Fence Installation in Fanwood, NJ

Fanwood, a small borough in Union County, writes its fence rules around the street: under § 184-108E, " solid and chain link fences shall not be erected forward of any house line facing any street, unless said fence shall be fully screened by shrubbery," and a front yard fence in Fanwood tops out at four feet. Behind the house line, Fanwood is easy to work with: fences may run a full six feet in the side and rear yards, they may sit right on the property line with no setback at all, and the fence permit is a flat $35.

Solanos Fence installs vinyl, aluminum, WPC composite, wood and chain link fencing in Fanwood, NJ, and handles fence repair as well. We also sell fence materials for pickup at our Fairfield location. Fanwood is part of our Union County service area.

Fanwood's Fence Rules: § 184-108

Fanwood regulates fences in § 184-108 of its Municipal Land Use Ordinance (Chapter 184), with pool placement in Article XIV of the same chapter and floodway fences in Chapter 158. The main rules:

Four feet in the front yard (§ 184-108C)."Fences and freestanding walls shall not exceed four feet in height when located in the front yard" — and on a corner lot the same four-foot cap covers the street side yard and any part of the rear yard closer to the street than the house itself. The Borough's Zoning Office also requires a vegetative buffer between the street and any front yard fence line, and treats a corner parcel as having two front yards where it fronts two streets.
Six feet in the side and rear yards (§ 184-108D)."Fences and freestanding walls shall not exceed six feet in height when located in the side yard or rear yard," subject to the corner-lot rule above. Fences are permitted in front, side and rear yards alike (§ 184-108B) — the height is what changes by yard.
Solid and chain link fences need shrubbery screening toward the street (§ 184-108E). A solid fence — privacy vinyl, stockade, board — or a chain link fence may not be erected forward of any house line facing any street unless it is "fully screened by shrubbery." Open designs are not caught by this rule, and behind the house line it does not apply at all.
No setback required (§ 184-108F)."Fences and freestanding walls may abut the property line without any required setback." The one step-back in the text is for a fence allowed by variance to exceed six feet in a side or rear yard: it must then sit back at least one foot for each foot of height over six feet. Through lots have their own rule — a fence may come no closer to the rear lot line than the prevailing front yard requirement (§ 184-108A) — and no fence may be built within the street right-of-way at all.
Finished side out (§ 184-108H)."In the event that both sides of a fence or freestanding wall are not identical, the finished/preferred side shall be required to face the street and/or abutting properties, as applicable." The borough's fence permit application says it more plainly: the "good" side of the fence must face out.
Dangerous fences banned (§ 184-108I). No fence may present "a danger or hazard to the public welfare" — the section names fences that are electrified or contain broken glass, razor wire or barbed wire, or other sharp edges.
Corner lots and sight triangles (§ 184-108C and G). Beyond the four-foot cap along the street side, "no fence or aboveground wall shall be located on any property in any way which violates the provision of the Borough Code which provides for sight triangles at street corners," and no fence or other obstruction to vision is permitted adjacent to the street property line on a corner lot outside those sight-triangle provisions.
Other zones (§ 184-108K). The LGAH, TAH and MAH affordable-housing zones carry their own fence rules keyed to how solid the fence is — less-than-50%-solid fences capped at four feet toward the street and six feet elsewhere, more-than-50%-solid fences capped at six feet and held behind the midpoint of the house. Standard single-family homes are governed by the rules above.
Permits — fence permit, $35, survey required (§ 184-36; borough fence permit application). Fanwood's codified fee schedule prices the fence permit flat in § 184-36: " Fences: $35." The borough's fence permit application — which cites § 184-108 and § 184-36 — also states that " a current property survey in the present owners name is required" and that a construction permit is required for fence installations requiring a variance and/or coupled with pool installations. That matches the state rule: under N.J.A.C. 5:23-2.14(b)9, no construction permit is required for a fence six feet or less in height — but that exception does not apply to barriers surrounding swimming pools. Pool fencing goes through two reviews, zoning and construction.
Pools: barrier left to the state code; placement is the borough's (§ 184-108; Ch. 184, Art. XIV). Fanwood's fence section sets no pool-barrier numbers of its own — no opening size, no pool-fence height, no gate rules. Its text sends pool fences to the state standard: "fences required for enclosing swimming pools and hot tubs by the New Jersey Uniform Construction Code shall be required to comply with the requirements of said Code as well as the following regulations" — meaning § 184-108's own height and placement rules still apply on top of the state barrier standard. What the borough does set is placement: pools are permitted only in residential districts, only in the rear yard, and the pool itself must sit at least 15 feet from any side or rear property line (Art. XIV, § 184-134E).
Floodway fences (Ch. 158, Art. 801). In a regulated floodway, a fence must have sufficiently large openings that it will not catch debris and obstruct floodwater, under N.J.A.C. 7:13. The chapter names split-rail and strand fences as designs that can meet the rule, and names "a fence with little or no open area, such as a chain link, lattice, or picket fence" as one that does not — solid privacy fencing fails there too. A pool-enclosure fence that meets the construction code but not the floodway openness rule needs a flood variance.

