A privacy fence is a solid six-foot panel — which makes it a 48-square-foot wind sail on a metro that logs 25-plus mph wind days routinely. RKC builds full-privacy fences in cedar, vinyl, and composite — board-to-board, tongue-and-groove, and good-neighbor shadowbox — every post set 36 inches deep in poured concrete against the wind and the clay, and finished-side-out where the covenant or the neighbor calls for it. The same company installs, stains, and repairs it.
The short answer
Full privacy in Kansas City comes in three materials — cedar, vinyl, and composite — and the choice is really about maintenance and budget. All three make a solid six-foot panel with no sightline through it. What they share is the engineering: a privacy panel is a wind sail, so every post goes 36 inches deep in the clay, and the run is built finished-side-out for the neighbor or the HOA.
RKC installs and repairs every type of fence — wood, vinyl, chain link, ornamental iron, aluminum, and commercial security — plus in-house staining. Privacy runs in cedar or vinyl; cedar privacy needs a stain plan, vinyl skips it entirely.
Priced the way you search
Homeowners price privacy by the linear foot, so here it is that way — every full-privacy build for a standard six-foot run, what it costs installed, and how private it actually is. All prices are the KC metro range, itemized before you sign.
| 6-foot build | Installed cost | Privacy level | What you're paying for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cedar privacy (dog-ear / solid) | $25–$35 / LF | Full — solid boards | The KC default; 15–25 years, needs a stain cycle |
| Cedar board-on-board | $28–$38 / LF | Full, permanently | Overlapped pickets stay solid as cedar shrinks; finished both sides |
| Shadowbox cedar (good-neighbor) | $28–$38 / LF | ~90% — wind passes through | Both faces finished; the diplomatic build on a shared line |
| Pressure-treated pine privacy | $18–$28 / LF | Full — solid boards | The budget option; 10–15 years, longer wait before first stain |
| Vinyl privacy | $28–$45 / LF | Full — tongue-and-groove | No stain cycle ever; 20–30 years; steel-reinforced bottom rail |
| Composite privacy | $40–$60 / LF | Full — solid panel | Premium, low-maintenance, the most expensive per foot |
A 150-to-200-foot backyard lands roughly $3,750–$7,000 in cedar; vinyl and composite price above that, pine below. The per-foot number moves with gates, grade change, and old-fence removal — all itemized. Cedar's real cost of ownership includes its stain cycle; vinyl trades a higher install price for skipping it.
Choosing the material
All three give you a solid six-foot wall with no sightline through it — the difference is maintenance, look, and up-front cost. Here is how each one behaves in Kansas City so you can choose on what actually matters to you.
The metro default and the cheapest to install of the three. Real wood grain, warm colour, and board-on-board keeps it gap-free for life. The trade is a stain cycle every 2–3 years — skip it and cedar greys and checks. Runs 15–25 years kept up.
Costs more up front and never needs staining, sealing, or painting. Tongue-and-groove panels are fully private, and quality vinyl carries a steel-reinforced bottom rail to hold a long span. Runs 20–30 years. The answer if you would rather not maintain a fence at all.
The most expensive per foot and the lowest-maintenance wood-look option. A solid, heavy panel that resists rot and fading without a stain cycle. Chosen where a covenant names it or where the budget favours spending once for a finished look that stays put.
For a solid wall that stays solid, board-on-board cedar and vinyl tongue-and-groove are the two that never open a sightline as they age. Composite is the heavy, premium version of the same idea. Pick on look and maintenance appetite — the privacy itself is equal across all three.
The neighbor question
A privacy fence sits on a boundary, so it is a neighbor conversation before it is a construction one. These are the questions that come up on nearly every privacy estimate — settled before the posts go in, not after.
| The question | The straight answer |
|---|---|
| Who pays for it? | Whoever wants it and builds it on their own property. You are not obliged to split the cost, and neither is your neighbor — unless the fence sits on the shared line and you both agree in writing to share it. |
| Can I put it on the property line? | You can, but then it is a shared boundary fence that both parties have a stake in. Setting it just inside your own line keeps it unambiguously yours to own, replace, and stain on your schedule — usually the simpler path. |
| Which way does the finished side face? | The smooth, finished face goes toward the neighbor and the street — the "good-neighbor" rule most cities and HOAs enforce. Shadowbox and board-on-board are finished on both sides, so they satisfy it automatically. |
| Do I have to tell my neighbor? | Not if it is entirely on your land, but on a shared line it is worth a conversation. Kansas City has a long history of boundary friction on older parcels — a five-minute talk beforehand prevents most of it. |
| Where is my property line, really? | Not always where the old fence sits, especially on older lots. We locate the boundary before building, because a privacy fence is a 20-year commitment to wherever you put it. |
The build detail under all of it: a shadowbox or board-on-board run ends the "good side" argument permanently, because both faces are the good face. And every post still goes 36 inches deep — the wind load on a solid six-foot panel does not care whose side it is on.
The engineering
Two things a privacy fence has to survive in Kansas City: the wind on a solid panel and the grade under it. Both are beaten the same way — depth and the right layout.
A 6-by-8 privacy panel is roughly 48 square feet of surface, and all of that wind load ends up in the posts. Every post goes 36 inches deep in poured concrete, below the 30–36 inch frost line, so the run does not lean or heave.
On a sloped lot we rack the panels to follow the ground — top line parallel, no gap underneath — or step them down like a staircase where the fall is steep. We show you both at the estimate; the right call depends on the material and how the line reads.
On an exposed run, a shadowbox build lets wind pass through instead of loading the panel — relieving the posts while keeping the sightline blocked at seated height. It is the engineering answer as much as the neighbor-friendly one.
A solid six-foot run knocks down road and neighbor noise noticeably — not soundproofing, but a real buffer. Board-on-board and vinyl, being fully solid with mass, do more of it than a spaced or shadowbox build.
Privacy fence catalog
Cedar, pine, and vinyl privacy in every profile — every build on the same 36-inch footing. Compare board patterns, colours, and specs in the catalog before you decide.
Recent privacy installs
Each image here is a genuine RKC privacy install. Board-on-board cedar, solid privacy, and finished-side-out runs across the metro.
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The two privacy materials in depth: wood fence installation and vinyl fence installation. Cedar privacy upkeep lives on the staining and sealing page.
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