What Should I Ask a Fence Contractor Before Hiring Them?

Nine questions worth asking every bidder

Ask all nine of the same contractor, and ask them of every bidder, so you are comparing answers rather than just prices.

1. What do you do when the auger hits hardpan? The soil series named after this county carries a silica-cemented duripan at 20 to 40 inches. A contractor who has actually worked this ground will bring it up before you do. Vague answers — “we’ll figure it out” — mean posts that stop on top of the pan instead of through it. See why the auger stops at two feet.

2. How deep will my posts actually go, and how wide is the footing? Get a number, not a description. “Deep enough” is not an answer.

3. Is removal of my old fence a separate line item? It should be, priced on its own so you can see it — typically $3 to $10 per linear foot. If it is buried inside a single number, you cannot tell what you are actually paying for either job.

4. Are gates priced separately, with hardware specified? A gate is a different structure from the fence — heavier posts, deeper footings, hinges and latches rated for the leaf weight. It should appear as its own line, not folded into a per-foot average.

5. What is your post spacing on this style, and does it change on an exposed line? A privacy panel on open ground needs closer spacing than a picket fence. A contractor who quotes identical spacing regardless of exposure has not thought about wind load.

6. Will you get 811 clearance before digging? This is not optional in Idaho, and a contractor who is vague about it or offers to start “tomorrow” on a job with no locate filed is telling you something.

7. Are you licensed and registered to work in Minidoka and Cassia counties? Ask to see the number. Idaho requires registration for public works contracting above certain thresholds, and many jurisdictions require a local business license.

8. What does the written estimate actually include? It should specify material, post size and spacing, depth, hardware type, gate details, and a firm per-foot or lump-sum price — not a range you discover the meaning of after the invoice.

9. If you hit something unexpected — rock, a buried line, a boundary discrepancy — what happens to the price? A contractor with a clear answer has done this before. One who says “we’ll deal with it” has not thought about what “it” costs.

Why we are not telling you to check review counts

Most fence companies operating here — including us — have no meaningful public review history to check, because a fence business does not accumulate reviews the way a restaurant does. A missing review count tells you nothing useful, in either direction. What tells you something is whether the contractor can answer the nine questions above specifically, for your ground, in this county, without reaching for a generic answer.

We are not going to publish star ratings, review counts, or years-in-business claims we cannot back up — and we would treat a competitor’s suspiciously round “500+ five-star reviews” claim with the same skepticism we are asking you to apply to us.

A red flag worth naming specifically

Any bid that is dramatically lower than the others on an identical scope is worth a direct question: “How are you setting posts through the hardpan for that price?” The honest answer usually reveals that they are not — they are planning to stop the hole short, which is invisible on install day and expensive in year two.

Bottom line

Ask the nine questions of every bidder, in writing if you can. The contractor who answers specifically, with numbers, is telling you they have actually built fence on this ground before.

We are happy to answer all nine before you decide anything. Call (208) 732-2816.