Storm Season: Is Your Fence and Retaining Wall Ready?

South-East Queensland summers bring big storms, and storms find every weak point in a fence or retaining wall. A ten-minute check now is a lot cheaper than an emergency repair in January. Here's what to look for.

Your fence

• Wobbly posts — grab a few posts and give them a push. Movement means the footing is going, and a strong wind will finish the job.
• Rot and rust — soft timber at the base of posts, or rust eating through rails, are the spots that snap in a gust.
• Loose palings and caps — anything loose becomes a projectile. Re-fix it now.
• Gates — a gate that's dropped or won't latch will bang itself apart in a storm.

Your retaining wall

Retaining walls fail in the wet, because water is the enemy. Before the season:

• Check the drainage — weep holes and ag-drain outlets should be clear, not blocked with silt or mulch. Blocked drainage is the number-one cause of walls giving way.
• Look for movement — bulging, leaning, cracking or soil washing out from behind the wall are all warnings.
• Clear the top — make sure water isn't being channelled straight behind the wall from a downpipe or a neighbour's yard.

If something looks off

A leaning wall or a wobbly fence rarely fixes itself, and it always gets worse in the wet. If you spot a warning sign, get it looked at before the first big storm rather than after. We're happy to take a look and tell you honestly whether it's a repair or a bigger job.

Better to check the parts you can't easily see now — that unseen groundwork is exactly what decides whether a wall holds when the weather turns.