Fence Company in Johnson, AR
Six-foot back yards, low open fences out front and every post in concrete. We build to Johnson’s rules.
See the Johnson fence rules and permit guide ↓
WHO WE ARE
Don't Rely On Luck. Trust Your Neighbor.
Kismet Fence is a locally owned Licensed Contractor, No. 0446811126. Our shop is in Farmington, about 10 miles and 16 minutes from Johnson.
Johnson sits between Fayetteville and Springdale, off I-49, and its zoning code is specific about fences. Side and rear yard fences stop at 6 feet. Front yards get only a low, open fence. Every post has to be set in concrete, and chain link slats are banned in residential districts.
The pool barrier rule is written into the same section. We build to Sec. 14.04.09.
Johnson’s code tells you how to set a post. It requires every fence post to be decay or corrosion resistant and set in a concrete base.
We set posts in concrete and dig the holes deeper.
Wood gates get a metal frame and metal posts, so they stay upright and square.
Our workmanship warranty backs it for the lifetime of the fence.
JOHNSON FENCING OPTIONS
Most popularCustom Wood & Privacy Fences
Cedar or pine privacy fence up to 6 feet in side and rear yards, every post set in concrete as Johnson requires. PostMaster® steel posts optional.
Ask about a free cedar picket upgrade.
Aluminum Fencing
Open aluminum fence for Johnson front yards, where only open fences up to 36 inches are allowed.
Ornamental Steel Fencing
Black welded steel in 4, 5 and 6 foot heights. Spiked tops only at 6 feet, per Johnson’s code.
Chain Link Fencing
Chain link up to 48 inches out front and 6 feet behind, with no privacy slats in residential districts.
Vinyl & Composite
Vinyl, Trex, SimTek, TimberTech and FenceTrac for side and rear yards, up to 6 feet.
Farm & Ranch Fencing
Woven wire and field fence. Barbed wire only in Johnson’s A-1 district.
Estate Gates & Automation
Walk and drive gates, with powered openers confirmed with Johnson’s Building Official first.
What will your fence cost?
Draw it on a satellite map of your yard and see a real price in about a minute. No phone call, no obligation.
JOHNSON FENCES BY NEED
Dog Fences
Dog fences up to 6 feet in side and rear yards, built for jumpers, climbers and diggers.
Pool Fences
Pool barriers at least 48 inches tall with self-closing gates, as Johnson’s zoning code requires.
Commercial Fencing
Commercial fence up to 8 feet in business and manufacturing districts, and solid screening where it is required.
Fence Repair
Repairs that replace missing boards, pickets and posts to match, as Johnson’s code requires.
Why We're Different
The Difference You Can See. The Quality & Care You Can Trust.
Local, Experienced & Trusted
Based in Farmington, about 16 minutes from Johnson. We also build in Fayetteville and Springdale on either side. See us on Google.
Professional & Licensed Fence Contractor
We're an experienced, licensed fence contractor that follows proper building standards, safety practices, and local codes. See our license.
Financing Options
Pay for your fence over time through Acorn Finance. Checking your offers does not affect your credit score. See how financing works.
Lifetime Workmanship Warranty
Johnson requires posts in concrete and fences kept upright. Our lifetime workmanship warranty covers how we set them. Read the full warranty.
Permits Made Easy
A residential fence over 6 feet in Johnson needs an exemption from the Building Official. We prepare the request. See fence permits by town.
SCHEDULE YOUR FREE QUOTE TODAY
Pick a time and an estimator drives over from Farmington, measures the yard, and marks where the front yard ends and the 6-foot zone begins. No pressure and no charge.
CUSTOM WOOD & PRIVACY FENCES
Johnson allows solid fences up to six feet in side and rear yards and does not allow them in front yards, so a six-foot privacy fence behind the front of the house is the standard build here.
Posts in concrete: every post has to be set in a concrete base, and the posts and rails have to face in or stay hidden from outside.
Taller than 6 feet: the Building Official can allow an exception if you send a letter explaining why, but nothing in a side or rear yard can go over 8 feet.
