Hi, Barbara! Hello, my friends in the Houzz! I got caught in the whirlwind of construction works and a wedding and family homecoming that went with it! Now, I am happy to be back supervising the works. I made additions to the house, mainly at the back, making outdoor living and relaxation as a feature with the grill and outdoor seating and mobile Kitchen all added around the small bath area. Security here in this country is a big consideration, which leaves me with not much choice but to build high and strong fences and gates. My challenge is how to allow for a view of those cornfields and meadows just behind the house, providing a natural awesome backdrop to the 450sqm small property. It may not disappoint you too much to know that I went for the cut stone cladding for the four tall gate posts in front, a copy from the cladding on the posts of the front veranda, only, they are 2.2meters high. There will be two wide gates that will allow entry and exit of suv's on a half roundabout. The whole stretch of the front fence and gates shall be 2.2m vertical iron rods all lined up in a picket. This should allow the least obstructed view of the property from the narrow road. I shall send you more photos of our finished product :). In the meantime, this is how I have fared... Blessings to you, all!!

A nice invasive running bamboo would be the ticket to isolation. Where are you worried about it invading - your neighbor? When it invades your gravel areas, you cut out the running root, big deal. If you built a wall, you would have to maintain that, would you not? I am renting a house that is less than ten feet(3 m) from the highway right-of-way, but about another 20'(about 6 m) from the actual roadway, which is about 5' (150cm) above my first floor. As the road curves, it passes both first and second floor bathroom fulll-size windows, yeh. Bamboo to the rescue! We are saved by the lovely self-sustaining bamboo. No fertilizing, no watering, just an occasional clipping of its toenails, each spring. It doesn't soften the sound of the Harley's though. To keep the bamboo from crawling out of its crib, install a galvanized or aluminum edging that goes down 6-12'(15-30 cm) to contain these babies from escape. And let the neighbor go back to Dungeons & Dragons or Sesame Street for their entertainment.

horizontal anything is a no, the gap would have to be so small it might as well be solid. yes the vertical cable might pass but you are not allowed to be able to squeeze them together as then the gap distance is non complying, The safest one is the solid section PCA pool fence, or glass, or solid, to 1200 mm in Queensland, no greater than 100 mm off ground, and gaps not able to be manipulated, and to stop that you have to have horizontal section in the cable type, which then do not comply, cut metal screens if complying is OK. I would question the void, and if you know the reason for the void, than solutions will be able to be worked out, now we are asking why? Pools in adjoining yards are acceptable with pool fencing complying on both sides, no void is required. so the void sound a bit iffy, unless it is something to do with storm water, or a building requirement, so ask the question why. Pool fencing can be awesome.

I have one of those Monika and I would venture to say that you wouldn't be able to cut it flat because with everything around everywhere having the waved top it would look really odd I think, and I doubt whether you would be able to paint it at least until the development is well over or you could find the developers all over you, along with residents who like yourselves have signed to agree to the covenants. A lot of people enter into these developments because there is a better chance of people looking after their properties however I will say that I am the only owner occupied in my part of the street, and I am forever weeding everyone else's garden, picking up the rubbish blown from the sea breeze on new builders not looking after their rubbish and the renters chucking empty beer bottles where they have sat on the steps drinking and throw the bottles into the garden and I actually water the rental alongside me as our gardens join, as yours probably does, and they refuse to water it. I want my place to look nice and if left to these renters it would look like homeless shelters. I think the tall pots and something like the black bamboo could look really good :)