You need the back of the yard closed in so the dog stays home. It does not have to look like anything, nobody back there needs privacy, and you would rather not spend privacy fence money on a run behind the garage. Chain link does that job, as long as you know which chain link you are being sold.
Gauge, mesh and height
Chain link is woven steel wire, and the wire is sized by gauge. Merchants Metals, which makes it, says the higher the gauge number, the smaller the wire. A 9 gauge fabric is heavier than an 11-1/2 gauge one.
| What to compare | What Merchants Metals makes | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Wire gauge | 12-1/2, 11-1/2, 11, 9 and 6 | Lower number, thicker wire |
| Mesh size | 2-3/8, 2-1/4, 2, 1-3/4, 1-1/4 and 1 inch | Pool barrier rules limit how wide the mesh can be |
| Height | 36, 42, 48, 60, 72, 84, 96, 120 and 144 inches | 2-3/8 inch mesh only goes to 72 inches |
| Zinc coating | Class 1, 1.2 ounces per square foot; Class 2, 2 ounces | Class 1 carries a 15 year limited warranty, Class 2 a 20 year one |
Source: Merchants Metals, Galvanized After Weaving brochure (2019). Merchants says the life of the fabric is directly tied to the gauge and the coating thickness.
Galvanized silver or a colored system
Plain galvanized is the silver fence most people picture. Merchants Metals galvanizes its fabric after it is woven, and says that way every surface of the steel gets the zinc.
Colored chain link adds a second layer over the steel. Family Fence in Bellmore sells System 21, which bonds a powder polyester coating over heavy gauge pipe, fittings, gates and wire, in green, black, white or brown. Above All Fence in East Islip describes its coated chain link as zinc coated steel framework with a 3 mil polyester layer, wire with at least a 15 mil PVC coating, and fittings with at least 6 mil of polymer. If you are comparing a colored fence from two companies, those coating numbers are the thing to line up.
Gates on a chain link run
Family Fence builds chain link gates to size, from a small walk gate to an industrial slide gate with a 26 foot opening. Get each gate and its width written on the quote.
Chain link next to a pool
A pool barrier has to meet the New York State code, and the code has its own section on chain link mesh. The CPSC’s pool barrier guidelines go further than most yard fences: mesh no wider than 1-1/4 inches square, unless slats fastened at the top or bottom close the openings to 1-3/4 inches. Most of the mesh sizes in the table above are wider than that, so tell the installer the fence is for a pool. The pool fence page has the full set of rules.
Questions for a chain link installer
- What gauge is the fabric and the framework?
- Galvanized, Class 1 or Class 2? Or which coated system, and how thick is the coating?
- What mesh size, and does it work for a pool if one is coming?
- How many gates, how wide, and which way do they swing?
- Who calls 811 before the post holes? New York 811 lists fence posts as digging that needs a call.
Chain link quotes to question
- No gauge or coating class on the paper.
- A colored fence priced without saying whether the posts and fittings are coated too.
- A pool side run with yard mesh.
Priority Fence in Farmingville also repairs chain link, so if most of an old fence is standing, ask for a repair price before you replace it.