Styles: cedar or pressure-treated pine, in horizontal, side-by-side, shadowbox or board-on-board.
Materials: scrap lumber, plywood, sheet metal and tarps are banned as fencing unless the Building Official approves them as a design element.
Sight triangles: at street corners and commercial driveways, nothing can block the view between 2½ and 8 feet above the pavement.
See our cedar fences, pressure-treated pine fences, horizontal fences and steel post upgrade.
ORNAMENTAL STEEL & ALUMINUM
Only an open fence can go in a Johnson front yard, and the code defines open: at least half the surface has to be open space when you look straight at it. It can be 36 inches tall.
Styles: flat top, extended picket and puppy picket aluminum, and black welded steel, which pass the 50% open test.
Spikes: ornamental iron spikes are allowed only on iron fencing 6 feet tall or taller.
Pools: a pool, hot tub or spa more than 24 inches deep needs a barrier at least 48 inches tall with self-closing, self-latching gates. That rule is in Johnson’s zoning code itself.
START YOUR FENCE PROJECT TODAY
RESIDENTIAL & COMMERCIAL CHAIN LINK FENCES
Chain link gets its own number in Johnson. In a front yard it can be 48 inches tall, a foot more than other open fences.
No slats at homes: privacy slats in chain link are prohibited in residential districts.
Side and rear yards: galvanized or black vinyl-coated mesh up to 6 feet, with every post in concrete.
Businesses: open fences in business and manufacturing districts can be 8 feet in side and rear yards.
Pools: pool barriers use 1-1/4-inch mesh rather than standard 2-inch chain link.
VINYL & COMPOSITE
Vinyl and composite are solid fences, so in Johnson they go in side and rear yards, up to 6 feet. Solid fences are not permitted in front yards.
Vinyl: white or tan solid privacy panels.
Composite: Trex, TimberTech, FenceTrac and SimTek.
Upkeep: Johnson requires fences to stay upright with their finish kept as designed, and vinyl and composite have no finish to maintain.
FARM & RANCH FENCES
Johnson allows barbed wire only in its A-1 zoning district, and it bans electric fences with two narrow exceptions.
Electric: a buried invisible dog fence is allowed, and so is an electric fence fully enclosed by a non-electric fence or wall at least 6 feet tall, with a foot of space between them.
What we build here: woven wire, field fence and no-climb horse fence, with posts set in concrete as the code requires.
GATE AUTOMATION
In Johnson a gate is part of the fence by definition, so a front-yard gate has to be open and no taller than 36 inches.
Gate types: walk gates, swing gates, sliding gates and cantilever gates.
Openers: Johnson’s code bars connecting a fence to electricity, with narrow exceptions, so we confirm a powered gate opener with the Building Official before quoting.
Posts: gate posts are set in concrete like every other post.
GET YOUR FREE QUOTE TODAY
Tell us what you want fenced in Johnson and which part of the yard it is in. We will tell you what the code allows there and what it takes to build it right.
OUR NORTHWEST ARKANSAS FENCING PROJECTS
Johnson Fence Rules Code & Permit Guide
Johnson puts its fence rules in its zoning code, Sec. 14.04.09, and they go into detail: heights by yard, what counts as an open fence, which materials are allowed and how posts are set. This is what the code says, and where it came from.
Building and SafetyResidential fences top out at 6 feet. Taller needs the Building Official’s OK, (479) 521-7291.
How Tall Can My Fence Be?
Johnson’s zoning code sets one limit for side and rear yards and a much lower one for front yards.
How tall can a fence be in my back yard?
6 feet. In residential districts, solid and open fences in side and rear yards can be up to 6 feet tall, measured from the natural average grade (Sec. 14.04.09).
Can I go taller than 6 feet?
Only with an exemption. The Building Official can allow an exception if you give the city a letter explaining why, but no side or rear yard fence can go over 8 feet.
What can I put in my front yard?
A low, open fence. Solid fences are not allowed in front yards. Open fences can be 36 inches tall, or 48 inches for chain link.
