The plan before the material
Check the detailed plan before choosing sheet, timber or pickets. If a solid fence is not allowed, even the best-looking material will not help.
Comparison · privacy fencesPrivacy fence:
Privacy fence:
profiled sheet, timber or steel picket?
A solid fence keeps your garden private, but it also has to stand up to wind and snow and fit the municipal rules. We compare the three most common options and explain where a solid fence is allowed at all.
Short answer
Profiled sheet is the cheapest privacy fence, a steel picket fence needs the least upkeep, and timber looks the warmest.
In our price guide, installed: profiled sheet €70–135/m, steel picket €85–155/m and timber €90–160/m. Before choosing a material, check the plan: in several Harju County municipalities a solid plank fence around a house is not allowed, or the fence has to be partly see-through. If you only need privacy on one side, roll mesh or 3D mesh panels cost far less on the rest of the boundary.
Comparison
Three privacy fences side by side
| Profiled sheet | Timber | Steel picket | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price installed | €70–135/m | €90–160/m | €85–155/m |
| 30 m fence | €2,100–4,050 | €2,700–4,800 | €2,550–4,650 |
| Privacy | Complete | Complete when close-boarded, high with gaps | Medium to complete, depends on gap and layout |
| Wind load | High | Close boarding takes a high load | Lower when the pickets are spaced |
| Upkeep | Minimal: wash it, touch up scratches | The finish needs renewing regularly | Minimal |
| Look | Even and smooth, frame on the back | Warm and natural | Modern, single- or double-sided |
| Where the plan requires transparency | Not suitable | Only with gaps between boards | Suitable with wide spacing |
| Gates | Same sheet and colour | Timber infill on a steel frame | Same pickets and colour |
Prices are from our price guide and include materials and standard installation. The 30 m figures are calculated from the same ranges; we confirm the exact amount after a free site visit.
Rules
Is a solid fence allowed on your plot?
No national rule sets fence height or transparency. Under § 12 of the Building Code a fence must comply with the detailed plan, or the general plan if there is none, and that is where most limits on solid fences come from.
Where solid fences are banned or restricted
Harku Municipality bans solid close-boarded fences except as noise barriers or around industrial sites, and allows a mesh or partly transparent timber fence at a house up to 1.5 m tall. The Saue general plan generally allows no opaque fence of any material, except around industrial areas or as a noise or safety barrier by traffic areas.
Viimsi allows a solid plank fence only around industrial or traffic areas as a noise or safety barrier. Kiili requires a partly transparent timber fence on the street side and bans solid plank fences except around industrial buildings. In northern Rae, including Peetri, a solid fence up to 1.8 m is allowed only as a noise barrier where noise exceeds the limits.
Where transparency is required
The Saku, Keila and Maardu plans require fences to be at least 25% transparent, and Keila allows no opaque wall over 1.5 m on the street side. In Saku the transparency rule on residential land does not apply to hedges. In Nõmme the plan generally expects a sparse, see-through timber picket fence or mesh combined with a hedge.
In the milieu-value areas (miljööala) of Tallinn, street fences are generally 1.2–1.5 m tall and close-boarded fences 1.5–1.8 m. Our fence height and transparency guide collects the rules of every municipality we checked.
What to do before you order
Start with the detailed plan for your plot, the most precise document for a fence, which may allow or forbid more than the general plan. If the wording is unclear, ask the municipality's planning officer whether your chosen fence is acceptable and keep the reply. A neighbour's solid fence proves nothing: it may predate the current plan.
Sources: Building Code (Ehitusseadustik), Harku Municipality, structures, Saue general plan, Viimsi thematic plan, Kiili general plan, Rae northern area general plan, Saku general plan, Keila general plan, Maardu general plan, Nõmme district general plan, Tallinn, fences in milieu-value areas.
Wind
Wind, posts and foundations
To the wind, a solid fence is a wall: the air that would pass through mesh now pushes on the sheet or boards, and that force travels down the posts into the foundations.
Why a solid fence needs heavier posts
In strong storm gusts, a single solid bay 2.5 m wide and 1.8 m tall can take a force comparable to the weight of a couple of hundred kilograms, trying to snap the post at ground level or tip its foundation. That is why solid fences get thicker posts, set closer and deeper than for mesh, and a stiffer frame.
Height raises the load faster than you might expect: the load at the foot of a post on a 1.8 m solid fence is about 1.4 times that on a 1.5 m fence. By the sea, in open fields and between taller buildings where the wind picks up, we size posts and foundations with this in mind.
Frost, clay and limestone
Frost heave must not move these posts, as even a couple of centimetres of lean shows on a long, smooth face. In clay the footing has to go deep enough and must not widen towards the top, or the frozen ground grips and lifts it. Where limestone lies close to the surface, as in many parts of Harju County, the hole is drilled into the rock or the post anchored to it rather than left shallow.
Because the posts go deep, building a solid fence usually involves digging deeper than 30 cm, and Annex 1 of the Building Code then requires a building notice and a design. LuxAed provides the technical data of the fence for the notice; who prepares the design and files the notice is agreed separately.
Solid gates in the wind
A vehicle gate with the same sheet, boards or pickets is a sail too. Strong wind can blow a swing-gate leaf open, straining the hinges and motor, while a sliding gate runs on rollers and generally copes better. On a windy plot, raise this when choosing the gate; our guide to sliding or swing gates helps.
Sources: Building Code, Annex 1.
