Thread: Pvc fence finials breaking

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Hmm they are breaking. anyone else having this problem? I'm using thick wall pvc. this wasn't a problem til the cold set in.

Looks like it was wedged in there too tightly. The temperature shift probably made the finial contract more than the PVC and it finally split. I wonder how many other people this has happened to. It would probably be better next time to shave down the PVC so that the finial is loose, then glue it in place instead of relying on tightness.

we heated up the pipe to make it soft. then installed the finial. I didn't notce any of these cracking till today. I think the cold and heat is the cause.

You might try heating the PVC a bit more, or cutting a slot in the end of the pipe so that when it cools it doesn't spring back to it's original shape.. The good news is that under haunt conditions (dark, foggy, with multiple creepy distractions) it probably won't be very noticeable. If your OCD is like mine though it will still bug the crap out of you

What I did for my fence, instead of using PVC, partially because I didn't like the look, partially because I could do it cheaper... was get a sheet of 1/2" MDF. A 4x8 sheet is around 20-25 bucks. Then set up a fence on my tablesaw to 1/2". I cut the entire sheet up into little 1/2" strips. That gives you around 175 strips 1/2"x1/2"x48". It looks more like wrought iron fencing, as most of it is square, not round, and it's dirt cheap. (provided you have a tablesaw, or a skill saw and a couple clamps and a straight edge.) I used a finish stapler to attach them, and spray painted them black.

Just make sure when you store them, you store them flat. I just mine on the side of the house with a bunch of other crap as I had a bunch of projects going on throughout the year to want to deal with finding them a proper home... now my fence pickets have a nice curve.

Interesting. I suspect you didn't heat up the pipe enough. You need to get it really soft before putting on the finials. They should just slip on and deform the pipe.

Compressed fittings are always prone to pressures and forces during temperature changes. Especially thermoplastics like these finials.

I would suggest heating up that PVC so it stretchs lengthwise and shrinks its diameter, and is definitely smaller than the opening in the finial. Hold the pipe upside down, heat it up, and let the pipe droop a bit. Use some channel locks to crimp down and compress the pipe a bit.

Then use flexible adhesive, to allow the pipe to expand and contract without putting force on the finials.

If you have a belt sander, turn the ends of the pipes against the sander to remove some material and shrink them down.

Originally Posted by Redsand187

What I did for my fence, instead of using PVC, partially because I didn't like the look, partially because I could do it cheaper... was get a sheet of 1/2" MDF. A 4x8 sheet is around 20-25 bucks. Then set up a fence on my tablesaw to 1/2". I cut the entire sheet up into little 1/2" strips. That gives you around 175 strips 1/2"x1/2"x48". It looks more like wrought iron fencing, as most of it is square, not round, and it's dirt cheap. (provided you have a tablesaw, or a skill saw and a couple clamps and a straight edge.) I used a finish stapler to attach them, and spray painted them black.

Just make sure when you store them, you store them flat. I just mine on the side of the house with a bunch of other crap as I had a bunch of projects going on throughout the year to want to deal with finding them a proper home... now my fence pickets have a nice curve.

Do you have any pics?? I have no idea what a MDF is.

I used cpvc pipe for my posts and the finials glued on just fine. I prop my fence up with long rebar pieces inside the cpvc.
These are the finials I used and I can send you my left overs.

Originally Posted by Pumpkin Eater

Do you have any pics?? I have no idea what a MDF is.

Medium Density Fiberboard... it's basically particle board, only made of finer saw dust and more glue. I'll go see if I can pull them out and find a section that still looks good to take a picture of. I don't know if I'll use any fencing this year, but if I do, I'll probably make new ones now that I actually have a place to store them and keep them looking good. If I make more, I'll take pics of the entire (short) process and post them too.