A paling fence is one of those jobs that looks completely achievable from the driveway and then turns into three weekends the moment you actually start digging. That's not because it's a difficult build. It's because most of the mistakes that make a paling fence look homemade happen in the first hour, before a single paling goes up: uneven post spacing, holes that aren't deep enough, or a string line that was never quite straight to begin with.

Get the setting out and the posts right, and the rest of the job is genuinely straightforward. Here's the full process, materials list included, the way it's usually done rather than the shortcut version.

Materials List

For a standard 1.8m high paling fence, here's roughly what you're working with per bay:

• Posts: treated pine tapered round posts (CCA H4 treated, commonly in the 125 to 150mm diameter range for a 1.8m fence), or a squared option like cypress pine posts at 125mm x 125mm or mixed red hardwood posts at 125mm x 75mm if you'd rather fix rails to a flat face. Allow at least 600mm of post length below ground on top of your fence height, so a 1.8m fence needs roughly 2.4m posts.

• Rails: treated pine fence rails at 75mm x 50mm for the top and bottom rails. A third, mid rail centred between them is standard at standard paling fence height, since it stops the palings bowing over time.

• Palings: treated pine fence palings, 12mm thick, in a mix of 150mm and 100mm widths in roughly equal quantities.

• Plinth board: a 150mm x 25mm treated pine plinth board that sits at ground level and gives the bottom of your palings something solid to sit against, rather than letting them run straight into dirt and mulch.

• Concrete mix: a bag per post is the usual rule of thumb, more for taller posts or sandy soil that needs extra support.

• Galvanised nails: a mix of sizes for fixing palings, mid rails and rails into posts. Ask in store for the right length for each fixing point rather than guessing, since undersized nails are a common reason palings work loose early.

• Stakes and timber bracing to hold posts plumb while the concrete cures.

Tools You'll Need

Measuring tape, pencil, a string line, a spirit level, a post hole digger or shovel, a hammer, a hand or power saw, a carpenter's square, a sliding bevel, and wood chisels if you're notching rails into posts rather than face fixing them. None of it is specialist gear, which is part of why this job feels more approachable than it sometimes turns out to be.

Step 1: Plan and Check Before You Dig

Confirm your actual boundary line before you mark anything, since a fence built even slightly over the line becomes an awkward conversation later, and it's worth a quick chat with your neighbor if you're sharing the boundary. Get underground services checked through Dial Before You Dig too. It's a free call, and considerably cheaper than hitting a gas or water line with a post hole digger.

Step 2: Set Out Your String Line and Post Positions

Run a taut string line along the fence line as your reference for both alignment and height. Posts are usually set somewhere between 2m and 2.7m apart for a fence up to 1.8m high, but rather than working strictly to that number, measure your total run and divide it into equal bays that fall within that range. Even spacing across the whole fence looks far more deliberate than a run of consistent bays followed by one oddly narrow one at the end where the math didn't quite work out.

Step 3: Dig the Post Holes

Holes are typically dug around 600mm deep and roughly 300mm square, though heavier clay or sandy soil can change that. As a general guide, aim for at least a third of the total post length below ground, with the hole sides kept straight rather than tapered so the concrete has more to grip.

Step 4: Set and Concrete the Posts

Position each post in its hole and check it's plumb on two adjoining faces with a spirit level, not just eyeballed from one angle. Brace it in position with stakes and scrap timber before you touch the concrete, since a post that shifts while curing is a problem you'll be looking at for the next twenty years. Mix and pour your concrete following the bag instructions, then leave it to cure properly, usually a couple of days at minimum, before you load any weight onto the posts with rails and palings.

Step 5: Fix the Rails

Once your posts have cured, fit the top rail first, positioned no more than about 75mm down from the top of the post, followed by the bottom rail, generally sitting within 175mm of where your plinth board will run. Add a mid rail centred between the two. This third rail is easy to skip on a tight budget, but it's what stops the middle of tall palings bowing outward over a few years of Melbourne weather, so it's worth including rather than cutting.

Step 6: Fit the Plinth Board

Run your plinth board along the base of the fence, sitting on or just above ground level. This gives your palings a clean, solid line to start from and keeps the bottom edge of the timber away from constant ground moisture, which is one of the more common reasons palings rot out early.

Step 7: Nail Up the Palings

Start with your 150mm palings, fixing them plumb with roughly a 50mm gap between each one. Once that first layer is up, nail your 100mm palings centred over each gap, overlapping the wider palings by about 25mm on both sides. That overlap is what gives a paling fence its privacy and its classic look, while still leaving enough of a gap in the timber for natural movement without splitting.

Step 8: Finish Up

Run a string line or laser level along the top of the palings and trim any that sit proud, so the fence line reads clean rather than uneven. If you want a neater finish than an exposed cut top, a length of treated pine capping run along the top of the palings covers the cut ends and sheds water away from the end grain, which helps the tops last longer. If you're staining or oiling the timber, do it once everything is fixed and any sawdust has been brushed off, and give freshly treated timber a few weeks to settle before the first coat if it hasn't had a chance to acclimatize yet.

A Few Things Worth Getting Right the First Time

Buy slightly more paling stock than your measurements suggest, since timber varies in width more than people expect and running short two palings from the end is an annoying reason to make a second trip. Check your string line at more than one point along a long run too, since a slight sag partway along can throw out spacing you won't notice until the palings are already up.

If you're working out exact quantities for your specific fence length, the team at A Class Building Materials can help you put together a full materials list, from posts and rails through to palings and fixings, so you're buying the right amounts in one trip rather than guessing and coming back twice. Pop into the yard with your measurements, or give us a call before you start marking out your string line.