Old fences come down regularly across southern NH. The pressure-treated wood fence put up 20 years ago that's finally rotted through. The chain-link fence around a yard that no longer needs containment. The white vinyl fence that's brittle and broken in three sections. Fence removal pairs well with a yard reset or property cleanup, and the cost factors are pretty predictable once you know what to look for.
Here's how the work goes.
The three common fence types
Wood fences. Most often pressure-treated lumber, sometimes cedar or other natural wood. Stockade panels, board-on-board, picket, post-and-rail. The pickets and rails come off in sections. The posts are usually concrete-set.
Vinyl fences. Increasingly common in newer NH installations. Lighter than wood, comes apart in panel sections. The posts are usually concrete-set with internal metal reinforcement.
Chain-link fences. Common in older properties, especially around urban and suburban yards built between 1950 and 1990. Posts, rails, and the fabric. Sometimes has a top rail, sometimes doesn't.
Each comes down differently and produces different amounts of debris.
How wood fence removal runs
Wood fence comes apart in a few stages: pickets and panels first, then the rails, then the posts. The posts are usually the labor concentration because they're set in concrete. Most old fence removals get the posts cut at grade, leaving the concrete footing in the ground. Digging the concrete out is a bigger job, worth it only if a new fence is going in nearby and needs the old footing gone.
How vinyl fence removal runs
Vinyl is faster. The panels slide out of the post slots (tongue-and-groove rather than fasteners). The posts come out the same way as wood: concrete footing is the labor. Vinyl produces less weight per linear foot than wood because the panels are lighter.
How chain-link fence removal runs
Chain-link comes off in a different order: top rail first if there is one, then the fabric, then the posts. The fabric is heavy because the metal is dense. Steel posts can sometimes be pulled or cut at grade.
The post-and-concrete problem
Concrete-set fence posts are the labor concentration in fence demo. A 6-foot wood fence with posts every 8 feet means roughly 10 to 12 posts per 100 linear feet of fence. Each post takes a few minutes to a few hours of work depending on which removal method is used.
For most projects, the choice is:
- Cut at grade and leave concrete in ground: Fast, cheap. Concrete stays. Future projects might hit it.
- Dig out completely: Slow, more expensive. Clean ground after.
If you're not putting in a new fence and don't have other plans for the property line, cut-at-grade is almost always the right call.
What changes the dumpster sizing
Fence removal feeds into a dumpster or truck load. The variables that affect sizing:
- Linear footage. A 50-foot run vs a 500-foot run.
- Fence height. 4-foot vs 6-foot vs 8-foot panels. Taller produces more material.
- Material type. Wood is the heaviest per linear foot among the common types.
- Concrete inclusion. If you're pulling concrete footings, the load gets significantly heavier.
- Pressure-treated. PT wood is classified as construction debris, not yard waste. See our yard waste post for the disposal classification details.
Sizing depends on linear footage, fence type, and whether you're pulling the concrete or cutting posts at grade. For most residential fence runs, a 15-yard is the starting point and we go up from there if the run is long or the load includes concrete. Chain-link removals are heavier per linear foot than wood or vinyl. Send the linear footage and the fence type and we'll size it.
What about the gate
Most fence runs have a gate or two. Gates come down with the rest of the fence, but the hinge hardware and the gate posts (usually heavier than regular posts) need their own attention.
A double-gate driveway entry is a slightly bigger project than a single-pedestrian gate. Mention it on the booking call.
The fence-and-yard-cleanup combo
A common scenario: the fence is coming down as part of a broader yard reset. New landscaping, new garden bed configuration, new property line layout. The fence debris piles up with other yard debris.
For combined projects, the disposal classification matters. Pure brush is yard waste. Pressure-treated fence material is construction debris. A mixed load gets billed at the higher rate. See our yard waste vs construction debris post for the details.
What about replacing the fence
If the project is "remove old fence and install new fence," the demo is one phase and the install is another. We handle the demo. The install is usually a fence company.
Coordination tips:
- The fence company often wants a clean line before they install. Schedule the demo first.
- If the new fence is going in exactly where the old one was, the post hole locations matter. Cut-at-grade is usually fine; pull-the-concrete might be needed in some cases.
- A dumpster on site during the demo also handles any debris from the new install.
The booking call
For fence removal:
- Linear footage and fence height
- Fence material type
- Post handling preference (cut at grade vs dig out)
- Any combined projects (yard cleanup, new fence install, deck demo)
- Access for the truck or dumpster
Photos of the fence and the access route to 603-634-9947 help a lot.
Call 603-634-9947 to schedule. For more on demo work, see our demolition cleanup page.