Chain link fencing in Granada Hills, California

Where chain link earns its keep

Nobody installs chain link to look at it, which is precisely why it suits certain Granada Hills jobs. It goes up quickly, undercuts every solid fence on price, and reliably does the one job asked of it, which is holding a line. Its best uses here are the ones that never face the street. A dog run down the side yard, a secure enclosure around equipment or a utility area, and above all a long back property line are all natural chain link work, on either side of Rinaldi Street.

That back line matters most on the larger, semi-rural lots north of Rinaldi and Devonshire, where a homeowner often wants to mark and secure a wide boundary without walling off the foothill view. Chain link, especially in a black coating, does that better than anything: it contains children and pets, keeps the property line clear, and all but vanishes against the hillside behind it. On the flatter tract lots south of Rinaldi, it is just as useful for a compact backyard dog run or a side-yard utility fence.

Galvanized or black vinyl-coated

Strength and lifespan are much the same either way. What separates them is the finish, and therefore the look and the cost.

• Galvanized. Bright silver mesh with a zinc coating against rust, and the cheapest way to fence anything. Suited to a utility area, a work yard, or any run where nobody is judging the appearance.
• Black vinyl-coated. Polymer bonded over the galvanized wire, in black or dark green. It asks a little more, puts a second layer between the wire and corrosion, and looks considerably more finished. On a back line with a foothill view behind it, the black mesh disappears and the view carries through, which is why we recommend it wherever the fence will actually be seen.

Gauge matters too. A heavier wire and thicker top rail stand up better to Santa Ana wind events and to a large dog leaning on the fence, and we size both to the run rather than defaulting to the lightest mesh.

Adding privacy and containing pets

Open mesh is what chain link is for, though it need not stay entirely open. Slats in vinyl or aluminum thread down through the diamonds and cut most of the sightline, in colors matched to a galvanized or black fence, and a dog run can take a wind or shade screen for shelter. None of that makes a true privacy wall. For real seclusion beside a patio, go to wood or vinyl. For a side yard or a utility run, slats are a cheap improvement.

On pet containment, little else competes with it. The mesh goes in close to grade so a digger cannot slip beneath, a bottom tension wire or a buried kick rail goes in where a determined dog works the line, and the height goes up where a jumper calls for it. On the foothill lots north of Rinaldi, keeping that bottom line tight to a stepped grade is the detail that actually keeps an animal in.

What chain link is not for here

Chain link is not the right choice for visible street frontage, where the ranch-style tracts and the Knollwood streets call for wood or wrought iron instead, and it is not the fire-zone material for a run near the house. On the foothill lots in the Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone, defensible space right against the structure is better served by non-combustible metal or block set close to the home; chain link belongs farther out at the property line, not as the wall of the house itself. It is also not the containment fence for a horse-keeping lot north of Devonshire and Rinaldi. Some owners there use it for a utility run, but the right material for the animals is three-rail ranch rail backed with no-climb horse wire, which is safer for a horse and keeps the open, rural look of those streets.

Chain link fence pricing in Granada Hills

Each range covers posts, mesh, top rail, hardware, and labor. Extra height, a heavier gauge, a black vinyl coating, and privacy slats all move you up it. The complete price list is Granada Hills fence cost guide.

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