Build a garden wall with stackable tongue and groove boards

More and more people are choosing a garden wall over a regular fence; there’s no possibility of prying eyes, thereby offering greater privacy. Wooden rebated posts and stackable tongue and groove boards (specifically log cabin profile boards) let you build a deluxe, fully sealed fence that looks identical on both sides.

Accurately installing posts

If you’re building a garden wall, then make sure that the rebated posts (posts with a slot all the way down the middle) are absolutely level, and installed at such a distance that there is some room for the log cabin profile boards to expand horizontally. This requirement is often overlooked. Install the lowest board 6 centimetres from the ground to keep it cleaner and to better allow it to dry out. Only the bottom board should be affixed to the posts. The other boards should be stacked together gently.

Garden walls are susceptible to high winds

A fully sealed partition that uses these kinds of rebated posts and boards is susceptible to high winds, so the posts should be secured with fast-setting concrete. If you plan on building a fence that turns the corner, then add a diagonal brace along the top of your fence. The diameter of the posts is also important. High winds can be counteracted with 9x9 cm diameter posts with a rebate for 28 millimetre log cabin profile boards. Other ways to offset the consequences of high winds are timber trellises or mesh trellis panels - available in widths of 60, 90 and 180 centimetres. Our popular steel trellis screens are also easy to cut to size using an angle grinder.

Maximum board length

When using hardwood stackable boards, the recommended distance from one rebated post to the next is 180-200 cm. For impregnated timber boards, this distance is 120 centimetres, and for seasoned, kiln-dried Larch and Douglas fir, it’s around 160 centimetres. The maximum length of the boards is dictated by the timber’s potential to expand and contract. Simply put: the shorter the boards, the smaller the chances of the boards warping or buckling. The rebated posts are also available as concrete, which combines well with natural Larch and Douglas fir tongue and groove rebated boards, grey scaffoldboard, and black log cabin profile boards. Or combine our rebated natural Larch 115 by 115 millimetre posts with grey- or black-coated, 28 millimetre diameter log cabin profile boards. And, importantly, make sure the boards have 2 millimetres room to expand on either side.

The great thing about these stackable boards is that they are easy to saw to size, so that they can fit any garden - which is not quite as easy to do with 180 x 180 centimetre fence panels. Choose stackable boards for a bespoke fence.

Ordering stackable rebated fencing boards

Order your rebated posts and stackable log cabin profile boards from Gadero DIY & Timber. We offer hardwood and concrete rebated posts, Larch and Douglas fir timber, durable and eye-catching Resysta rice hull-based composite, or budget-friendly impregnated pine. Choose from concrete or timber corner, end, and intermediary posts - all delivered to your door.

Check out our handy fence-building schematic, with various examples of fences using different planks and weatherboards.