Boundary and posts come first
Materials can be changed later; a wrong line and weak foundations cannot. On a tight budget, choose a simpler fence type rather than weaker posts.
Guide · before you orderFence-building mistakes
Fence-building mistakes
and how to avoid them
Most fence problems start before the first post goes in: in planning, finding the boundary and choosing the posts. Below are ten common mistakes, with what happens, why, and how to avoid them.
Short answer
The costliest mistakes are a wrong boundary, a missing building notice and weak posts: fixing them means rebuilding part of the fence.
Before you order, check the boundary markers, planning rules and utilities, and have the posts chosen for the ground and wind. Plan the gates and the automation cable with the fence line, not after it.
Before work
Five mistakes before the first post
These happen at the planning stage and are the hardest to put right later.
1. The fence ends up on the neighbour's land
The markers are lost or overgrown, so the line is set out along the old fence or by eye. Being a few centimetres out goes unnoticed until the house is sold, the neighbour builds or a dispute starts.
Under the Law of Property Act, a neighbour must tolerate a fence built over the boundary in good faith, but may demand that you buy the land under it or pay periodic compensation. If the builder acted in bad faith, or the neighbour objected before building or later while removal was still possible without excessive cost, they may demand its removal from their land, which means digging out and resetting the posts.
Find the markers and photograph them before work starts. Only a licensed land surveyor may restore missing markers; neighbours are invited and the costs are shared equally unless agreed otherwise. More in our guide to a boundary fence with a neighbour.
2. The building notice is not filed
Under Annex 1 of the Building Code, in force since 1 August 2026, a fence or gate whose construction involves digging deeper than 30 cm needs a building notice and a design. Posts set in concrete usually mean deeper digging, so plan on a notice.
File it through the Building Register at least 10 days before work starts; if the municipality announces no further checks in that time, you may begin. Do it before ordering materials, and if work has started without one, talk to the municipality's building officer first.
LuxAed provides the fence's technical data; who prepares the design and files the notice is agreed separately. More in our fence permit guide.
3. A planning rule turns up too late
A fence must comply with the detailed plan, or the general plan if there is none, and the plan can set its permitted height, transparency and material. In Harku Municipality a mesh or partly transparent timber fence around a house may not exceed 1.5 m, and solid plank fences are banned except as noise barriers or around industrial sites. In Saku Municipality a fence on family and terraced-house land must be at least 25% transparent.
A solid profiled-sheet fence where transparency is required may have to be rebuilt, and then you pay twice. Check the detailed plan before choosing the fence type; our guide to fence height rules in Harju County sums up the rules by municipality.
4. The auger hits a cable
An auger or post driver cannot tell a stone from a cable, and a damaged power or telecom cable means danger, a halt to the work and a repair bill.
Under the Building Code, in the protection zone of electricity and telecom cables you may not dig deeper than 0.3 m or use impact tools such as a post driver without the cable owner's consent. An underground cable's zone is generally 1 m on each side, and the network owner provides location data free of charge.
Get the locations before drilling and mark them on the plot, including cables you laid yourself for lighting or gate automation. Under our terms, LuxAed is not liable for damage to hidden utilities that the customer did not disclose. More in our guide to fences near roads and utilities.
5. The road edge is ignored
In a road protection zone the landowner must allow snow to be thrown off the road, so a street-side fence gets snow, ice and grit from the plough.
In Harku Municipality a fence must stand at least 2 m from the edge of the road surface where the boundary is closer than that. Elsewhere, too, a setback protects the fence, and on a corner plot a tall solid fence should not block drivers' view of the junction. Bent posts and panels have to be straightened or replaced.
Sources: Law of Property Act, Land and Spatial Development Board, landowner memo, Building Code, Annex 1, Building Code (Ehitusseadustik), Regulation on protection zone widths, Harku Municipality, structures, Saku general plan.
Structure
Five mistakes in posts, gates and price
6. A solid fence gets weak posts
A solid profiled-sheet fence, close-boarded timber or dense steel picket fence acts like a sail. Posts chosen as if for mesh start to lean after a storm, and the fixings work loose.
Posts, spacing and foundations are chosen for the fence height, the ground and the wind; an open field or seaside plot gets stronger wind than one between houses. Ask for the post size and spacing in the quote and compare. A stronger post costs little extra at the start compared with replacing leaning posts later.
7. Frost heave is ignored
Wet clay expands as it freezes and lifts posts whose base or depth does not suit the ground. In spring the post does not settle back, and the lean usually shows after the first winter.
Depth and base are chosen for the ground, because clay, sand, fill and a high water table behave differently, and a good installer explains the choice. Straightening or re-concreting a few posts costs far less than a new fence: repair and diagnostics start from €90 (call-out and initial diagnosis), with posts and labour extra. See how we repair a leaning fence.
