Varieties of welded fences, their advantages and disadvantages. Installation technology for the most popular types of fences. A welded fence is a fence of a fairly simple structure from a variety of rolled metal products, all elements of which are connected using welded technology. It copes well with its direct functional responsibilities - the protection of the territory, but can also be used for decorative purposes. You can learn about the types of hedges of this type and installation technology from this article.
Features of welded fences
The design of the fence does not differ from similar products of another type. The elements are attached to the load-bearing frame, which in turn is welded to the supports. Also, the structure can be assembled from pre-prepared sections. Welded fences are used for a variety of tasks. The choice of fencing is influenced by such factors: the size of the site, financial capabilities, construction time.
Popular fences include the following structures:
- Reinforcement fence … It is considered an economical option. It is made from rods of various thicknesses. A structure made of rods up to 1 cm in diameter is not reliable and is considered a temporary structure. Her appearance is not very attractive. To strengthen the fence, thicker rods or profiled pipes are used. Steel strips are sometimes used instead of reinforcement. They are inferior in strength to reinforcement, therefore they act as decorative elements.
- Welded mesh fence … Also applies to budget options. It is not considered a serious obstacle, but it is indispensable in cases where you need to fence off the site from small animals or birds.
- Sectional welded fence … It is being erected in parts. First, the frame is assembled, to which the elements of the fence are welded - reinforcement, metal strips or mesh. Sections can be manufactured as standard (rectangular with standard dimensions) or according to individual orders. The latter option will be more expensive. The finished fragment is fixed to the supports. This design has a more aesthetic appearance than a mesh without a base.
Also popular are fences in which welding is used only to fasten individual parts. For example, in structures made of a metal profile and a metal picket fence, horizontal beams can be welded, and the rest of the elements can be fixed with self-tapping screws. Welding is also used in the manufacture of forged fences. With its help, fragmentary decorations are attached - peaks, flowers, curls, etc.
Advantages and disadvantages of a welded fence
Wherever such a structure is used, it always shows its best side. The owners appreciate it for the following advantages:
- High strength. The product is difficult to break, deform, or even scratch.
- Resistance to any natural phenomena. Does not lose its qualities in heat and frost.
- Does not burn or melt.
- Simple welded fences are inexpensive and affordable for any user.
- The product is not afraid of fungus and mold. It is not destroyed by rodents.
- The service life of the fence is over 50 years.
- A welded fence is made very quickly, which allows you to fence off the site from uninvited guests in the shortest possible time.
- Does not create an enclosed space, which is appreciated in small areas.
- The fence is transparent and lets in sunlight, so you can plant plants near it.
- The hedge does not require careful maintenance. To restore the original condition, it is enough to paint every 2-3 years.
Welded structures have several disadvantages:
- The fence does not protect the site from dust, wind and snow.
- The fence does not cover the area from prying eyes.
- Manufacturing requires special equipment and relevant work experience.
- Metallic elements are susceptible to corrosion and require a protective coating.
Welded fence installation technology
Construction work is carried out in stages. Despite the variety of designs, the installation of welded fences differs slightly.
Preparatory work
Work on the installation of a welded fence begins with the application of the location of the fence, gates, wickets and supports on the site. Remove vegetation from the surface of the construction site. Level the platform - cut off the protrusions, fill the depressions with soil. Drive pegs in the corners of the territory. Pull the cord between them and secure.
For work, you will need the following tools, devices and materials:
- Welding machine - inverter or semi-automatic. A gas burner can be used for such operations.
- Mask and protective clothing.
- A pair of corner grinders. One for 2 kW, the other with a power regulator, with a maximum value of 1 kW.
- Roulette - for marking the fenced area.
- Plumb line, building level - for exposing pillars and fence elements in horizontal and vertical planes.
- A shovel or drill for earthwork. The process can be mechanized using gasoline or electric drills. Without them, it is difficult to make holes in rocky terrain.
- Concrete mixer for solution preparation.
- A wheelbarrow and a shovel.
Installation of supports for the fence
The strength of the fence largely depends on the quality of the fastening of the supports, so you need to know and follow the rules for installing power elements. For racks, metal pipes and profiles, stone or brick pillars are suitable. Most often, profiles of 50x50 mm or pipes with a diameter of 60 mm are used for these purposes. Smaller racks are not recommended because they may not support the weight of the structure, and thick products will look unpresentable.
Often, users choose profiles instead of pipes, they look more beautiful. In addition, the ribs of these elements create additional rigidity and increase structural strength and resistance to bending.
During the construction phase, lay metal plates or brackets into brick supports, to which the metal elements of the fence will then be welded.
