Horizontal Ipe Wall Topper: West Los Angeles Fence Style Personified

This wall topper fence is definitely one of our portfolio pieces.

Chris actually sold this job and the client was fully on board with allowing our creative freedom to make executive decisions.

This was the first time we attempted to create a "floating" look, with no visible hardware or seams.

It spawned the concept for what we now call our Mar Vista fence system.

Basically, we custom fabricate the steel posts to allow hardware mounting of the wood from the back.

The result is a clean, modern, minimalist style of fence- or in this case, wall topper.

What makes it a wall topper is obviously the placement of the fence on top of a mason wall, here that being the smooth stucco wall.

There are a couple of different ways to go about this.

You can use hardware like plates or bases that are anchored into the top of the wall using Red Head anchor bolts, but that isn't as clean as core-drilling 4-6 inch deep holes into the top of the wall and using a high-strength anchor bond cement.

The latter method is what we went with here.

The wood is the famous Brazilian ipe hardwood, more commonly used for decks but also used widely for siding and fences.

It is a dense, heavy wood with a beautiful color variation between reds, browns, gold, amber, and sometimes a tinge of emerald.

We usually source our hardwood from Advantage Lumber in Pico Rivera.

They have a great selection of exotic hardwoods like ipe, cumaru, tiger wood, masranduba, garapa, batu, balau, and teak.

Rated for 50 years, the ipe wood tends to be considered the gold standard of hardwoods.

During the pandemic, with supply chains interrupted, this particular wood shot up to the $8-10 per foot range for the 1"x6" size.

To achieve the look we were going for, we needed oversized lengths in the 20' plus range.

This adds another $1-2 per foot to the cost.

The customer was very happy for the results, and Chris services this fence annually to keep it looking great.

We offer annual service for hardwood using the Penofin brand three-step treatment process.

Step one is to strip the hardwood of the previous layer of Penofin oil.

Step two is to clean the hardwood.

Step three is to brighten and restore the pH balance of the wood.

Finally, you apply a new coat of Penofin oil.

The final result is a glossy, rich looking wood that brings out the richness of the wood.

To secure the wood to the posts, we use Grattan stainless steel screws.

The lengths of the screws have to be just right; too short and they won't securely hold the wood. Too long and they will over penetrate and poke out through the front.

The hardwood requires making a pilot hole.

Unlike softwoods such as redwood or cedar, the pilot hole is necessary to prevent the wood from splitting.

You don't want to have to replace any damaged wood out of pocket at this price!

Hardwoods also require the application of what's known as end seal anytime you cut the wood.

This helps keep the ends from slowly cracking over time.

They aren't usually big cracks, but it can be noticeable nonetheless.

Advantage Lumber or any other hardwood supplier will usually have all of these components in stock.

OK guys that's it for this one.

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Or to hire us for your next fence or gate project, find us here:

www.burkhardtcustom.com

Thanks!

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