Repair the fence when its posts are still tight in the ground and the damage stays in one area. Replace it once fixing it would cost around half the price of a new fence, or once posts are loose along most of the line.
What to look for
| What you find | Usual answer |
|---|---|
| Damage in one bay, posts tight | Repair |
| Several loose posts together, the rest straight | Rebuild that side |
| Posts soft or loose all along | New fence |
| Repair quote near half the cost of new | New fence |
The test takes five minutes. Walk the line and push each post hard at shoulder height. Count the ones that move.
The fence is about 15 years old with some rotted posts and a lean. Posts or whole fence?
Let the count decide. If three posts out of twenty move, replace three posts. If twelve move, the fence is finished even though the boards may look fine. That mismatch is typical in San Jose, where dry air preserves boards and wet clay eats posts. When you do replace posts, ask about steel ones, which take rot out of the picture.
One quote says $1,400 to repair and another says $5,200 for a new fence. Which is right?
Compare the two numbers as a fraction. $1,400 is a little over a quarter of $5,200, well below the half-price line, so repair is the sensible choice if the untouched posts are firm. Get that in writing: how many posts are being replaced and how many were tested and left. If the remaining posts are marginal, you may be buying a second repair soon, and two repairs can add up to most of a new fence.
Half the pickets are rotten and the gate is stuck. Can I do it section by section?
You can, provided the frame is good. Start by finding out why the boards are rotting. In most yards here it is soil or bark piled against the bottom, or a sprinkler that hits the fence every morning. Correct that first. Free the gate next, since a stuck gate points to a moved post. Then replace boards one stretch at a time as budget allows.
How long does a wood fence last here?
We will not give a single figure, because honest ones do not exist. The same redwood fence can fail early beside a lawn that is watered daily and last far longer on a dry side yard. Heartwood content, post material, footing depth and drainage each matter. What we can say is that in this climate the posts set the lifespan, not the boards.
For a price on your own fence line, book the free site visit. We measure, then send the quote in writing. Call (408) 539-3039.