The height of the posts depends on the material that forms the plane of the fence, as well as on the purpose of the fence. For a structure made of a metal profile, the height of the above-ground part should be equal to the height of the sheets, for other materials it does not exceed 1.5 m. Such dimensions will allow to detain uninvited visitors and neighboring animals. To this value, it is necessary to add an underground part - at least 80 cm.
The pillars are cut from standard metal structures with lengths of 3 m, 4, 5 m, 6 m. The cutting can be performed on the construction market, which makes transportation easier.
Then follow these steps:
- Mark the locations of the supports. They should be located at the same distance from each other with a step of 2 m and along the same line.
- Dig holes at least 1 m deep along the markings by hand or with an electric drill with a diameter of 20-25 cm. The holes must be below the level of soil freezing for the given area. In the European part of the country, the freezing point is at a depth of 0.7 m, but there should be a reserve in case of a sudden rise in groundwater or other situations.
- Insert the profiles into the corner holes and hammer them in another 30 cm. Check the verticality of the racks with a level or plumb line. Make sure they protrude the same size from the ground.
- Prepare concrete from sand, cement or gravel in a ratio of 1: 3: 3. Instead of rubble, you can take broken stone or expanded clay.
- Fill the pits with mortar, controlling the verticality of the pillars.
- At a height of 5-10 mm above the posts, stretch the cord, put it in a vertical position and secure.
- Concrete the rest of the pillars, exposing them to their regular position along the cords, as well as using a plumb line or level.
If the soil is dry and dense, it is not allowed to fill the entire hole with concrete - only the lower part and the upper one. It is allowed to pour gravel in the middle.
When installing a fence in a swampy area, fix the pillars by bucking: fill the holes with 15-20 mm crushed stone with pebbles, and then tamp them thoroughly.
Another option for mounting supports, which is now rarely used, is driving in pillars. It requires the use of special devices - pneumatic or mechanical. The manual method is too laborious and not popular. Thus, the pillars are fixed on solid soils with marl rocks. The minimum depth to which it is necessary to drive the supports is -1 m.
Manufacturing of welded reinforcement fence
Before making a welded fence, select the option of placing the reinforcement - vertical or horizontal. The first method requires the creation of a wireframe. Weld two horizontal pipes to the supports, at a distance of 15-20 cm from the end of the pipe and from the ground. Then fix the reinforcement to them. The distance between the pins must be the same. To do this, you can use a template that is manufactured locally.
Cut the blanks to the required size. If the reinforcement is welded horizontally, the length of the products should be equal to the distance between the supports. On which side to place the rods, it does not matter.
If the rods are not galvanized, they are painted. The work is carried out in the following sequence: clean the product from dirt and scale, rinse the entire structure with gasoline to remove greasy stains, treat the surface with a metal primer. After drying, cover the fence with special paint.
Sectional welded fence
In this case, the fence is made of separate sections of mesh, reinforcement or profiled pipes. You can give a hedge any shape - wavy, convex, concave, etc.
For installation, you will need a frame to which the material is welded. Its size should correspond to the distance between the posts, and the height is equal to the protrusion of the pipes above the ground minus the gap between the soil and the frame and the upper end of the pipe and the frame. It is recommended to make the base from a corner. It is lighter than a profile tube and hides the seam. The last option is considered the most common due to its low weight.
When installing, remember that the length of the workpieces is determined by the inner corner of the profile, and they must be fixed along the inner surface. Pay attention to the continuity of the seam during work, because re-welding the mesh or bar will not work.
Consider the process of making the simplest do-it-yourself welded fence:
- Draw a sketch of the fragments according to the measurements taken. Include decorative elements as desired. Be sure to indicate the types of rolled metal from which the elements are made.
- Make a frame according to predefined dimensions.
- Mark the position of the rods on the base. They should be spaced in 150 mm increments.
- Weld the rods to the frame. If you have the necessary experience, the operations can be performed independently, but most often professional welders are invited.
- Mark the position of the contour lines, which for a fence with a height of 1.5 m should be 2 - above and below.
- Weld the logs to each bar.
- Fasten all sections to the supports.
- Color the product.
A welded hedge can be made more attractive, but it can take a lot of time and money. The fence is often decorated by disguising the metal supports with brickwork. Such an operation must be prepared in advance in order to concrete a large area at the stage of fastening the supports. Also, the structure is decorated with forged products.
How to make a welded fence - watch the video:
Welded fences meet all the requirements that the owners have for fences. If you approach the manufacture of fencing with imagination, you can get a high-level structure with good strength and aesthetic characteristics.
