Calculate pickets and coating from the fence you are building

Start by distinguishing solid panels, spaced pickets and wire. They use different count and coverage methods. For a picket fence, decide how ends and gaps are set out before ordering the timber or coating.

Check the repeating width

For an illustrative 2 m panel using 90 mm pickets with 10 mm gaps between them, 20 pickets and 19 gaps span 1,990 mm. Twenty-one pickets span 2,090 mm. The remaining 10 mm in the first arrangement must be resolved through the intended edge detail. A spacing example is not a rule for a particular fence design.

Measure faces rather than the boundary rectangle

Twenty pickets, each 1.8 m tall and 90 mm wide, have 3.24 m² on one broad face, or 6.48 m² on both. Edges, rails and posts are additional surfaces if coated. The panel's gross rectangle includes gaps and therefore answers a different area question.

Apply the coating system separately

Use the selected product's per-coat coverage and required coat count for each material. Primer or preparation may need its own line. Do not double a two-sided area again in the calculator.

Preserve the count basis

Record picket dimensions, actual count, exposed faces and whether rails and posts are included. For wire fencing, use run length and strand count, then schedule gates, straining components and other hardware separately.

Found a measurement or calculation issue? Send the example and your correction.