Yes. On a slope a fence is either racked or stepped. Racked means the rails angle with the ground while the pickets stay upright. Stepped means each panel sits level and the line drops at each post. A racked fence leaves the smallest gap at the bottom.
Racked or stepped: which is better?
- Racked: follows gentle to moderate grades and keeps pets in. Most ornamental steel and aluminum can be ordered to rack.
- Stepped: suits steep ground and rigid panels such as vinyl. Each drop leaves a triangle of open space below.
- Welded in place: steel sections are cut to the ground on site. Common on foothill lots and on top of stepped block walls.
I have a dog that digs and a yard that drops. How do I avoid gaps?
Pick a racked or welded-in-place fence, so no triangles are left open, and then close off the bottom edge. A concrete mow strip under the fence, buried wire mesh or tight-set rock along the base all work against digging. Hardpan helps too, since few dogs get through caliche.
My yard is steep and rocky and two companies turned the job down. Who does this?
We will look at it in person before saying yes or no. Rocky slopes are normal on the valley's edges, in the foothills below Red Rock, on the Henderson benches and near Frenchman Mountain. The work is slower. Post holes are cored or broken out, some posts are bolted down with plates, and material goes in by hand. Point out any retaining wall along the line. Retaining walls usually need a permit and often engineering.
Do installers dig by hand or with a machine?
Both, depending on the hole. An auger on a machine handles loose desert soil quickly. Caliche stops it, and then the crew uses a breaker, a rock bit or a core drill. Holes next to block wall footings, marked utilities and tight side yards are dug by hand.
Nobody can price a fence from a desk. We come out, measure the line and write the number down, and the visit costs nothing. Call (702) 829-5267, or text photos of the yard to that number.