# Spraying Stain on Fence



## painter1986 (Mar 19, 2012)

Hello!

We usually roll stain on fences if we're only doing one side, to avoid getting any on the neighbor's side. I've been seeing a lot of guys around town spraying, which in my mind, makes sense if you're just doing one side, seems risky. 

Anyone else spray single-side fence jobs? How on earth do you do it??


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## stelzerpaintinginc. (May 9, 2012)

If there's a substantial difference between the color/shades of the 2 sides, it can present a problem. But a FF tip shot straight on. Edges/sides of boards get back rolled, along with everything else. Don't try it on lattice though.

FWIW, I try to talk to the neighbors in advance for 2 reasons. 
1. To let em know what I'm doing & when I'll be doing it. 
2. Perfect opportunity to get their side done for cheap, since I'm already out there with all my tools, so I mention that second, then give em my card.


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## painter1986 (Mar 19, 2012)

Thanks for the reply. It's unfinished on both sides (new construction). I just live in fear of having to stain someone else's fence for free because my stain bled through. It would be a good additional 20 gals of stain and a day's worth of work. Distance between fencing boards is small, but I still worry.


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## jwquantrell (Oct 30, 2008)

painter1986 said:


> Thanks for the reply. It's unfinished on both sides (new construction). I just live in fear of having to stain someone else's fence for free because my stain bled through. It would be a good additional 20 gals of stain and a day's worth of work. Distance between fencing boards is small, but I still worry.


My question would be why is the GC not paying to have the whole new fence stained? I have never heard of staining half of a new fence. 

In my opinion this is a situation where you have to insist on doing the job correctly or turn it down. Ultimately it comes down to us as painters to make sure that these jobs are being done correctly.


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## PACman (Oct 24, 2014)

jwquantrell said:


> My question would be why is the GC not paying to have the whole new fence stained? I have never heard of staining half of a new fence.
> 
> In my opinion this is a situation where you have to insist on doing the job correctly or turn it down. Ultimately it comes down to us as painters to make sure that these jobs are being done correctly.


That is a darn good question!


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## journeymanPainter (Feb 26, 2014)

I've done this a few times. 

Have someone shield the lattice, you mist it on, the spray and backroll fence posts and panels


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## Paradigmzz (May 5, 2010)

Ive heard of doing one side all the time. Property owners dont care about their neighbors side, nor do the neighbors only want one fence line stained.

As per the Original Post. Spraying fences keeps the stain to a minimum on bleed through. Counterintuitive i know, but your profile is much cleaner sprayed than rolled. The knap will either slap the side or push extra material and will cause the stain to "bleed/wick" on the sides of pickets to other side. 

For the record, im all for backrolling after spray. Your not carrying a heavily loaded roller to a fence that way.



Sometimes i wish people on here answered from experience instead of what they think they know.


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## PACman (Oct 24, 2014)

Lets see. New construction. Seems this wood be a good time to discuss the long term survival of a wooden fence. Coating one side only doesn't help that much. Spray and backroll with a fairly short nap roller to keep it on one side. Maybe see if you can talk to the gc/owner of the other side and cut them a deal if they go with the same color. That way one side of the fence won't look like crap in 5 years.


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## JourneymanBrian (Mar 16, 2015)

That doesnt really make sense painting one side if both are exposed. Does the owner only want the inside of his fence to be protected from deterioration? You can also have warping if you only prime one side.

Why not brush it? A roll texture doesnt look that great on top of wood grain...


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## painter1986 (Mar 19, 2012)

jwquantrell said:


> My question would be why is the GC not paying to have the whole new fence stained? I have never heard of staining half of a new fence.


House was finished a year ago, fence was put in last fall. GC left everything unfinished. Is it surprising to you that GC's in large subdivisions do as little as possible? Seems pretty common around here.


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## jwquantrell (Oct 30, 2008)

painter1986 said:


> House was finished a year ago, fence was put in last fall. GC left everything unfinished. Is it surprising to you that GC's in large subdivisions do as little as possible? Seems pretty common around here.


I can honestly say that in the last 20 years or so of doing new construction in the Seattle area that I have never painted half a fence for any of my builders. So yes, it is surprising to me. 

That being said, it appears as if you may be contracting this fence from the HO rather than the GC, in which case I can understand the desire to only finish one side. 

As to your original question, I don't think that you could spray one side of a fence and not have some kind of overspray on the side that wasn't being finished. I think that I would roll them just as you are currently doing.


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## straight_lines (Oct 17, 2007)

Maybe explain to them that staining a fence is not only for aesthetic purposes and doing both sides will protect the wood from rot.


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## Lilstarrsxoxo (May 20, 2021)

I would think it all depends on who is going to have to pay to replace the fence if something happens to it. If both neighbors have to go in on the cost to replace the fence, then I would think an agreement about it's care would have to be made between the two. If only one neighbor is responsible, then that person should be able to decide what they want to use to stain it and tools. However, being a good neighbor, I would let the other know what my an is. I have heard of some placing an old sheet behind the fence to protect objects from the overspray.


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## Kelby (May 21, 2021)

Recently my neighbor put up a new cedar fence (shared with his neighbor on the other side). He asked me to to put an semi-transparent oil on it (similar to my fence). I said I would do the job, _but only_ if his neighbor agreed to use the same material. No way am I staining half a fence. I spray and back brush.

He was a little confused at first and she wanted something to match her back (solid water stained) fence, but in the end they saw it my way.


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