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I have a 14' long fence on top of my composite deck. In the wind, it sways quite a bit and is very noisy. The fencing seems to catch the wind like a parachute. The furthest post doesn't move much as that is attached to the deck railing, however the 1st post (closest to house) and center post do not seem to be as stable thus causing the swaying.

I'm trying to come up with ideas to somehow anchor these 2 posts better or somehow maybe add some weight to the posts so they are more stable in the wind. Right now the posts have 4x4's in them that are secured to the deck using Titan post anchors. https://www.thedeckstoreonline.com/tisan-post-anchors.html

Does anyone have any ideas on how to prevent this?

enter image description here

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  • Are you prohibited from attaching a bracket to the side of the building ? – Alaska Man May 19 '20 at 16:40
  • No I am not, I own the house. – mmccl267 May 19 '20 at 16:50
  • It's not ideal but I need to do something. I'm worried about the whole thing ripping off one day. Like I said the furthest post is fine, no wiggle in the wind. Even the one closest to the house isn't terrible, it's the middle one that is the biggest problem. I was trying to think of ways to go underneath and anchor it better without removing everything – mmccl267 May 19 '20 at 16:58
  • Attaching the post to the house per Alaska Man will stop the post on the right front swaying. Is the middle post anchoring screw screwed into the beam below the deck or just the deck planks? – Programmer66 May 19 '20 at 16:58
  • The middle post is screwed like this: 2 screws into beam and 2 screws into decking. I'm thinking this is part of the problem. – mmccl267 May 19 '20 at 17:01
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The most appealing option would be to remove the 4x4s and buy ones that are a bit longer. Cut a 3 1/2"x3 1/2" hole in the decking and create an assembly similar to one in the image below.

You could also use the same posts but shorten the height of the fence by cutting the white material and dropping the 4x4s below the deck as previously mentioned.

enter image description here http://embed.widencdn.net/pdf/plus/ssttoolbox/zqzekua0ld/F-DECKCODE20-p029-032.pdf

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  • The wording of the text in the image makes this seem somewhat like an ad for the screws as opposed to just a recommendation on boxing in the post bottoms. You may want to rework it so that it doesn't come off quite that way. – FreeMan May 19 '20 at 16:47
  • I agree that the posts should really run through the deck and be anchored to the floor framing. Post bases like that are marginally suitable for a handrail. Obviously they're lacking for a privacy panel situation that's twice as tall. – isherwood May 19 '20 at 16:58
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My first though was an L bracket for the post at the house. That led to my second thought.

You could attach something to the house and run it out to the railing post, attach middle post to that same something. A 2x4, or a long angle iron/aluminum.

I would use a 2x6 painted white. Or you could vinyl fascia board and glue two of them together for a thicker board and face the visible side with vinyl trim.

Turn the 2x6 flat so it is like a shelf for drinks or whatever. Flat will be more rigid. Use an L bracket or triangle bracket on the underside of the board to attach it to the posts, and a rail bracket to attach it to the house. You could use a simple metal L bracket or a more decorative shelf bracket.

If you do not want to penetrate the siding on the house you could run diagonal supports from near the top of the post down to the deck surface.

Your vinyl posts are probably hollow so for those brackets you will need machine bolts long enough go all the way through them with wide fender washers for under the nuts.

If having only one board on one side is not sufficient then you put another on the other side.

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  • I'm not a fan of this idea. Firstly, punching holes through the siding is a last resort in my mind. Secondly, the leverage on that brace arm will be huge, putting a ton of torque on whatever poor stud you mount it to. Finally, I doubt it'll work. Every connection would need to be rock solid or you'd still see substantial movement at the outer end. I just don't think a fence should be attached to and braced against the house. – isherwood May 19 '20 at 17:26
  • Valid concerns, Where is the leverage coming from ? it is holding up a board with glass of beer on it. – Alaska Man May 19 '20 at 17:45
  • I thought about doing something like this but was worried about the push/pull from the wind flexing or breaking the support boards. – mmccl267 May 19 '20 at 17:47
  • Maybe I misunderstand. Are you talking about something tight to and parallel to the fence, or as a diagonal brace? – isherwood May 19 '20 at 17:49
  • I was thinking tight to and parallel, like mounting a shelf to a wall, but upon second thought it could be on top of the posts like a railing on a deck. The rigidity will reduce the flex in the fence Tying all the post together. I suppose instead of penetrating the house, that post could have diagonal bracing to the deck surface. – Alaska Man May 19 '20 at 17:57

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