As homeowners across the Denver metro area take advantage of cooler fall weather to replace aging fences and install new ones, one Littleton fence company is emphasizing a step that happens before any post hole is dug: calling Colorado 811. MH Fence Co, a littleton fence company serving residential and commercial properties, issued the reminder as part of an effort to reduce preventable utility damage and keep do-it-yourself homeowners safe.
According to Colorado 811, anyone digging in Colorado is legally required to contact the notification center at least three business days before digging, regardless of the size of the project. The service is free and covers public underground utilities such as gas, electricity, water, sewer and internet lines. Privately owned utilities, such as lines running to a detached garage or outdoor lighting, are not included and must be located separately by the property owner.
The requirement matters because fence work is one of the most common reasons homeowners dig deeper than they realize. Every fence post requires a hole, and along a typical backyard property line those holes add up quickly. Striking a gas or electrical line can cause injury, service outages and costly repairs. Once lines are marked with paint or flags, Colorado 811 advises digging with hand tools when working within 18 inches of a mark.
Mark Green of MH Fence Co said the company treats utility locates as a non-negotiable first step. "A fence looks like a simple project from the surface, but every post is a hole in the ground, and along a backyard property line those add up quickly," Green said. "We won't put a shovel in the ground until the locates are back, and I'd tell any neighbor doing it themselves to wait for the marks too."
The locate request is the first step for new projects, including the fence installation littleton co homeowners schedule in wood, vinyl, composite, chain link, aluminum and wrought iron. The same step applies when an old fence comes out, because pulling and resetting posts disturbs the ground again. The company handles Fence Replacement Littleton CO projects from removal of the existing fence through installation of the new one.
For smaller projects, such as resetting a leaning post or replacing a damaged section after a storm, the company provides fence repair littleton co property owners can schedule without replacing the full line. MH Fence Co said its installations use steel posts, a standard intended to hold up against frost heave and Colorado's freeze-thaw cycles.
"Colorado ground moves through the winter, so how the posts go in matters as much as the fence itself," Green said. "Getting the locates done and setting the posts right the first time saves a lot of trouble later."
Homeowners comparing fence contractors littleton co can ask whether a company requests utility locates before digging, a question that can distinguish a professional operation from one that cuts corners. MH Fence Co offers complimentary estimates and serves Littleton and the Denver metro area, including Arvada, Aurora, Castle Rock, Centennial, Denver, Englewood, Golden, Highlands Ranch, Lakewood and Parker.
