Dog Ear vs. Capped vs. Board-on-Board: Picking a Cedar Fence Style in Lubbock
Picking a cedar fence comes down to three questions. How tall? What’s on top? And can you see through it?
Here’s the short answer:
- Dog ear is the classic. It’s the most budget-friendly way to get a full cedar privacy fence.
- Capped puts a cedar 2×4 along the top for a clean, finished line.
- Board-on-board overlaps the pickets so you can’t see through the fence, even after the cedar dries.
All three are built the same way underneath: on steel posts, with three rails per section. The difference is what you see. Let’s walk through each one.
Dog Ear Cedar Fence
This is the fence most people picture when they think of a Lubbock backyard. Dog ear pickets have their top corners clipped off, which gives the fence that traditional look. There’s no trim on top. Just pickets, side by side.
We build dog ear fences at 6 ft. If you want solid privacy and don’t need the extras, it’s hard to beat.
Capped Cedar Fence (6 ft or 7 ft)
A capped fence uses flat-top pickets with a cedar 2×4 running the full length of the fence along the top. The cap gives you a straight, finished line, and it helps shed water off the picket ends.
Let’s be clear about one thing: the cap doesn’t make the fence more private. It makes it look finished. If that’s worth it to you, it’s a great upgrade.
Capped fences come in 6 ft and 7 ft. That extra foot matters if you have a two-story house next door or back up to a busy street.
Board-on-Board Cedar Fence
Here’s something to know before you pick: a new cedar fence is going to shrink. On a dog ear or standard capped fence, the pickets go up side by side. As the cedar dries out, small gaps open up between them, and you can see through the fence.
Board-on-board fixes that. We add pickets and overlap them, roughly 30% more pickets than a standard fence, so there are no see-through gaps, even after the wood dries. It’s the most private, most solid-looking cedar fence we build.
Any capped fence can be built board-on-board, at 6 ft or 7 ft.
Dog Ear vs. Capped vs. Board-on-Board at a Glance
| Dog ear | Capped | Board-on-board | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Heights | 6 ft | 6 ft or 7 ft | 6 ft or 7 ft |
| Top of the fence | Clipped picket corners, no trim | Cedar 2×4 cap | Cedar 2×4 cap |
| Gaps as the cedar dries | Small gaps can open | Small gaps can open | No see-through gaps |
| Look | Classic | Clean, finished line | Solid wall of cedar |
| Budget | Most budget-friendly | Adds a cap | Adds a cap and extra pickets |
Which Cedar Fence Style Should You Pick?
- You want privacy without the extras: 6 ft dog ear.
- You want it to look finished: capped.
- You have a two-story neighbor or a busy street behind you: 7 ft capped.
- You can’t stand seeing through gaps (or your dog can’t): board-on-board.
One more thing. If you’re in an HOA, check their rules on fence height and style before you pick.
What Stays the Same No Matter Which Style You Pick
- Steel posts. Every cedar fence we build is on galvanized steel posts, driven 4 ft deep or set 3 ft in concrete. Here’s why we build on steel instead of wood.
- Three rails per section for a stiff, flat fence line.
- Optional steel gate frames to keep your gates from sagging.
- Stain. Whatever style you pick, we recommend staining a new cedar fence within 3 months to lock in the color before the sun grays it. See fence staining.
- Concrete fence curbs. A curb keeps the bottom of the pickets out of the grass and away from string trimmers. See concrete.
Still deciding? We’ll help you pick when we come out to measure. Photos of all four styles are on our cedar fencing page.
Pick the look you like. We’ll make sure it stands up.