Uncategorized

While the reasons for erecting fences never change, says Lee, the product preferences do. "When I started, most people wanted chain link," he says. "Now they usually want to spend more for wood or the new aluminum ones that look like wrought iron."

During the winter, Lee and the four crews he oversees do mostly commercial jobs. Unlike their smaller, residential equipment, their commercial equipment can drill through frozen ground. The rest of the year, residential calls dominate their time. "The first warm weekend in the spring, everyone calls," says Lee.

Before Lee can install a fence, the Fox Valley Fence staff must call the Joint Utility Locating Information for Excavators, also known as JULIE Inc., to mark underground utility lines. And, the homeowner must secure a municipal fence permit.

Over the years, Lee has learned the different fencing rules required by different towns. Most require post holes to be 36 inches deep, for example, although Huntley and Lake in the Hills are among those that require 42 inches. Some require inspections after holes are dug, some after the fences are completed, and some not at all. Most have "good side out" rules that require the better side of the fence to face the neighbors.

In addition to municipal rules, many subdivisions’ covenants dictate fence type and/or height. "One subdivision in Gilberts only allows 5-foot-high, wood, shadowbox-style," he explains.

Lee and his crew custom-build each fence on the job, matching its contour to the land. "Even yards that look flat aren’t flat," he explains.

The hardest part of the job isn’t physical, says Lee. It’s the occasional neighbor disputes. "While we’re working, the neighbor comes out and says, `I’ve been mowing this area for 20 years–it’s mine.’ I show him the surveyor’s stakes and have to tell him that he’s been mowing the neighbor’s lawn for 20 years," says Lee.

Sometimes, one neighbor upsets the others by violating their gentlemen’s agreement to keep the neighborhood fence-free.

"That starts it," says Lee. "Then the other neighbors call for fences, too."

The tools of Lee’s trade haven’t changed much since his father did this work, he says. He uses a hydraulic post-hole digger most of the time, but digs by hand around utility lines and when close to buildings.

On his truck is a portable generator to power the digger when he doesn’t have access to the homeowner’s electricity.

Lee fills the post holes with cement, a practice he says is important to protect fences from high winds. He allows the cement to set two to three days before attaching the panels to the posts.

Most of Lee’s calls are for new fences, but about one in four are repairs. "Posts rot, trees fall on them and cars run through them," he says. "One guy drove right through the back of his garage and through his own fence."