This is a term used for a vinyl product that does not contain recycled materials (regrind). These recycled materials may contain impurities or lower grade vinyl which can seriously affect the finished product’s resilience, impact resistance, and UV inhibition.

A fence fabricator cuts the PVC/Vinyl to the proper length for the design of fence required. The fabricator routes holes into the posts & rails, so that pickets can be inserted into them. Once that is complete, they have the option of assembling the completed fence sections or leaving them knocked down for distribution.

Co-extrusion and mono-extrusion are the processes normally used in the production of all types of PVC/Vinyl – extruded. The American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) has specifications for each product line. The buyer should be aware of which specifications are being used by the extruder.

Titanium dioxide is the ultraviolet (UV) inhibitor used in the manufacturing of Vinyl products.

Some manufacturers purchase recycled plastics (regrind) for use in the substrate of their extruded profiles, mainly to reduce costs. The manufacturer may try to establish standards in terms of the previous uses or the quality of this outsourced regrind (as the quality may compromise the quality of the finished fence profile produced). However, it is very difficult to control or verify the source of the regrind purchased, as they cannot determine how many times the material was already reprocessed (which is important, as multiple processing can result in a more brittle, inferior product), nor can they be sure what the exact chemical composition of the waste product was so as to extrude it properly.

Co-Extrusion is a more recent advancement in extrusion technology which brings 2 layers of PVC into play: The outer layer, or Cap Stock, contains a denser concentration of UV inhibitors. ASTM’s “Specification for Rigid PVC Exterior Profiles Used for Fencing” (F 964-94) requires that the cap stock layer be a minimum of 00.015” thick and a maximum of 20% of the overall thickness of the profile wall. It is important for the potential buyer of a Vinyl fence to determine what ASTM specification is being used by his potential extrusion supplier, if in fact any is being used at all, and to ensure that compliance is being verified regularly.

The inner layer, or Substrate layer, when produced with virgin raw materials, is essentially the same as the cap stock layer, but with a lowered concentration of UV inhibitors and color pigment.

A single extruder is used to form the preferred shape of a profile. Since this is a single layer extrusion, the formulation characteristics are uniformly dispersed throughout the overall thickness of the profile.

Two types of extrusion processes have typically been used in the production of all types of vinyl extruded products such as siding, window frames, pipes and fence products: Monolayer and Co-extrusion. A Fence buyer should be aware of what specs are being used by the extruder, as many fence extruders are producing fence product using a pipe specification, which has lower demands for UV stabilization and impact resistance.

Vinyl fence is made from PVC, plastic in simpler terms. This makes them weather proof, maintenance free and longer lasting as compared to the traditional wood fence. They are environment friendly as they can be recycled and used in the manufacturing process again. We will be talking about the main types of vinyl fences and giving helpful tips to customers who are in the market for a new vinyl fence. The main types of vinyl fence are: (more…)

One of the benefits of vinyl fence is that unlike traditional wood fence, it does not require painting or staining. If you choose to paint it, use an epoxy based paint in order that it will adhere to smooth surfaces. Also, please keep in mind that it is likely that painting the fence will void any manufacturer’s warranty.