How to Make Wood Fences

Mark the fence line and the location of the gate by spray-painting the ground.

Drive a wooden stake into the ground at the ends and corners of the fence line. Tie a string tightly to the stakes. This will be your guide when setting the posts.

Drive a wooden stake into the ground at each location where you will be installing the fence posts. Keep the posts as evenly spaced as possible, 6 to 8 feet apart from each other.

Dig the holes for the fence posts where you placed the wooden stakes using a post-hole digger, beginning with the end and corner posts. Dig the holes deep enough to accommodate a third of the height of the fence post, so if the fence posts are 8 feet tall, the post holes should be about 32 inches deep.

Mix a batch of concrete, following the instructions on the packaging.

Fill the first post hole about halfway with concrete, then put the fence post in the hole. Check the post for plumb (vertically straight) and level (horizontally straight), then finish filling the hole with concrete.

Brace the post as it sets by nailing a 4-foot-long 2-by-4 board to each side, attaching the other end of the 2-by-4s to wooden stakes driven into the ground. Check the post for plumb and level again, and adjust the stakes if necessary. Set the other corner and end posts, and allow them to set overnight.

Tie the string that was on the stakes onto the end and corner posts.

Set the rest of the posts in the fence line, using the same method you used to set the corner and end posts, then brace the posts. When placing the in-line posts in the ground, place the outer edge flush against the string to ensure that the posts are straight. Allow the concrete to set for the time specified on the packaging.

Remove the string and the bracing from the posts.

Cut wooden blocks about 3 inches long out of 2-by-4 boards. These will be used to support the top and bottom rails between the fence posts, so you need four blocks for each fence post, except for the end posts, where you only need two blocks for each post.

Nail the blocks to the sides of the posts, placing the top block one foot from the top of the post and the bottom block one foot up from the ground.

Measure the distance between the posts and cut 2-by-4 boards to fit between the posts. These boards are the top and bottom rails.

Place the bottom rails on top of the wooden blocks at the bottom of the posts, and nail them to the blocks. Install the top rails using the same method.

Attach the fence boards to the outer edge of the fence by driving nails through the slats and into the rails or posts, whichever is behind the fence boards.

Install the gate.

Paint or stain the fence if desired.