Cedar Fencing for Vancouver Yards, 1910 to Brand New
A hundred-year-old corner lot near the fort and a fresh cul-de-sac east of I-205 need the same species and a different build. We fit the cedar to the block, and we put every cost, tax included, on paper before you commit.
One Species, Ten Decades of Housing
The oldest blocks in town were platted when fences were built from whatever the mill had on hand, and the lines back there show it: posts sistered onto stumps of older posts, boundaries that wandered an inch a decade. Replacing cedar on those lots starts with a little archaeology, clearing generations of buried footings and confirming the line before anything new goes vertical. The newer plats east and north are the opposite job: crisp boundaries, undisturbed soil, and a challenge that is mostly coordination, since a shared line usually means two households, two budgets, and one build date.
Either way the wood gets the same respect: posts sunk well past the rot depth, rails sized to their span, and boards fastened so seasonal movement never splits them at the screw.
Permits and the Tax Line, With No Surprises
Fence rules on the Washington side are friendlier than people expect. Along the back and side lines you can run six feet of privacy fence with no paperwork, and out front the ceiling sits at four feet, which still covers a classic picket without a single form. Corners near driveways carry sightline rules, and we lay the fence out around them during the site visit.
The part that startles Oregon transplants is the tax. Washington charges sales tax on fence work, lumber and labor alike, so a bid over here reads higher than an identical bid across the bridge. Ours shows that amount as its own entry, so you can compare contractors honestly. If a bid you are holding lists no tax at all, the number is not smaller. It is incomplete.
What Comes Standard on a North-Bank Cedar Job
Every quote gets written after we walk the line in person, and it holds once you sign. Our crews cross the bridge daily, so scheduling runs like any Oregon job: one visit to set posts, a pause while the concrete hardens, another to hang boards and gates. Tear-out of the old fence folds into the same schedule.
- Cedar or ground-rated posts under red cedar boards
- Footings poured to suit the soil on your street
- Fasteners that never streak the boards
- Sales tax itemized, never buried in the footage price
- Old material removed and recycled where possible
- A workmanship warranty in writing
Want the deeper dive? Read our full cedar fence installation page, or see everything we build on our Vancouver fence company page.
Good to know
Cedar Fence Installation in Vancouver: questions
Does hiring a Portland-based crew slow anything down?
No. The bridge commute is built into our routing, and jobs north of the river get scheduled the same way as anything on the Oregon side. What matters legally is registration, and ours is active with Washington's contractor board, so bonding and insurance follow the job across the state line. You get local-speed scheduling with one office handling everything, and the same crew showing up each day.
We want to replace an overgrown laurel hedge with cedar. What is involved?
More than swapping green for wood, and worth it. Old laurel comes out with a root mass that occupies exactly where posts want to go, so removal means grinding or digging those crowns, not lopping the tops. Once the roots are cleared, we can set a straight line in soil the hedge spent decades drying out. You recover several feet of yard, and the trimming chore disappears forever.
Our lot backs onto an alley. Which way should the finished side face?
Toward the alley. A fence's smooth face is its public face, and on the old grid the alley is a shared space your whole block sees. Framing faces inward to your yard, which also keeps the rails from becoming a ladder for anyone passing through. Where an alley carries garbage service, we place gates and clearances so cans roll out without scraping the new boards.
Why do some cedar fences develop black streaks below every nail?
That is the fastener reacting with the wood. Cedar carries natural tannins, and plain steel or electroplated hardware corrodes on contact, weeping a dark stain down the board with every rain. Scrubbing only hides it briefly. Hot-dipped galvanized and stainless fasteners do not react, which is why we use nothing else. Cheap screws are where a beautiful fence goes wrong for pennies.
Ready to build in Vancouver?
Free written estimates, honest material advice, one crew from quote to walkthrough.