Posts and Panels

• 1). Choose the location for your fence. Check your local government's building codes. Make sure the fence will comply with all existing regulations.
  
  
• 2). Use a shovel to start the first post hole. Dig a 10-inch-wide hole as deep as you can go down with the shovel. Finish the hole with a post hole digger. Maintain the 10-inch width all to the bottom. Loosen any rocks and roots, using a digging bar.
  
  
• 3). Place the post in the hole. Add 8 inches of soil to the hole and check for plumb with a level. Tamp soil tightly around the post with a tamping bar. Add 8 more inches of soil. Check for plumb. Repeat this process until you've filled the hole.
  
  
• 4). Set up a mason's line from the first post to the spot where you will put the fence's first corner. Drive a stake into the spot. Wrap the line around the stake 5 inches above the ground. Measure from the first post to the location where the first fence panel will end. Mark that spot with a screw. Dig another post hole as described in Step 2.
  
  
• 5). Slide the rails of the first fence panel into the first post's mortises. Prop up the other end of the panel with wedges. If the post has no mortise, prop up the panel so the top rail is level and the panel is 2 to 5 inches off the ground. Screw the rails to the post.
  
  
• 6). Put the next post in its hole. Make sure its front touches the mason's line. Slide the rails into the mortise or screw them into the post. Fill the hole the same way as described in Step 3. Use 2-1/2-inch screws to secure the rails to the post. Repeat these steps for each panel.
  
  

Gate

• 1). Put up the first gate post at the desired spot in the same manner as the first fence post. Measure the width of the gate plus 1-1/2 inches and mark the spot. Set up the second gate post. Check to make sure that the top posts are level.
  
  
• 2). Install the fence panel on the side of the second gate post. Prop up the gate in between the posts, using wedges. Line up the gate pickets with those on the adjoining panels. Make sure you have a 3/4-inch gap between the gate and each post.
  
  
• 3). Screw the hinges to the gate and the posts. Remove the wedges. Make sure the gate swings properly. Screw the latch on the gate and nail in the post caps.