Palisade, mesh or brick: comparing security fences

Once you know what a fence has to do, the next question is what to build it from. For security, the usual choice in South Africa is between steel palisade, welded mesh and a brick or block wall, often with electric strands on top. Here is how they compare.

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Steel palisade

Vertical steel pales, usually with pointed or split tops, fixed to horizontal rails between steel posts. It is strong, awkward to climb, and you can see through it, so nobody can hide behind it. It also goes up quickly over long runs. The finish matters: palisade that is only painted, rather than galvanised, will rust, and it starts where the pales meet the ground.

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Welded mesh

Steel wire welded into a grid. High-security mesh, often specified as 358 mesh after its openings of about 76 by 12.7 millimetres, leaves no room for fingers or toes and is very hard to climb or cut, while keeping clear sight lines. That is why it is common around factories, depots and schools. Light welded mesh is fine for marking a boundary, but it is not a security fence.

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Brick or block wall

A wall gives privacy, cuts noise, and many homeowners prefer how it looks. It also blocks the view both ways, so someone who gets over it cannot be seen from the street. A wall needs proper foundations and usually costs more per metre than a steel fence. Ask your municipality whether the wall you have in mind needs approved plans before you build it.

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Electric strands on top

Electric fencing is often added to the top of a wall or fence. Under the Electrical Machinery Regulations, 2011, every electric fence system needs an electric fence system certificate, issued only by a registered electric fence installer after inspecting and testing it. A new system, an addition or alteration, and a change of ownership all call for one. Whoever installs it has to make sure the certificate is issued, so ask for it.

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Side by side

• Palisade: strong, see-through, quick over long runs; galvanise it to make it last
• High-security mesh: the hardest of the steel fences to climb or cut, and see-through
• Brick or block: privacy and appearance, but it blocks sight lines, needs foundations and usually costs the most

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Whatever you choose

The posts and foundations decide how long any of these lasts, so ask what post depth and spacing a quote is based on. We install residential, commercial and industrial fencing: send us the length of the boundary and what it needs to keep in or out, and we will quote it.