Nearly any wood can be used to make fencing. Oak, pine, cypress — they all have their place and their key advantages. There is one wood that is particularly common in fence-making, however. That wood is cedar. Now, not every wood fence needs to be made from cedar, but there are certainly some instances in which you'll save yourself a lot of headaches by choosing this type of wood.

You don't want to spend a lot of time maintaining a fence

One of the commonly mentioned downfalls of wooden fencing is that it needs a lot of care. You generally need to seal the fence or paint it every couple of years. You may also need to treat it with insect repellents. This can be a lot to handle if you're a busy professional, or if you are trying to tend to a family. With cedar fencing, you don't have to do much of this maintenance. You can paint the fence if you want, but you don't need to in order to protect it. The fence does not need to be waterproofed because the cedar oils naturally prevent rot from setting in. You also don't need to worry about spraying for insects since the cedar oils also repel termites, carpenter ants, and other pests.

You really like the natural wood look

Cedar is not the only wood you can leave natural. Cypress and oak will do okay naturally, too. However, cedar does tend to be the most attractive wood when left natural and completely untreated. The wood quickly takes on a grayed, beachy look, and it maintains that look for years to come, remaining relatively unchanged. The wood also has a big, open grain, which makes it look really unique. People rarely paint or stain cedar for this reason; doing so would ruin its natural appearance.

You have termites in your area

As mentioned above, cedar naturally repels insects, including termites. If you know you have termites in your area, then that alone is a really good reason to choose cedar fencing. If you were to choose another type of wood and have termites move into the fence, it might only be a matter of time before those termites move into your home, too. With cedar, you stand the best chance of keeping them away. 

Cedar is only one wood used for fencing, but it happens to be one of the best woods. Contact a cedar fencing company to learn more.

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