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Tamko Fence Installation: The Fort Lauderdale Owner’s Guide
Tamko fence installation in Fort Lauderdale typically runs between $3,500 and $9,000 for a complete fence line, depending on linear footage, gate count, and whether we’re pulling old posts or setting new ones. Most homeowners call us after a storm, when a section leans or a gate stops latching. You need someone who knows Tamko’s vinyl and composite lines well enough to match what’s already on your property, not just someone who’ll slap up whatever’s on the truck.
Here’s what we see most often in Fort Lauderdale: a Tamko vinyl fence that looked great for years suddenly has cracked rails after a tropical storm, or the posts have shifted in sandy soil and the gate drags. The fence isn’t always the problem. Sometimes it’s the install. Posts set too shallow, or in soil that holds water, will move. We tell you what we found, what it takes to fix it, and what it will cost – before we touch a thing.
Which Tamko Models This Applies To
Tamko’s fencing division (spun out under the Tamko Building Products umbrella) produces vinyl privacy, semi-privacy, and picket fence systems in a handful of standard profiles. The most common lines we encounter in South Florida are their Classic Privacy (6′ and 8′ panels), their horizontal slat systems, and their post-and-rail configurations for larger lots. Each line uses slightly different post dimensions and rail channels, which is where a lot of mismatched repairs happen.
The compatibility gotcha with Tamko vinyl is the rail channel: some profiles accept a 1-5/8″ rail, others a 2″ rail, and the tongue-and-groove panel bottom rails are not interchangeable between the privacy and semi-privacy series. A hand-tight measurement helps. Look for a small stamp or embossed code on the inside of a post cap or along the bottom rail, usually a mold number you can read off to us over the phone. If the fence was installed before 2015, Tamko may have used a heavier wall thickness on the posts, so a mix-and-match with newer sections can leave visible gaps at the seams.
We install OEM Tamko where it makes sense, and we’re honest when a quality aftermarket equivalent will save you money without changing the look. For white vinyl, the color matching is forgiving. For clay, khaki, or gray tones, we insist on Tamko OEM to avoid the sun-faded mismatch that happens around year two in Florida sun.
Styles & brands we work with
Signs Your Tamko Fence Installation Is Failing
- Gates that scrape or won’t latch. This is usually post movement, not a bad gate. If the hinge post tilts even half an inch, the latch line shifts. Shimming the gate is a temporary fix; resetting the post is the real one.
- Cracks at the bottom rail. We see this after wind events when the section flexes against a post that’s set too rigid or too shallow. The panel needs full replacement, not patching.
- Chalky, faded surface on the sun side. All vinyl fades some in Fort Lauderdale UV, but early chalkiness (within 5-7 years) usually means a low-grade aftermarket panel was mixed into an OEM fence. That tells us part of the fence was repaired on the cheap before you owned the home.
- Posts wobbling at ground level. In sandy or mucky soil near the canals and Intracoastal, a post set without enough concrete will loosen within a few seasons. You can grab the post and feel the give before you see it.
- Water pooling inside posts. Missing post caps let rain in, and standing water inside a vinyl post expands in the heat. That’s an easy catch on an inspection and a cheap fix if caught early.
Replacement Cost & What’s Included
For a Fort Lauderdale homeowner, a full Tamko fence installation runs $3,500 to $9,000. The spread is driven by how many linear feet you have, whether gates are single or double-wide (double gates need heavier posts and stronger hardware), and what the old post bases look like when we dig. If we’re replacing a section rather than the full run, you’re looking at $250 to $700 per section installed, depending on rail profile and whether the posts can be reused.
Every quote includes parts, labor, concrete, post caps, gate hardware, and haul-away of old material. There are no add-on charges that show up at the end. The written price you get before work starts is the price you pay. We cover our fence installation work under our 365-Day Done Right Promise, which means if anything isn’t right within a year of completion, we make it right at no cost to you.
Call (754) 354-3720 for an exact quote on your fence line. Estimates are free, and a real person answers the call.
See the difference
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AfterDIY or Call Us?
You can safely inspect your Tamko fence: check post caps for cracks, look for leaning by sighting down the line, grab each post and feel for movement. That’s worth doing once a year, especially after storm season. What we don’t recommend is DIY post removal. The old concrete plug around a 4×4 vinyl post can weigh 80 to 100 pounds, and digging it out by hand in Florida heat is not a weekend project. The risk isn’t the vinyl – it’s the heat, the digging, and the chance you’ll set the new post slightly off-line and fight the gate forever.
If you’re replacing a single section between two healthy posts and you’ve got the right measurements, it can be done by a careful homeowner. If the posts are involved, or you need a gate to actually close right, call us at (754) 354-3720 and we’ll give you a straight recommendation, even if it’s “that section’s fine, don’t touch it.”
FAQs
A properly installed Tamko vinyl fence should last 20 to 30 years in Fort Lauderdale, though the intense UV and salt air near the coast may show cosmetic fading before the material structurally fails. Most early failures we see are installation problems, not material problems. Call (754) 354-3720 if you’re seeing cracks before year ten – it’s usually a post issue, not the panel.
No – vinyl fence sections are extruded as single pieces, so a crack in the rail or panel means that section gets replaced rather than patched. The good news is that the posts around it can often be reused, keeping the repair cost down. Call us for an honest read on whether your posts are sound before you commit to replacing the whole run.
A full fence line of 50 to 100 linear feet typically takes two to three days from demo to final gate adjustment. Section replacements and single-gate swaps can usually be done in one visit. We’ll tell you the exact schedule when we give you the written estimate.
We keep common white Tamko rail profiles, post caps, gate hardware, and a selection of panels in stock for quick repairs, and we order OEM color-matched materials for clay, khaki, and specialty profiles. If you have a piece that needs matching, call us with the mold number and we’ll tell you what’s available same week. We’re independent of Tamko – not a factory store – so we’re free to tell you when an aftermarket part is just as good.
Get Your Tamko Fence Fixed Right in Fort Lauderdale
We’ve been doing remodeling and installation work in Fort Lauderdale long enough to know which fence problems come from the material and which come from the installer. Isaac Pruett, our owner, will tell you straight what your Tamko fence needs, what it costs, and how long it’ll take. We also work with KraftMaid, Cambria, and Silestone products when your project spans beyond the fence line.
Call (754) 354-3720 and you’ll get a person, not a phone tree. We’ll schedule a time to look at your fence, put the price in writing, and get it done right.
Written by Isaac Pruett, Owner, Mason Remodeling Co Fort Lauderdale at Mason Remodeling Co Fort Lauderdale, serving Fort Lauderdale and nearby areas.
