What You’ll Pay for a Wood Fence in Fort Myers Shores and How the Job Actually Works
Most wood fences in Fort Myers Shores run between $3,500 and $9,000, with a straightforward 6-foot pressure-treated pine privacy fence around a standard backyard landing right in the middle of that range. The job takes two to five days from post-hole to final walkthrough, depending on length, gate hardware, and whether we’re pulling out an old fence or starting fresh. Call (844) 638-7249 for a free on-site estimate with a written, line-item quote before you commit to anything.
What We Look For Before We Ever Order Lumber
We don’t start any wood fence in Fort Myers Shores the same way we’d start one in higher, sandier ground ten miles inland. The Orange River floodplain changes the math. Nearly every home we work on here was built between the 1960s and 1980s, most at or below the current FEMA AE flood elevation, and a lot of these yards hold water after a heavy afternoon rain. That means we check two things on the estimate visit: how saturated the soil is at post depth, and whether the existing fence line sits inside a drainage swale or utility easement that Lee County will flag the moment we apply for a permit.
If the ground is soft or the lot drains toward the river, we spec deeper footings and a heavier gravel base at every post, and we may recommend moving the fence line a few feet to keep water from pooling against the bottom rail. None of that shows up in a generic online quote, but it saves a fence from leaning by year three. For homeowners doing a bigger exterior overhaul, this often gets bundled with Fence Installation in Fort Myers Shores and a new driveway at the same time.
How a Wood Fence Goes In, Stage By Stage
Day 1: Layout, Marking, and the Utility Conversation
We walk the property line with you before a single shovel hits dirt. We mark every post location, flag the gate swings, and call 811 for underground utility location a minimum of two business days before we dig. You make the call on exact gate placement and which way the finished side faces, because in Fort Myers Shores some HOAs and a lot of neighbors have opinions about that.
Day 2 or 3: Post Holes, Footings, and Set Posts
We dig to 24 inches minimum, deeper if we hit soft fill. Every post sits on a 6-inch gravel base and gets set in Quikrete high-strength fast-set concrete, backfilled and crowned so water drains away from the post. Posts cure 24 hours before we hang anything on them. If we’re removing an old fence, demo happens the morning of post-hole day and the debris leaves with our crew that afternoon.
Day 3 or 4: Rails, Pickets, and Trim
Pressure-treated 2×4 stringers go up between posts, then we hang pickets tight to the groundline but not touching soil. We leave a 2-inch gap at the bottom in wetter sections of Fort Myers Shores so the wood can dry after rain instead of wicking moisture and rotting from the bottom up. All fasteners are exterior-rated coated deck screws, not nails, so you don’t get the pop-out you see on ten-year-old nailed fences around here.
Day 3 or 5: Gates and Hardware
Gate posts get a larger footing than line posts and may be set 30 inches deep on wider gates. We use adjustable gate frames and galvanized strap hinges rated for the full weight of the gate plus wind load. A sagging gate is almost always undersized hardware on an undersized post - we don’t cut that corner.
Final Day: Walkthrough and What You Need to Know
We walk the entire fence line with you and check every post, picket, and latch. You’ll get care instructions, including the timeline for staining or sealing, and the warranty paperwork. Most Fort Myers Shores wood fences are ready for stain by week eight after the wood has dried to the right moisture content.
The Options You’ll Choose Between
Wood fence isn’t one product. These are the real decisions that change the price, the lifespan, and how the fence looks in five years:
- Pressure-treated pine: The workhorse. It’s the most common spec in Fort Myers Shores because it handles moisture well when set above grade and it’s the most budget-friendly at the front end. Expect 15 to 20 years if you stain it and keep bottom rails clear of standing water.
- Cedar: Naturally rot-resistant and lighter to work with, but it costs more and dents easier. Holds stain beautifully. Right for homeowners who want a finer grain look and are willing to re-stain every two to three years in Florida sun.
- Board-on-board vs. dog-ear picket: Board-on-board gives you full privacy with zero sight gaps and a finished look on both sides. Standard dog-ear pickets are faster to install and easier to replace individually if one cracks. Board-on-board costs more in materials and labor but adds noticeable curb appeal.
- 6-foot vs. 8-foot height: Six feet is the Lee County residential standard and almost always clears HOA rules without a variance. Eight feet requires a permit rider and some communities along the Orange River corridor restrict it for sightline reasons. We’ll tell you what applies to your street during the estimate.
- Gate width and hardware grade: A single 4-foot walk gate is simple. A 10-foot double drive gate for boat or trailer access needs thicker posts, heavier-duty hinges, and a steel-reinforced bottom rail. That gate alone can add $600 to $1,200 to the job.
What Wood Fence Costs in Fort Myers Shores, FL
A standard 150-linear-foot pressure-treated pine fence with one walk gate in Fort Myers Shores typically falls between $4,200 and $6,500. The same yard in cedar could push past $8,000. Here’s what pushes the number toward the high end:
- Linear footage: Every additional 50 feet adds roughly $900 to $1,500 depending on material grade.
