Concrete posts and gravel boards in Sandwich

Why this is the Sandwich standard

The ground around the Stour valley and Sandwich Bay is heavy alluvial marsh clay with a high water table. Post-holes fill with water fast. Timber posts have a rot cycle - the wet-dry line six inches below ground level is where they fail, usually 8-12 years in. A concrete post has no rot cycle. It goes in once, cures with the ground, and stays there.

The gravel board matters just as much. A 300mm concrete gravel board keeps the timber panel or board face 300mm off the wet ground. It also handles ground movement without cracking the panel above, and takes the impact from stray footballs, mowers, dogs and the occasional wheelbarrow without the fence face losing a corner.

What we do

• Replace timber posts on an existing fence line with concrete slotted posts, reuse the original panels or closeboard face where they are sound
• Retrofit 300mm gravel boards to an existing concrete-post fence that only has 150mm boards or none
• Build a full new fence to this spec from scratch on new or replacement boundary work

Retrofit vs full replacement

If your existing panels are in decent shape but the timber posts are done, a post-only swap (with new gravel boards) will save you a meaningful chunk over a full rebuild. We will walk the run with you and tell you honestly which panels are worth keeping. Sometimes the answer is "half of them" - we salvage what we can and buy panels for the rest.

Kent 2026 price band

• Timber-to-concrete post swap with 300mm gravel board, existing panels reused - £45 to £70 per linear metre
• Full new concrete-post + gravel-board + panel build - £75 to £100 per linear metre
• Concrete-post closeboard build (the marsh gold standard) - £85 to £110 per linear metre

How long it lasts

The concrete posts and gravel boards will outlast us. The panels or closeboard face on top of them is the wearing surface - 15-25 years depending on the face, longer with basic care. When the face is done, it is a straight swap onto the existing posts.