How To Anchor Freestanding Yard Privacy Screens

By  Tanya Khan

Things Needed

  • Measuring tape

  • Post hole digger

  • Support posts

  • Level

  • Heavy-gauge wire

  • Wire cutters

Tip

Wear thick gloves when weaving and cutting wire to prevent injuring your hands.

Instead of securing a wood screen to wood support posts with wire, consider drilling pilot holes and inserting wood nails through them as an alternative. Wear protective eyeglasses when drilling holes through the posts and screen. If desired, cover the nail heads with wood putty and allow to cure before touching up the patched sections with paint.

A freestanding privacy screen is an inexpensive alternative to a permanent fence. Built from bamboo, wood or a variety of other materials, privacy screens are securely anchored to the ground to serve as year-round additions to the yard, without breaking or coming loose in case of strong winds. Depending on personal preference, use support posts made from wood or steel to secure the screen to the ground and support the weight of any climbing plants covering it. Installed properly, the screens also protect your vegetation from wind damage.

Step 1

Measure the width of the privacy screen, or the distance from one side to the other, and record it. Also measure the height of the screen. Depending on its width, you need enough lengths of rebar, stakes or iron rods that match the height of the screen and are spaced every 24 inches apart along its span.

Step 2

Dig holes in the ground where you want to install the privacy screen, spaced 24 inches apart. Ensure the depth of the holes measures one-third the height of the support posts, so they are securely anchored in the ground. Collect the dirt in mounds placed near the holes.

Step 3

Stand the support posts in the holes, in turn, and fill dirt around each from the mound. Hold a level against each post to ensure it is plumb before backfilling it with dirt. Stamp the dirt at the top of the hole with your foot to pack it tight and remove trapped pockets of air. Ensure the dirt in the top of the hole is in level with the surrounding soil surface.

Step 4

Enlist a helper to hold one end of the screen while you hold the other end. Stand the screen flush against the rebar or wood posts, with its lower end directly on the ground. Position the screen so it faces the road or your neighbor's property, and the support posts fall behind it.

Step 5

Weave wire through the screen and into the support post behind it to join them together. Wrap the wire several times around the post and the screen before cutting excess off with wire cutters. Continue to secure the wire to the post at 12-inch intervals.

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