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Raised bed against fence
antoyques
Posts: 2
i am creating a raised bed against a fence but to not want to waste sleepers at the back of it. Any suggestions on what can be used to save the fence.
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Posts
Is it your fence?
If it is a neighbours fence you cannot pile soil against it, it has to be kept clear for access to paint etc. Fence panels would need to be able to be lifted out for painting.
If it is your fence, you could staple plastic sheeting against it, but it will probably still let water in between it and the fence and allow rot. You could put a concrete panel in the base up to the level you want soil, and then a fence panel on top.
How about breeze blocks, you could build a low retaining wall with them In front of the fence. The plants will then disguise it.
Last edited: 02 August 2017 12:29:43
Thank you all, was hoping not to build a wall as I am trying to do this myself without help.
It's a difficult one as you will need to build something between the fence and the raised bed. Possibly you could dig in 2 timber fence posts 75mm x 50mm by height required. Set them in the ground with concrete and then nail tantalised timber panels, A bit easier than breeze blocks but still requires some practical experience to do.
Post will cost £5 each
Timber panels will depend on length but a 6' lenght timber gravel board 150mm wide will cost u about £4
Post set £5 per post
How high is the raised bed? If it is only a couple of feet high, use breeze blocks at the fence. You won't need to mortar then, just lay them on top of each other offsetting the joins. They are heavy enough not to move if only 3 or 4 high.
If the blocks aren't mortared they will definitely move once soil is built up against them. Breeze blocks are quite heavy but no match for the pressure the soil will apply to them.
Are the fence posts timber or concrete? If concrete you could use concrete gravel board stood against the posts. The weight of soil will hold them in place. That won't work with timber posts due to the spacing.
I have a retaining wall at the side of the garage and is about 30 inches tall. I built it using breeze blocks. Unmortared, no founds. Always meant to get a proper wall built but it's been there for almost 20 years and never moved. They were the heavy breeze blocks, not the light ones.