Town reference: Borough of Fanwood Code, Ch. 184, § 184-108 (eCode360); pools at Chapter 184, Article XIV (§ 184-134E); floodway fences at Chapter 158, Article 801; fees at Chapter 184, § 184-36.

Fencing Fanwood Properties

Fanwood design starts at the street. Everything forward of the house line is limited: four feet maximum in the front yard, a vegetative buffer on the street side of any front yard fence, and no solid or chain link run toward the street at all unless shrubbery fully screens it. Behind the house line the borough steps back — six feet of solid privacy in the side and rear yards, the fence allowed right on the property line with no inset and no openness test to pass. The lots that need planning are corner lots, where the four-foot cap follows the street around the side of the house and the sight-triangle rules guard the intersection, and lots in a regulated floodway, where solid and picket fences do not meet the openness rule at all.

Pools are placed by the borough — rear yard only, the pool at least 15 feet off the side and rear lines — while the barrier itself is judged by the state construction code, applied together with § 184-108's height rules: Fanwood's own text names no opening size and no pool-fence height of its own. During a free estimate we walk the lot with you, mark the house line and the corner conditions, check the corner and flood conditions, and confirm the barrier spec for your property if a pool is involved, before we talk about styles. Anything not settled above is confirmed per property at permit time.

Fence Styles for Fanwood Homes

White Vinyl Privacy Fencing

White vinyl privacy fencing is a backyard fence in Fanwood: our standard six-foot panels sit exactly at the § 184-108D cap in the side and rear yards, and vinyl's finished face on both sides makes the finished-side rule (§ 184-108H) straightforward. The front of the lot is different country — a solid vinyl run is capped at four feet in the front yard (§ 184-108C), and forward of the house line it may not face a street at all unless it is fully screened by shrubbery (§ 184-108E). Plan the privacy run behind the house line and Fanwood's rules are simple.

Black Aluminum Fencing

Black aluminum fencing is the natural Fanwood fence for street-facing runs: an open picket design is not a "solid" fence under § 184-108E, so it may run forward of the house line within the four-foot front-yard cap (§ 184-108C). Around a pool, Fanwood sets no barrier numbers of its own — § 184-108 sends pool enclosures to the New Jersey Uniform Construction Code, and its own six-foot side and rear yard cap leaves comfortable room for a standard barrier. Our standard pool panel is 54 inches with pickets spaced 3.75 inches apart, and compliance is judged on the complete installed barrier — height, openings, gates and latching hardware together — never on the panel alone. The 54-inch panel is a side- and rear-yard and pool product: anywhere Fanwood's four-foot front-yard and street-side cap applies (§ 184-108C), a 54-inch panel cannot go — forward of the house line, aluminum means a panel of four feet or less. On a corner lot, the part of a run in the street side yard or closer to the street than the house is capped at four feet, so corner-lot pool layouts are confirmed per property at the estimate.

WPC Composite, Wood, Post-and-Rail — and Chain Link

WPC composite fencing in black, teak or gray follows the vinyl pattern: solid panels to six feet in the side and rear yards, four feet and shrubbery screening toward the street. Wood picket and board fences do the same work in a traditional material — an open picket design is the classic Fanwood front-yard fence, at four feet. Post-and-rail suits larger rear yards, and open designs like split-rail are the ones Fanwood's floodway chapter names as able to pass floodwater. Chain link is not banned for Fanwood homes — the borough regulates it like a solid fence, so it needs full shrubbery screening forward of any house line facing a street (§ 184-108E), and it is named as a fence that fails the floodway openness rule, so keep it out of a regulated floodway. We price these styles after reviewing your footage, gates and terrain.

Fence Installation Prices in Fanwood

Current installation specials start at $23 per linear foot for six-foot white vinyl privacy fencing and $28 per linear foot for 54-inch black aluminum pool-barrier fencing. Minimum project is 150 ft, and both offers apply within our service area. Gates and removal of an existing fence are not included — they are priced separately(gates from $500 for a single gate and from $1,000 for a double gate). In Fanwood, read the specials against the code: the six-foot vinyl price is for runs in the side and rear yards — front yards cap at four feet (§ 184-108C), and a solid run forward of the house line needs full shrubbery screening (§ 184-108E). The 54-inch aluminum pool fence sits within Fanwood's six-foot side and rear yard cap, and its barrier standard is the state construction code — Fanwood names no pool-fence height or opening limit of its own; on a corner lot, any part of the enclosure in the street side yard or closer to the street than the house is capped at four feet (§ 184-108C), so corner-lot pool enclosures are laid out per property before the price is final. Every Fanwood fence starts with the permits — the fence permit is a flat $35, and the borough requires a current property survey in the owner's name with the application.

