Screening a service yard with metal pickets: layout, access and maintenance

Sheet steel pickets can screen equipment from view. Maintain the ventilation openings and service clearances required by the equipment documentation. The gaps between pickets alone do not establish whether those requirements are met.

Closely spaced pickets are not always necessary. An evenly spaced run may sufficiently interrupt the view from a particular position. Check from the road, the entrance and the office windows. A screen viewed obliquely can look quite different from the same screen viewed head-on.

A double row can reduce visibility. Assess its geometry and supporting structure before specifying it. Depending on the distance between the rows, sightlines may remain through the pickets. Inspect a trial section before ordering if the degree of screening matters.

Give the service area a pedestrian or vehicle entrance sized for the work to be done. Choose the opening direction and clear width to suit actual movements. The pickets in a gate leaf are its infill. Specify the frame and hardware for their own functions.

Check the full travel of the gate leaf and access to its latch. Keep the screen clear of the space needed to operate adjacent equipment. Walk the proposed route allowing for the items people will carry, so awkward turns or obstructions can be addressed before installation.

Where several people use the area, make the entrance easy to identify and the latch easy to reach. Review the layout from inside as well. A person working there should not have to lean equipment against the pickets or squeeze through an unintended gap. A straightforward access route is easier to keep clear.

The service yard may be exposed to moisture, dust, chemicals and accidental knocks that do not occur at the main frontage. Choose the finish for conditions at the screen itself. A general rating for outdoor use does not describe all these exposures.

For unusual environments, obtain confirmation that the material is suitable, particularly where aggressive substances or fumes are present. A steel picket used for visual screening is not necessarily suitable as a process enclosure. Check the type and limitations of its coating.

Stored goods can collect against the fence, trap moisture and conceal damage. Allocate storage space that keeps stock and equipment clear of the pickets. Slender sections should not have to carry unintended pressure from items leaning against them.

Install the lower ends in accordance with the selected system. Keep them clear of soil and avoid makeshift strips that obstruct drainage. Leave the foot of the screen accessible so dirt can be removed.

Fire separation, noise attenuation and impact protection each require a solution selected for that function. Where the project calls for one of these, specify its performance separately. Ordinary picket infill carries no such rating by default.

Control of access to equipment depends on the complete arrangement, including height, locks and the site layout. Metal pickets can form part of it. State a particular level of protection only where it has been established for the system as a whole.

A service screen can be visually discreet. Its colour can pick up the perimeter fence or a detail on the building, and a regular profile keeps the yard frontage orderly. Compare actual samples because similar colour names can conceal differences in gloss.

If the screen is seen from both sides, review the reverse-side finish. Folds and ends may also remain visible in a close-spaced layout. Assemble a trial bay with the intended supports to judge its appearance and check whether the fixings will be accessible for later maintenance.

Assign responsibility for inspections and cleaning. Keep the coating instructions and material reference on file. After an impact, inspect the connections and supports as well as the damaged picket. The screen can keep the service area orderly over time when it remains accessible and is used for the purpose for which it was specified.