- Three-rail framing on 6ft+ runs
- Stone, block or rot-board bases
- Cap-and-trim upgrade available
Stained and sealed, not left to grey
Raw cedar turns silver in about eighteen months of Texas sun. A penetrating oil stain slows UV damage, repels water and keeps the grain warm and rich. We stain in dark walnut, cedar tone, mahogany and custom-matched colours, spraying and back-brushing so the stain works into the grain rather than sitting on top of it.
New cedar needs roughly 30 to 60 days to release its mill glaze before it will take stain properly, so we schedule staining as a return visit — included in the quote, not an upsell later.
- Penetrating oil-based stains
- Sprayed and back-brushed
- Dark walnut, cedar & custom tones
- Scheduled 30–60 days after install
Picket and front-yard fencing with kerb appeal
Not every fence should be six feet of solid cedar. Front yards, garden beds and corner lots often call for a lower picket line — spaced, painted and detailed to frame the house rather than hide it. We build flat-top, dog-ear, scalloped and arched picket runs in cedar or primed pine, painted in the colour of your trim.
Painted picket also plays well with HOA rules that restrict front-yard height and require a finished side facing the street. We build to whichever standard your neighbourhood enforces.
- Painted or stained finishes
- Scalloped, arched & flat-top
- HOA-compliant heights
- Matching gates and hardware
Modern horizontal cedar for newer builds
Horizontal cedar reads clean and contemporary — it suits modern farmhouse and new-build architecture across Mansfield, Midlothian and south Fort Worth. It is also less forgiving than vertical: boards must be dead level, joints staggered, and posts spaced tighter to stop sag.
We build horizontal runs on steel or heavy cedar posts with hidden fasteners and consistent reveal gaps, so the finished wall reads as a single plane instead of a stack of boards.
- Steel or heavy cedar posts
- Consistent reveal spacing
- Hidden fastener options
- Matching horizontal gates
The Standard
Why this job holds up
Western red cedar
Naturally rot- and insect-resistant, dimensionally stable and the best wood available for a Texas privacy fence.
Galvanized hardware
Hot-dipped galvanized and coated fasteners throughout, so you never get rust streaks bleeding down new pickets.
Built to grade
Stepped or racked to follow the ground line — no gaps under the fence, no awkward wedge cuts.
Finished properly
Penetrating stain applied after the wood has cured, sprayed and back-brushed for even, lasting colour.
Where We Work
Cedar & Wood Fences across the DFW metroplex
We build this service in every city below. Pick yours for local permit notes, common HOA requirements and nearby projects.
Questions
What homeowners ask us about this
How much does a cedar fence cost per foot in the DFW area?
Most cedar privacy fences in our area run roughly $28 to $55 per linear foot installed. Height, board pattern (side-by-side versus board-on-board), post material, cap-and-trim, tear-out of the old fence and stain all move the number. We give a firm written price after measuring on site.
How deep do you set fence posts?
As a rule we auger to roughly one third of the post height — typically 24 to 30 inches for a standard six-foot fence, deeper for eight-foot runs, gate posts and anything on loose or sandy soil. Every post gets a full concrete collar crowned above grade so water runs away from the wood.
Board-on-board or side-by-side — which should I choose?
Board-on-board, in almost every case. Cedar shrinks as it dries, and a side-by-side fence will open visible gaps within a year. The overlap on board-on-board absorbs that movement and keeps the fence genuinely private. Side-by-side costs less and can make sense on long non-privacy runs.
How long will a cedar fence last in Texas?
A properly built cedar fence with concrete-set posts and a maintained stain finish should give you 15 to 20 years. Left unstained it will still stand, but expect greying, surface checking and a noticeably shorter life. Re-staining every three to four years is the single best thing you can do for it.
Do you replace just the damaged sections, or the whole fence?
Either. If the posts are sound and only pickets or rails have failed, section replacement is far cheaper and we are happy to do it. If the posts are rotted at grade or leaning, patching is throwing money away and we will tell you so.
Get Started
Tell us about your project
Four short steps. A real person from Grace Construction follows up within one business day to book your on-site measure.
Call or text
682-456-8200Request Your Free Estimate
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Let’s get your project measured and priced
Free on-site estimate across Alvarado, Burleson, Cleburne, Joshua, Mansfield, Midlothian, Waxahachie, Crowley, Grandview and Fort Worth.