Hello,

Brief Description: I live in San Diego, California.

I have a neighbor behind my house and approximmately 6 weeks we had a cedar boundary fence built (we split the cost 50/50).

My neighbor has been watering his side of the untreated fence constantly - the water hits the fence from the bottom up to appx. 30" high. The water is soaking through to my side. Over the past weekend, while I was staining the upper rail, I noticed that dark brown water stains are now on each board on my side of the fence - not just at the bottom but all over many boards. They are extremely dark - so much so, that I do not think the stain will cover the marks. I am quite upset being that I paid a lot of money for this fence and within 6 weeks my neighbor has ruined my side. I sent him a letter stating the problem and asking him to restore the fence to its original condition. If he ignores my request, I would like to take him to small claims court.

I feel he and his sprinklers are 100% responsible for the damage (FYI - I have no sprinklers in my backyard).

Please let me know if I have a case against him.

Thank you,

Thorn In My Side.

p.s. I do have pictures of the fence as it was just built as well as the damage if anyone would like to see if that would help.

I don't know how 'damaged' the fence has to be before you could win a claim in court but make sure you follow up and you keep a copy of all letters sent. Make sure everything is dated.

Maybe you could suggest he put some good waterproof sealant on the fence too.

If the fence was just treated wood and not properly sealed or painted what do you expect? You would see the same "damage" to this kind of fence in a year or so. Your neighbor just speeded up the process by about a year. The fence must be either properly sealed or totally painted with a good high quality paint now. Leaving a raw, unpainted fence in that condition indefinitely is not the answer. And no, you can't take them to court as they paid for 1/2 of the fence so it makes it their fence, too. You needed to either paint or treat your side prior to it raining or sprinklering. That's usually part of the job of installing a fence in the first place - finishing the job by either sealing or painting.

Hello twink:

I don't know where the button went, but **greenie**

excon

Twinkiedooter,
I know the fence needs to be sealed (duh). However, if you know anything about untreated/new wood, it is recommended to let it stand for a minimum of 30-60 days before staining or painting (common knowledge). Nothing is to touch it - especially not water. It is complete negilence for my neighbor to water the fence half way up the fence - what an idiot!! So are you telling me that if I decide to paint my fence shocking pink and it drips down onto his side or if I paint his side pink - he cannot take me to court? I find this hard to believe.

If the neighbor did anything (watering) that a REASONABLE person would not do, then you have a case.

If the neighbor acted within the guidelines of how a reasonable person would behave then you don't have a case.

It would be up to a Judge to determine what is reasonable and what is petty. Sue in Small Claims for the damage - or a superior Court, depending on the value of the fence - and let a Judge decide what is reasonable in your area.

Painting the fence shocking pink - not a normal act - is not in the category of watering his property. The analogy makes no sense. In your words... duh.

Twinkiedooter,
I know the fence needs to be sealed (duh). However, if you know anything about untreated/new wood, it is recommended to let it stand for a minimum of 30-60 days before staining or painting (common knowledge). Nothing is to touch it - especially not water. It is complete negilence for my neighbor to water the fence half way up the fence - what an idiot!!! So are you telling me that if I decide to paint my fence shocking pink and it drips down onto his side or if I paint his side pink - he cannot take me to court? I find this hard to believe.

Yes, I KNOW about untreated wood, blah blah blah. But in an abundance of caution you should have agreed with your neighbor to hold off using water on the fence and the first time he did use water on your/his fence you should have screamed bloody murder (fence murder that is). The fact you did not speak up immediately makes me feel that you are at fault, not him, as he was obviously ignorant about untreated wood.

I would have just sealed/painted the fence anyway after erection while you still had the project fresh versus wait and wait to finish the project. Cedar is a very sturdy wood quite capable of being immediately sealed/painted. It just tends to soak up more stain/paint when freshly built/erected. I've had many wooden projects that I painted/stained right away and they turned out okay and held up for years and years.