- Old fence removal and disposal: Tear-out and haul-away runs $4 to $7 per linear foot. A rotted fence with concrete footings still attached takes longer and costs more.
- Gate count and width: Every gate beyond the first adds hardware, labor, and sometimes a beefier post footing.
- Soil and drainage conditions: If we’re digging in consistently wet fill near the Orange River, we deepen the footings and add more gravel. It’s line-itemed, not buried in a lump sum.
- Permit and HOA compliance: Lee County permit fees are a fixed cost, but if your HOA requires architectural committee approval, the timeline stretches and we account for any HOA-mandated material or stain-color changes in the estimate.
Your written quote from us is a fixed-price, line-item document. We don’t start a job and then come back with a change order because the soil was wetter than we expected. That’s what the estimate visit is for. Upfront pricing, no surprises - the number you see is the number you pay.
What Fort Myers Shores Specifically Does to a Wood Fence
Fort Myers Shores sits on the Orange River floodplain, not the Gulf storm-surge zone, and that distinction controls how wood fences age here. Hurricane Ian flooded this community from river overflow, and the ground hasn’t been the same since. We see older fences with post rot starting 6 to 8 inches below grade where saturated soil sat against untreated portions of the post for weeks after the storm. That’s the failure pattern we design against now: deeper gravel bases, posts rated for ground contact their full buried length, and bottom rails held above the soil line so the pickets breathe.
Lee County building inspectors are enforcing the 50% substantial-improvement rule aggressively in Fort Myers Shores post-Ian. A wood fence alone rarely triggers that threshold, but if you’re pairing a fence with a Paver Driveways in Fort Myers Shores project or a bigger exterior renovation, the combined value of the work can push you into substantial-improvement territory. We flag that early so there are no surprises when the permit hits the county desk. The housing stock here is mostly 1960s-to-1980s concrete block and wood-frame homes, almost all at or below base flood elevation, so any project that touches the ground or the foundation gets more scrutiny than it would in a newer inland subdivision.
We also work with HOAs up and down the Orange River corridor that have specific rules about fence material, stain color, and finished-side orientation. If you’re in one of those communities, we handle the architectural-review paperwork as part of the permit process so you don’t have to chase it. The same crew that builds your fence often handles Concrete Driveways & Concrete Work in Fort Myers Shores if you’re planning both, which keeps the site sequencing clean.
Serving Fort Myers Shores, FL - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Fort Myers Shores area and know this community well. Use the map below to see our service coverage - if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
Frequently Asked - Wood Fence in Fort Myers Shores
Pressure-treated pine, properly installed and stained, lasts 15 to 20 years here. Cedar runs on the shorter end unless you stay religious about sealing, because the Florida sun and the humidity off the Orange River work together to break down the lignins faster than drier inland air would. The number-one thing that shortens a fence’s life in this specific community is bottom-rail rot from soil contact and standing water, which is why we gap the pickets and grade the footing to shed water.
Yes. Lee County requires a permit for any new fence over 2 feet tall, and Fort Myers Shores properties inside an HOA typically need an additional architectural review. We pull the permit and handle HOA paperwork as part of the job. Don’t skip the permit on a fence here - the county cross-checks floodplain compliance, and unpermitted work can become a title issue when you sell. Call (844) 638-7249 and we’ll tell you what your specific property needs.
Almost never in Fort Myers Shores. The posts are the structural weak point in this soil, and if the fence is older than 10 years there’s a good chance the below-grade section of the post has rot you can’t see from the surface. Setting a new post next to an old footing is more labor than a clean new layout. We’ll tell you honestly on the estimate whether any posts are salvageable, but we don’t recommend it, and our workmanship warranty won’t cover a new panel hung on an old post.
If anything fails due to our workmanship within two years - a post shifts, a gate sags out of alignment, a picket warps beyond the manufacturer spec because it was fastened incorrectly - we come back and make it right at no charge. The lumber itself carries the manufacturer warranty for material defects, and we walk you through what that covers and for how long. Built to last, backed in writing.
No. We give you a fixed-price, line-item written quote after the on-site estimate, and we don’t come back with a change order unless you ask us to add something that wasn’t in the original scope. The only exception is if we hit a hidden underground obstruction that no utility locate could have flagged, and that’s rare in these yards. For an exact quote on your wood fence in Fort Myers Shores, call (844) 638-7249 - estimates are free.
Get a Written Quote for Your Wood Fence in Fort Myers Shores
If you’re ready to price a wood fence that’s built for Fort Myers Shores soil and floodplain realities, call (844) 638-7249. A real person answers, 24/7. We’ll schedule a free on-site estimate at your property, walk the fence line with you, check drainage and HOA requirements, and hand you a line-item written quote before we leave. No pressure, no vague numbers - just the real price, upfront.
If you’re planning other exterior work alongside the fence, our Fence Installation crew sequences with driveway, paver, and concrete teams so the site stays clean and you’re not managing multiple contractors. For the full scope of what we do across Fort Myers Shores, we’re happy to walk you through it on the same estimate visit.
Written by Derek Hollenbeck, Owner at Groundwork Construction Co., serving Fort Myers Shores with fixed-price residential construction since 2014.