8. No room for the gate
The fence line is fixed before anyone thinks about the gate. A cantilever sliding gate is longer than the opening because of its counterweight section and needs clear space to the side, while swing gate leaves need a clear arc all year and can scrape the ground on a sloping driveway.
Measure the opening, side space and slope before the posts go in, because making room later often means moving panels and posts. Our comparison of a sliding or swing gate helps you choose.
9. No duct for the automation cable
Many people plan an automatic gate for later. Without a protective duct for the drive and photocell cables, you will later have to dig through the driveway, lawn or paving.
Lay the duct when the posts go in, leave the ends accessible and plan the power supply. Our price guide lists automation for an existing gate at €500–1,250 where the gate structure and electrical preparation are suitable; without a duct and power supply, digging and cabling are extra. More on our automatic gate installation page.
10. Only the price per metre is compared
The price per metre is fine for a first look, but gates, corners, slope, ground, old-fence removal and disposal decide the total. A quote without those lines looks cheaper.
In our price guide, 40 m of 3D panel fence costs €1,400–2,400, but with an automated sliding gate and a pedestrian gate the project comes to €4,050–6,350, more than half of it for the gates. Ask for an itemised written quote and compare line by line; the ranges are on our fence and gate prices page.
The law
What else the law says
Replacing an old fence is not always a repair. For a fence whose construction involves digging deeper than 30 cm, reconstruction and replacing a single part with an equivalent one need no notice, but demolition does. Demolishing a fence to build a substantively new one counts as demolition plus new construction, while restoring a substantively similar fence may be treated as reconstruction. In justified cases the municipality may also require a notice for a structure not listed in Annex 1.
Under a building notice you may build for four years, the municipality may involve the neighbouring owner, and according to Harku Municipality there is no state fee for the notice. The owner of a structure with a protection zone may not refuse consent without good reason or charge for it, wire and metal fences are banned in the protection zone of high-voltage overhead lines, and a street's protection zone is 10 m from the outer edge of the outermost lane.
Sources: Building Code, Annex 1, Building Code (Ehitusseadustik), Harku Municipality, structures.
Checklist
What to check and when
| Stage | What to check | Who helps |
|---|---|---|
| Before the quote | Boundary markers, detailed plan, utilities, gate positions | You, the municipality, network owners |
| Site visit | Fence line, slope, ground, road edge, gate side space, cable route | The installer |
| Quote | Posts and spacing, foundations, gates, duct, old-fence removal, payment schedule | You and the installer |
| Before digging | Notice filed, utilities marked, neighbour agreed | You or the agreed filer |
| Handover | Line against the markers, posts plumb, gates moving freely | You and the installer |
| After the first winter | Post alignment, gate movement, fixings | You, with a repair if needed |
This is our practical checklist; the legal requirements and sources are above.
Our advice
What really matters
One site visit prevents several mistakes
We check the boundary, slope, ground, gate space and road edge in one go.
Gates and cables with the fence
Decide the gate type, side space and duct before the fence line is fixed.
Paperwork before materials
File the notice and agree with your neighbour before ordering, so panels are not left waiting.
Common problems
Signs that something went wrong
A post moves when pushed
The base is loose or the post has rotted. Repair it early, before more has to be replaced.
The gate starts to rub
A post leans or the base has settled; on a sliding gate, check the rollers and carriages too.
The fence leans in spring
A typical sign of frost heave. Single posts can often be straightened and re-concreted.
Snow and stones at the fence
It stands too close to the road. Fix bent panels before next winter.
A gap under a panel
The ground slopes or has settled. A gravel board or stepped installation closes it.
Your neighbour asks about the line
Have a licensed land surveyor check the boundary before it becomes a dispute.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Usually a wrong boundary or weak posts, because part of the fence then has to be rebuilt. Both can be avoided before work starts: find the boundary markers and have the posts chosen for the ground, height and wind.
No. Gates, corners, slope, ground, old-fence removal and disposal also decide the total. Compare written quotes line by line.
Yes, if you might ever want an automatic gate. A protective duct is easy to lay while the fence goes in; later you have to dig through the driveway or lawn.
Choose post depth and base for the ground and fence height, and use stronger posts for a solid fence. If the fence already leans, it can often be repaired without replacing the whole fence.
It depends on whether the cable's location was known and passed on to the installer. Under our terms, LuxAed is not liable for hidden utilities the customer did not disclose. So ask the network owners for locations before work starts.
Look along the fence line, push the posts by hand and check that the gates move freely. If a post has started to lean, straighten it in spring before the lean gets worse.
Checked on 27 September 2026. This guide is not legal advice: check the current requirements before work starts.
Let's plan the fence properly
At a free site visit we check the boundary, ground, gate space and road edge, then give you a written quote.