Cedar is the most common choice AMR installs, largely because it’s naturally resistant to insects and decay without needing chemical treatment. Depending on the look and budget you’re working with, other wood species are available as well. Your estimator can walk through the tradeoffs in appearance, cost, and long-term maintenance between species during your on-site visit.

Homeowners deciding between wood and vinyl privacy fencing are usually weighing the same two things: appearance and upkeep. Wood gives a natural, warmer look that most people picture when they think of a classic backyard fence, but it needs periodic staining or sealing to hold that appearance. Vinyl matches wood on privacy and needs essentially no upkeep, but has a more uniform, manufactured look that isn’t the right fit for every property style. Neither is objectively the better choice — it comes down to whether the natural wood appearance is worth the maintenance tradeoff for your property, which your estimator can help you think through.

Wood is the material most people picture when they think “fence” — and for good reason. It’s warm, it’s classic, and it genuinely improves how a property looks from the street. The tradeoff is that it needs to be built well from the start, because a poorly-fitted wood fence shows its flaws faster than most other materials.

Wood isn’t the lowest-maintenance option AMR offers — aluminum and vinyl both ask less of a homeowner over time. But for properties where the priority is full privacy and a natural appearance, wood remains the standard other materials get compared against. It’s a tradeoff worth being upfront about rather than glossing over.

• Backyards where full privacy is the priority, not just a boundary marker — this is where wood sees the most residential demand across our service area
• Front yards, typically with picket-style fencing that defines the property line without closing it off from the street
• Rural and larger properties, where split rail marks boundaries across more acreage without the material cost of a solid privacy fence
• Shared property lines, where a shadowbox style gives both neighbors a finished-looking side rather than one side facing exposed framing

A wood fence’s biggest failure points almost always trace back to how it was installed, not the material itself. A few things AMR’s process is specifically built to avoid:

• Posts set too shallow. A post that isn’t set deep enough — especially below the frost line in this region — will heave or lean within a few winters.
• Ignoring the actual grade. Fences built to a straight line rather than the yard’s real slope end up with gaps at the bottom or boards that don’t sit flush.
• Inconsistent board spacing. Uneven gaps are one of the fastest ways a fence starts looking unfinished, even when the materials themselves are high quality.
• Skipping proper fasteners. Standard fasteners can corrode and stain wood over time; the right hardware avoids streaking and loosening.

1. Estimate request. Share your property details and what you’re looking for — privacy, picket, split rail.
2. On-site estimate. AMR measures your property and confirms the details against what was submitted.
3. Contract and scheduling. Once approved, you’re scheduled — typically two to three weeks out.
4. Installation and cleanup. Most wood fence jobs take one to two days. The crew clears debris from the site every night, not just when the job wraps.

• Total linear footage. Longer fence lines mean more material and labor time, regardless of style.
• Style. Privacy fencing generally uses more material per foot than picket or split rail, which affects overall cost.
• Height. Taller privacy sections require more lumber and additional bracing.
• Old fence removal. If an existing fence needs to come out first, that adds time and disposal cost to the project.
• Gates. Each gate adds hardware and framing beyond the standard fence line cost.

Your estimator walks through which of these apply to your property and gives you a firm number, not a rough range, before anything is scheduled.

Wood asks more of a homeowner over time than aluminum or vinyl, but the upkeep is manageable with a basic routine:

• Stain or seal every few years. This is the single biggest factor in how long a wood fence keeps its color and resists weathering.
• Check for loose boards or fasteners annually. Catching a loose board early prevents it from warping or splitting further.
• Keep soil and mulch from piling against the bottom rail. Constant moisture contact is one of the most common causes of premature rot at the base of posts and boards.
• Trim vegetation growing against the fence line. Vines and overgrowth trap moisture against the wood and accelerate wear.

AMR fabricates its own wood sections in its Washington, NJ shop — not shipped in from a supplier, built there. That in-house fabrication is part of how the crew avoids waiting on manufacturer lead times for custom sections. The company is family-owned and third-generation, with a crew trained in-house and never subcontracted out.

Because the same crew that fabricates the sections also installs them, there’s direct accountability for fit and quality at every step — rather than a gap between whoever built the components and whoever’s putting them in the ground. That in-house control extends to gates and custom trim work too, so a nonstandard gate width or an unusual property line doesn’t turn into a delay waiting on an outside supplier.