See our fence installation deals for current terms.

Fence Materials for Fanwood DIY Projects

Installing it yourself? Our Fairfield shop stocks white vinyl panels and posts, black aluminum panels and posts, and WPC packages. The permits come first either way — the $35 fence permit, with a current property survey in the owner's name, and, for a fence requiring a variance or coupled with a pool, a construction permit. Two cautions before you buy: a solid or chain link fence may not run forward of your house line facing a street unless shrubbery fully screens it (§ 184-108E), and if any part of your lot sits in a regulated floodway, solid privacy and picket fences do not meet the borough's floodway openness rule (Ch. 158, Art. 801) — check the lot's flood status before choosing a style. Call ahead to confirm stock and pickup.

Browse fence materials for sale.

Frequently Asked Questions About Fences in Fanwood

How tall can a fence be in Fanwood?

Six feet in the side yard or rear yard (§ 184-108D) — and only four feet in the front yard (§ 184-108C). On a corner lot, the four-foot cap also covers the street side yard and any part of the rear yard closer to the abutting street than the house, or the minimum street side yard setback, whichever is more restrictive. A fence allowed by variance to exceed six feet must step back from the property line at least one foot for each foot of height over six (§ 184-108F).

Can I put a fence in my front yard?

Yes — Fanwood permits fences in front, side and rear yards (§ 184-108B) — but a front yard fence is capped at four feet(§ 184-108C), the Borough's Zoning Office requires a vegetative buffer between the street and the fence line, and a solid or chain link fence may not be erected forward of the house line facing a street unless it is fully screened by shrubbery(§ 184-108E). An open picket fence at four feet is the straightforward front-yard choice.

Do I need a permit for a fence in Fanwood?

Yes. The borough's fence permit application — which cites § 184-108 and § 184-36 — is required before installation, and the codified fee schedule prices it flat: " Fences: $35" (§ 184-36). The application also requires a current property survey in the present owner's name, and states that a construction permit is required for fence installations requiring a variance and/or coupled with pool installations — under the state code (N.J.A.C. 5:23-2.14(b)9), a fence six feet or less in height needs no construction permit, but that exception does not apply to barriers surrounding swimming pools. Fencing for a pool goes through two separate reviews, zoning and construction.

I have a corner lot — what changes?

Two things. First, height: the four-foot cap follows the street — it covers your front yard, your street side yard, and any part of the rear yard closer to the street than the principal building (§ 184-108C); the Zoning Office treats a corner parcel as having two front yards. Second, vision: no fence may violate the borough's sight-triangle provisions at street corners (§ 184-108G), and no fence is permitted within the street right-of-way. Behind the house and away from the corner, the six-foot side and rear yard rules apply as usual.

What are Fanwood's pool fence rules?

Fanwood sets the location rules and leaves the barrier numbers to the state. The fence section states that pool and hot tub enclosures required by the New Jersey Uniform Construction Code must meet that Code "as well as" § 184-108's own regulations — so the borough names no opening size, no pool-fence height and no gate rules of its own, and the six-foot side and rear yard cap (§ 184-108D) applies on top of the state barrier standard. Pools themselves are rear-yard only, and the pool must sit at least 15 feet from any side or rear property line (Ch. 184, Art. XIV). Solanos Fence builds the enclosure as a complete barrier — panel height, picket openings, self-closing gates and latching hardware together — and confirms the spec for your property at the estimate; our standard pool panel is 54 inches with 3.75-inch picket spacing.

My lot is in a flood-prone area — what changes?

In a regulated floodway, Fanwood's floodplain chapter (Ch. 158, Art. 801) requires a fence to have sufficiently large openings that it will not catch debris or obstruct floodwater, under N.J.A.C. 7:13. Split-rail and strand fences are named as designs that can meet the rule; "a fence with little or no open area, such as a chain link, lattice, or picket fence, does not meet this requirement" — and neither does a solid privacy fence. (Barbed-wire fences also appear in the floodway list, but § 184-108I prohibits barbed wire in the borough's general fence rules, so it is not a practical option for a home.) A pool fence that meets the construction code but not the floodway openness rule needs a flood variance.

Do you offer payment plans?

No, we don't offer payment plans.

Request a Free Fence Estimate in Fanwood, NJ

Call 973-220-7638 or contact Solanos Fence online. Tell us your approximate footage, the style you're considering, whether your lot is a corner lot, and whether a pool is involved — we'll plan the next steps around your property and Fanwood's rules. You can also see everywhere we work on our Union County fence page.

Solanos Fence| 1275 Bloomfield Ave, Building 3 Suite 51, Fairfield, NJ 07004 | 973-220-7638 | NJ Home Improvement Contractor Registration #13VH06388200