Any individual who travels regularly to the USA will observe that in many residential areas the front of the home is open to the road. Indeed, in many areas, the homeowner is prohibited from installing a fence at the front of the property as there is a desire to maintain a certain appearance to the entire neighbourhood.
This is completely different to the situation in the Caribbean where in the majority of neighbourhoods the entire property is surrounded by some type of fence with fencing types varying from chain link or wire wall, to brick wall, combination wall and iron rails, and in some cases, galvanise sheets. In this series of articles, we will examine the use of fencing for residential properties.
Purpose of fencing
The primary purpose of fencing is to clearly identify the boundaries of the property and so be able to clearly identify that an individual is trespassing. Fences also provide a physical and psychological deterrent to people who are contemplating unauthorised access onto the property.
Fencing can also have the effect, on certain types of properties, of subtly suggesting that within these boundaries certain behaviour is expected. Also on certain types of properties, fences help direct vehicular and pedestrian traffic to safer locations that are easily observed by security officers, passing pedestrians or vehicles, and to authorised points of ingress and egress.
Fence material
The most commonly used fencing material is chain link fencing as it is simple to install, relatively inexpensive and low in maintenance costs. From a security perspective, the heavier the chain link, the better that the fence stands up to the passage of time and the more the difficult it is to cut the fabric. The smaller the mesh openings the more difficult it is for someone to unravel the fence or climb over the fence.
Where a property is sited in areas that are very close to the sea and so is exposed to heavy concentrations of salt laden air (commonly called sea blast) which causes metal surfaces to rust very quickly, it is recommended that the fencing should be coated with a polyvinyl chloride resin. The resin is hot extruded coated and is up to 22 mils (or .025 inch) thick. This type of coated fence is smooth to the touch and will not rust, so it is ideal for installation in marine locations.
Where a fence has been erected for security reasons, the absolute minimum height should be six feet (not including the top guard). Fences that are of greater height such as nine feet are even better. At a height of nine feet, the top of the fence is out of standing reach of most intruders which provides a psychological deterrent, plus increasing the difficulty of going over the top of the fence.
Fence installation
If a fence is improperly installed, there is a strong possibility that it will sag and lose its deterrent value. The US National Fire Protection Association–Guide to Premises Security provides good guidelines on fence installation and we have drawn from those to provide the guidelines below.
For a fence with 7ft-high fabric, the posts should be set in concrete. Line posts should be spaced equidistant at intervals not exceeding 10ft when measured from centre to centre between end posts.
A top rail or top tension wire should be provided as support for the fence fabric.
A top rail improves the appearance of the fence, but also provides a handhold for someone attempting to climb over the fence. For this reason, it is usually recommended that the top rail be omitted and replaced with a top tension wire. The top tension wires should be stretched taut free of sag, from end to end of each stretch of fence, at a height within 1 ft of the top of the fabric, and be securely attached to the end posts. A bottom tension wire should also be provided. Some fences can have a bottom rail in place of the bottom tension wire.
In Part two of this article, we will continue looking at fence installation, while in later parts of this series we will look at the use of top guards for fences and alternative fencing material.
The Caribbean Institute for Security and Public Safety offers a full range of security, law enforcement, OSH/HSE and public safety courses to private and public organisations as well as individuals.
Contact us at 223-6999, info@caribbeansecurityinstitute.com or www.caribbeansecurityinstitute.com.
Brian Ramsey MBA,
chairman, CISPS