Unbending mesh of chainlink fence


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Old 11-04-19, 07:25 AM
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Unbending mesh of chainlink fence

A tree fell on my chain link fence bending the mesh down. How can I straighten it
 
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Old 11-04-19, 07:28 AM
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Got a picture so we can see what your seeing?
 
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Old 11-04-19, 07:46 AM
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A tree fell on my chain link fence bending the mesh down. How can I straighten it
When metal is bent by a force in one direction, you straighten it by applying a force in the exact opposite direction.

1)A steel cable from some other tree to ~5 feet from the fence, then use a hand-winch (come-along) to pull on a 4x4 post to re-bend the fence.

2) Similar setup, but with a ramp, a 1.5 ton automobile and a steel cable, with a 4x4 post to redirect the force from the weight of the vehicle UPWARD.

3) 4x4 post against the fence, with a jack (scissor, hydraulic or pneumatic) pushing the fence back into position.
 
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Old 11-04-19, 08:27 AM
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Yes, have to see how mangled it is.
Also what other damage it did re: top rail and posts
 
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Old 11-04-19, 09:55 AM
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Once you straighten or replace the top rail the rest shouldn't be too hard to stretch back into place.
 
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Old 11-05-19, 06:06 AM
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The bent fabric and top rail can be easily replaced.
 
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Old 11-05-19, 07:42 AM
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I've had many smaller trees fall on my fencing over the years. I take the rail off and put it in a fork in a tree and bend it right back. The mesh, well, like they said above, but I've had some that I had to get pliers and bend each square in the mesh to get it back in shape.
 
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Old 11-06-19, 05:39 AM
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I've had many smaller trees fall on my fencing over the years. I take the rail off and put it in a fork in a tree and bend it right back.
Quick tips for straightening a hollow thin-walled metal pipe:

First, cap one end and fill the pipe you're going to bend with sand. This keeps the hollow pipe from buckling .

Second, If you have access to a "scrap pile" of various sizes of metal pipe,try and find 2 sections of pipe that JUST slips OVER the pipe you're straightening. This helps spread out the load so you don't bend the end parts of the pipe while you try and straighten the middle.

Third, I've used a fork in a tree for bending pipe; but bending against the back tires of a yard tractor as a the fulcrum works really well.
Bending the kink against the rubber tractor tires keep the pole from slipping, and avoids buckling.

Summary,
cap one end, fill with sand, slide a "collar" of a larger post over the end(s) for leverage.
Then bend against the back tire of a lawn tractor to get an even re-bend
 
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Old 12-08-19, 03:57 AM
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Chain link fence.. hit by a tree or car or even sometimes a lawn mower... If bent or stretched or ripped... If the diamond is no longer a diamond and it has turned into a marqui ... or if the fence wire has been bent over from a tree falling on top of it.. Here is my question..

Do you want the fence to look like new again? Or do you just want it functional as being a border between two properties and neither you nor your neighbor can see the fence from where you are looking out your kitchen windows?

Simplest answer possible with the least amount of work..

Cut out the damaged area of fencing... plus at least 3 feet on both sides and Replace it with new wire mesh.

There are a lot of ways to go with this one but the best most simplest way of going is to replace the bad wire. If it is vinyl coated wire you may be able to bend it back somewhat... But it will never, ever,ever look like it did before the tree came down and crushed it.

If the wire mesh is galvanized with no vinyl coating at all... Cut out the bad area and just replace it. There is no bending back galvanized wire regardless... Once that galvanized coating breaks off the fence will rust. And eventually you would have a huge rusty section of fencing that will have to be replaced anyway.

If you have a broken post.. you can dig a new hold next to the one that was there... You do not need an exact measurement on the post to post to support the fence unless this is a gate area.
If the post was simply just bent over.. Bend it back.. If you do you may notice that the post is shorter than it was before... that is the amount of metal that is in the bend that has taken away from the overall height. If it is unsightly , replace it with a new post.
If the top rail is bent beyond fixing, cut out a section of the damaged area... Take note of the diameter of the damaged rail.. You could simply buy a larger diameter rail and sleeve one over the other or you can replace the section with use of sleeves on both sides.... If you need more direction with that just come back and we can go over that one step by step...

This is a very typical repair... It is not the easiest of repairs because wire mesh is installed tightly from post to post... But it is definitely repairable. If you need the wire to be very secure, you may have to work it more than just a minimal repair.. But if you just want it to look good again you could without trying to bend wire that unfortunately just doesn't want to look like it once did.
Assuming a 20 foot section of 4 foot wire.. one post and about 10 feet of top rail... ties.. and maybe some cement.. You could possibly do this repair for under $100.00
If you called someone in to repair this... depending on the level of work involved it might cost about $400-$600
If you choose to continue with the replacement option come back and give specifics ... I will help you step by step..
Pictures are worth their weight in gold...

Good luck...
 

Last edited by Shadeladie; 01-10-20 at 10:36 AM. Reason: Name removed
 

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