Customer Story: From Ugly Plastic to a Hog Wire Deck Railing
Customer Story · Boise, Idaho
Case Study: From White Plastic to a Hog Wire Deck Railing in Boise, ID
A Boise homeowner swapped a tired white plastic deck railing for a custom wood-and-black-hog-wire one, built by hand with a friend. The plan started as a cable railing and ended somewhere better. Here is how it came together, and why hog wire won.
Some of the best BarrierBoss projects do not start with a contractor or a big budget. This one started with a homeowner in Boise, Idaho, a tired white plastic deck railing, and a friend who was handy with tools. The goal was simple: trade the plastic for something that looked sharp and modern and opened up the view. The result is a custom wood-and-black-hog-wire railing the owner calls exactly what they had pictured.
| Project at a Glance | |
|---|---|
| Product used | 11 x BarrierBoss Black Hog Wire Fence Panels, unframed, 3' x 8' and 3' x 6', 4" x 4" mesh, 6-gauge |
| How it was used | Infill panels in a custom wood-framed deck railing, built by hand |
| Property type | Residential deck and stairs |
| Location | Boise, Idaho |
| Built by | The homeowner, with a friend |
| Outcome | "Could not be more thrilled" |
A verified BarrierBoss order and project, shared with the customer's permission.
The Goal: Goodbye, White Plastic Railing
The starting point was a white plastic deck railing that had seen better days. In the homeowner's own words, it was a "super ugly white plastic deck railing," and it did the deck no favors. The brief was straightforward: replace it with something clean and modern, keep the sightlines open to the garden rather than boxing the deck in, and have it feel solid to lean on.
The Build: Hog Wire Instead of Cable
The original plan was a cable railing. When a friend stepped in to help with the build, hog wire panels came up as the alternative, and they turned out to be the simpler path. As the homeowner put it, "I think he thought it was a lot simpler than our original intention to use cable."
The friend handled the hog wire work, cutting the unframed black panels to fit custom wood frames the pair built for the deck and the stairs. The panels cooperated, which is half the battle on a hand-built railing: "Your product is sturdy. It seemed to cut cleanly." The finished frames carry the mesh cleanly around the deck and down both sides of the steps.
The Result
The finished railing wraps the deck and the stairs in warm wood and clean black mesh, a world away from the white plastic it replaced. The open weave keeps the garden in view from every seat on the deck, and the whole thing looks intentional rather than patched together. The homeowner summed it up in one line: it is "looking exactly as I had planned."
I replaced a super ugly white plastic deck railing with a wooden and black hog wire fence and I could not be more thrilled. The wire is beautiful and is looking exactly as I had planned.
Why Hog Wire Worked Here
This project is a great example of where black hog wire earns its place, especially on a DIY build:
- Simpler than cable. The homeowner set out to install cable railing. Hog wire panels turned out to be the easier, more forgiving route for a hand-built frame.
- Easy to work with. The unframed panels cut cleanly to fit custom wood frames, so they drop into a handmade railing without a fight.
- Sturdy and see-through. 6-gauge welded steel gives a deck railing real strength while keeping the view wide open, which a solid plastic rail never could.
- A modern upgrade. Black mesh against natural wood is a clean, current look that lifts the whole deck.
- Delivered painlessly. It arrived without a pile of packaging, and the driver called ahead, so the build could start the moment it landed.
A DIY build
Built by the homeowner, with a friend who handled the hog wire work.
Photos courtesy of the homeowner, used with permission.
Build Your Own
Planning a deck railing or a fence of your own? BarrierBoss black hog wire panels drop cleanly into custom woodwork, cut to fit, and keep the view open, no contractor required. Size your project in the configurator, or shop the exact panels from this build.
Shop Hog Wire Panels → Size Your Project →
Factory-direct pricing, shipped across the lower 48, backed by a 40-year warranty. See delivery details
Shop the Product Used
Black Hog Wire Fence Panels
The panels from this build. 6-gauge welded steel mesh, dip-coated matte black, available framed or unframed and in multiple sizes and mesh openings. Unframed panels cut to fit and drop straight into custom woodwork, exactly like this Boise deck railing. 40-year warranty.
From $24.99 / panelShop Fencing
Delivery Across the Lower 48
BarrierBoss ships factory-direct across the lower 48, delivered and unloaded, with every panel backed by a 40-year warranty. Read the full delivery page for transit times, returns, and damage handling.
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