Is this our fence? Help?!

6 years ago

Here is the fence to the right of our garden as if you were looking from the road/house. We have looked at the deeds and it doesn't say who the fence belongs to, whether it's us or our neighbours.
We have had problems with the ivy which we have tried to tame off of our property, but the ivy from their side has weighted the fence down.
What do we do? It looks like the ivy is holding it up as well... The neighbours are slightly difficult and I don't think they would address the problem if we asked them.
Should we:
A. Replace the fence entirely with their permission (would we have to do anything about the ivy though?)

B. Put up a new fence in front of it and hope the ivy doesn't attack our new fence by pruning it regularly.

C. Put up hedge plants tall enough to cover the fence.

This isn't our forever home. We envisage staying here for another 10years max. Maybe we've missed options, any help would be greatly appreciated!!

Thanks,
Georgina

Featured Answer

GardenFairyGodmother GFG

6 years ago

Are you in a terrace or semi? Usually , looking at a house from the road, it is the right fence. Ivy when left untamed, can pull down a fence. If a fence post has snapped, you can reinforce it with a short concrete post at the base. This will save money and effort in removing and replacing a whole fence post. A broken panel can be patched up, but will look awful on your side. I wouldn't bother planting a hedge in front, as it will make it difficult to maintain fence in the future.

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Comments (7)

Jonathan
6 years ago
I would replace the fence. It sounds like your neighbours won’t contribute so you will be stuck with the full cost. In that case a replacement fence will be more cost effective than a hedge and in a narrow garden takes up less space.
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Nice job on the house. Looks very smart:) Personally I prefer to see a hedge in a front garden but with a low wall in front to prevent soil/debris from spilling out on the pavement. Griselinia littoralis has beautiful evergreen apple green foliage that would look lovely against the house, fast growing and can kept trimmed to about eyelevel and 2ft thick. Plus there are many other plants that can be used as hedging depending on your requirements. Yew and privet are also good choices as these can be kept neat and tidy, although privet requires more regular trimming. Your cheapest option however is probably going to be fencing as this will require less ground work. A low wall approx 1ft high will not need much foundation work so also reducing cost. Hedges will need a certain amount of soil preparation but this is something that can easily be done by yourself. I’d ask a few local landscape gardeners to give you a few rough ideas on cost.
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embzop
6 years ago
I'd go for option A. I'd speak to the neighbour and try and get them to agree to you removing the ivy so you don't get further problems. The new fence should last 15 years so will still good by the time you move.

I had the same issue with my current house. Spoke to the neighbour and neither of us owned the fence. I decided to replace it at my own cost because then I could choose the fence panels that I wanted and it was the simplest option rather than getting into a debate about it. Also, I had mentally prepared for paying the cost before I looked at the deeds and found it wasn't mine!
Suzanne C
6 years ago
Which is...
E D
6 years ago
A.
PRO
Secure a Field Ltd
6 years ago
Hi G. j.

I would definitely speak to your neighbor before any course of action is taken.

And i would highly recommend replacing the current fence. Because the privacy and security of your garden has definitely been weakened.

Although putting a concrete post support will temporarily help your fence post it would be more cost effective to replace the whole fence so you have something pleasant to look at for the next 10 years.

We supply garden fence panels if interested.
PRO
Jacksons Fencing
6 years ago
https://www.jacksons-fencing.co.uk/the-edit/boundary-disputes-knowing-where-to-draw-the-line-for-fencing This blog post may help.

Is this our fence? Help?!

GardenFairyGodmother GFG

Comments (7)

Jonathan

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