Materials
Profiled sheet, timber and steel pickets in detail
Profiled sheet: the cheapest complete screen
A profiled-sheet fence is galvanised, polymer-coated steel sheet fixed to steel rails and posts. It screens completely, goes up quickly and needs little care beyond washing and prompt touching-up of scratches. We always supply a finished profiled-sheet fence with frame and posts, not just the sheet.
Its weak points are the back and the wind. The frame shows on the back, and too few screws or weak rails make the sheet rattle in the wind. A cheaper coating can fade on the sunny side over the years.
Timber and close-boarded fences: the warmest look
We build timber fences on a steel frame that keeps them straight as the wood swells and dries. Close boarding screens completely, gaps between the boards balance privacy against wind, and the boards are kept off the ground so they do not soak up moisture. Read more about our wooden fences.
Timber needs care. Without a protective finish it turns grey in the sun and starts to crack, so the oil or paint must be renewed regularly, more often on the sunny side. Boards fitted too tightly warp as they take up moisture, so even a close-boarded fence needs small gaps.
Steel picket: adjustable privacy
A steel picket fence is made of galvanised, powder-coated pickets fitted vertically or horizontally. You choose the gap: a sparse single-sided fence lets light and wind through, while a dense double-sided, staggered layout screens almost completely. Seen at an angle, even a spaced picket fence looks fairly closed, yet straight on it stays see-through. See the options on our steel picket fence page.
Steel pickets need little care and hold their colour, but denser infill means a higher wind load and a higher price. If the plan requires transparency, do not assume a double-sided layout will qualify, as straight on it may look almost solid; ask the municipality before you order.
Everyday life
What a solid fence changes in your garden
Privacy and height
A 1.5 m fence hides someone sitting on the terrace, but an adult standing in the street can see over it. No fence hides your garden from a neighbour's upstairs window; trees, a pergola or a screen by the terrace help there. Decide who you want to screen, and from where, before choosing height and material.
Snow and shade
Drifting snow piles up behind a solid fence, often right on the driveway or path. In its shade snow melts later in spring and a bed on the north side loses its sun, while by a road the fence takes all the snow the plough pushes at it.
Noise
An ordinary solid fence softens road noise only slightly, mostly by hiding the road from view. Cutting noise takes a heavy, gap-free barrier of sufficient height, so serious noise needs a purpose-built solution.
Visitors and access
Behind a solid fence you cannot see who is at the pedestrian gate. A video intercom with an electric lock solves that: you see a guest or courier on screen and let them in from the house. In our price guide, a video intercom with a pedestrian-gate lock costs €650–1,600 with standard installation.
Price
What a privacy fence costs
What drives the price
Height, post strength and spacing for the wind, sheet thickness and coating, picket density, and the timber and its finish drive the price most. Gates, old-fence removal and difficult ground are priced separately. The exact price comes in a written quote after a free site visit, and all prices are in our price guide.
Solid only where you need it
A 100 m boundary built entirely in profiled sheet costs €7,000–13,500 in our price guide. Make only the 20 m street side solid and the other 80 m roll mesh, and the same boundary costs €3,400–6,300. A solid run towards the street, the terrace or a neighbour's windows is often enough.
Our advice
What we recommend
Steel pickets on a windy plot
By the sea and on open land we prefer a spaced steel picket fence: it screens well at an angle, and the wind loads it less.
Timber if you are ready to maintain it
Timber is the warmest choice for a timber house, but the finish will need renewing. If you do not want to do that, choose sheet or steel.
The good face: agree with your neighbour
Profiled sheet and single-sided pickets have a front and a back. On a boundary fence, agree in writing with your neighbour which way the good face points.
Common problems
What often goes wrong
The fence leans after a storm
The posts of the solid fence are too weak, too far apart or on too shallow a footing.
The sheet rattles in the wind
Too few screws or weak rails let the sheet move with every gust.
The timber greys and warps
The finish is not renewed, and the boards touch the ground or are fitted too tightly.
A plank fence was not allowed
The ban or transparency rule in the plan only comes to light after the order.
A snowdrift on the driveway
The solid fence stands on the windward side and drifting snow piles up behind it.
The gate will not stay put in the wind
Wind blows open a solid swing-gate leaf, straining the hinges and motor.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
In our price guide, profiled sheet is the most affordable at €70–135/m installed. Steel picket is €85–155/m and timber €90–160/m.
Then a solid profiled-sheet or plank fence will not do. Choose a spaced steel picket fence, a timber fence with gaps or 3D mesh panels, and add privacy with a hedge. In Saku, for example, the transparency rule on residential land does not apply to hedges.
Yes, where the plan allows a solid fence on the street side. The Kiili, Keila and Maardu plans, for example, require partial transparency on street fences too, so check the detailed plan for your plot before ordering.
Do not assume it does not. The Saue general plan generally allows no opaque fence in any material, and where a plan requires transparency, solid sheet does not qualify either. If the wording only mentions plank fences, check with the municipality's planning officer before you order.
On profiled sheet and single-sided pickets, the posts and frame stay on the back. Double-sided pickets and timber boarded on both sides look the same from either side. On a boundary fence, agree with your neighbour before work starts which way the good face points.
Rarely without replacing the posts. A taller solid fence puts much more wind load on the posts, and the new height must still fit within the height the plan allows. If you may want a taller fence, have the posts and foundations sized for it from the start.
Checked on 27 September 2026. This guide is not legal advice: check the current requirements before work starts.
We help you choose a privacy fence
At a free site visit we check the wind, ground and plan and suggest the right solution for your plot.