What counts as an open fence?
At least half open. An open fence has at least 50% of its surface area open when you look straight at it. A solid fence is one that hides what is behind it.
Materials And Construction
Johnson’s code gets specific about what a fence can be made of and how it goes in.
Which side has to face the neighbors?
The finished side. In all residential areas, the posts and rails have to be inside the fenced area or hidden from view of anyone outside it (Sec. 14.04.09).
Do the posts have to be set in concrete?
Yes. Every fence post has to be decay- or corrosion-resistant and set in a concrete base, and exposed steel has to be protected against rust and corrosion.
Can I add privacy slats to a chain link fence?
Not in a residential district. Johnson prohibits chain link slats in residential districts.
What materials are off limits?
Scrap and anything not made for fencing. Scrap lumber and scrap metal are prohibited, and so are metal roofing panels, corrugated or sheet metal, tarps and plywood, unless the Building Official approves the material as a design element.
Are spikes allowed on an iron fence?
Only on tall ones. Ornamental iron spikes are allowed only on iron ornamental fencing 6 feet tall or taller.
What does Johnson expect for upkeep?
Upright and complete. Fences have to stay upright, finishes have to be kept as designed, and missing boards, pickets or posts have to be replaced promptly to match.
Where Can A Fence Go?
Two placement rules apply to every fence in Johnson.
Can a fence go in the public right-of-way?
No. No fence can be built within a public way (Sec. 14.04.09).
What about corners and driveways?
Keep the sight triangles clear. Johnson requires sight triangles at street intersections, sized to current AASHTO sight distance standards, and at commercial driveways, measured 30 feet along each side. Inside them, nothing can block the view between 2½ and 8 feet above the pavement. We run the fence line around them.
Barbed Wire And Electric Fences
Johnson restricts both.
Can I use barbed wire?
Only in A-1 zoning. No fence can be built of barbed wire outside the A-1 zoning district (Sec. 14.04.09).
Can I put up an electric fence?
Almost never. No fence can be connected to electricity, with two exceptions: a buried invisible dog fence, and an electric fence fully enclosed by a non-electric fence or wall at least 6 feet tall, with at least a foot of space between them.
Pools
Johnson writes its pool barrier rule right into the zoning code.
Which pools need a barrier?
Any pool, hot tub or spa more than 24 inches deep. It has to be completely surrounded by a fence or barrier (Sec. 14.04.09).
How tall does a pool fence have to be?
48 inches, measured on the side of the barrier away from the pool.
What does the gate need?
Self-closing and self-latching. If the latch is less than 54 inches above the bottom of the gate, the release goes on the pool side, and the gate has to close and latch on its own when released from 60 inches open.
Can I change an old pool fence?
Not in a way that weakens it. No existing pool enclosure can be removed, replaced or changed in a way that makes it less effective as a safety barrier.
Permits
Johnson’s permit list has no fence permit.
Do I need a permit for a 6-foot privacy fence?
Usually not, but we check. The city’s permit list covers residential and commercial building permits, and its Building Safety office works from the International Residential Code, which exempts fences up to 7 feet from a building permit. Johnson caps a residential fence at 6 feet anyway. We confirm with Building Safety before we build.
What if I want more than 6 feet?
That goes to the Building Official first. Anything over 6 feet in a residential side or rear yard needs the Building Official’s exemption, requested by letter, and nothing can go over 8 feet.
Does no permit mean no rules?
No. Everything on this page applies with or without a permit: the height limits, open fences out front, posts in concrete, no slats on residential chain link and clear sight triangles.
Sources: City of Johnson Zoning Code, Chapter 14.04 (Zoning Ordinance), Sec. 14.04.09 (general standards: fences and sight triangles), as published on Municode; City of Johnson Building and Safety permit list; International Residential Code R105.2. Code checked October 2026 against the Zoning Code on Municode, version dated January 23, 2026. Rules change; confirm with the city before you build.
Nearby towns: Fayetteville · Springdale · Tontitown · Farmington
Compare fence rules in all 29 towns
Usually replies