Hurricane season is still on. Today is August 26, 2026, which puts Broward County in the heart of the Atlantic season. You do not need a named storm parked over Pompano Beach for a fence to fail. A feeder band, a squall, or two days of standing water is enough.
EPR Fencing & Pergolas is licensed, insured, and veteran-owned, based in Pompano Beach. After wind and flood, the call is almost always the same: can this fence be repaired, or do we replace it? That depends on the material, whether the posts still hold, and how much of the run actually moved.
If a section is already leaning, start with our Pompano Beach fence repair guide. This is the storm-season version of that talk: what wind and water do to wood, vinyl, and aluminum, and how we decide on site in Pompano Beach, Fort Lauderdale, and Hollywood.
What a Broward storm actually does to a fence
Wind is obvious. Saturated soil is quieter, and it causes a lot of the calls after the sky clears.
A fence is only as honest as its posts. In sandy fill around Pompano Beach and Hollywood, and in high-water-table lots closer to the Intracoastal, a post that looked plumb in May can lean after a long rain. Sometimes the concrete bell fails. More often the ground around it goes soft and the footing rotates. Panels follow. Wood racks. Vinyl pops out of the rails. Aluminum pickets stay on, but the line starts to wave.
Impact is a different job: a palm limb, a patio chair, a neighbor’s trampoline. That is usually one or two panels. A lean that runs the whole backyard is a post problem.
Repair vs. replace after wind or flood
We walk the whole line, not just the ugly spot.
Repair usually makes sense when damage is one or two panels or a few posts, the rest of the run is still in line, the remaining posts are solid, and the material itself is not rotting, brittle, or rusted through.
Replacement is the better call when posts are failing along the run, wood is rotting at grade on multiple sections, vinyl is cracked through several bays, or you would be patching a fence that is already near the end of its life.
We would rather say that on the property than guess from a photo.
If a tree came down on the fence, get it off first. EPR Landscaping handles trimming and debris at (954) 461-8466. Fence work waits until it is safe to stand there.
Wood after a storm
Wood is still the most common backyard fence we see in Pompano Beach, Fort Lauderdale, and Hollywood.
Posts fail at grade. Pressure-treated stock lasts, but the ground-contact zone is where rot starts, and flood water speeds that up. If a post feels spongy or the fence leans from that point, the post is done. Resetting a rotten post in the same hole is a short-term fix.
Bottom boards sit in splash and mulch. After standing water they swell, then split as they dry. Wind hits a solid privacy face like a sail. Board-on-board and shadowbox shed some of that load. That is why our wood fence posts go deep in concrete. Tropical-storm and hurricane winds will test those holes.
A few replaced boards on a sound privacy fence is a normal repair. If more than a third of the boards in a section are cupped, split, or rotten, we replace the section. New lumber will look lighter than the weathered run. South Florida sun greys it in a season.
Wood can be the right repair. It can also be the moment to change materials. We will tell you what the existing fence can still do.
Vinyl after a storm
Vinyl does not rot and it does not rust. After a Broward storm the failures are mechanical.
A cracked panel gets replaced, not patched. If posts moved, panels come out of the rails or the whole bay leans, reset the posts, then rehang what is still intact. Older, chalky vinyl snaps; if we are replacing every other panel, it is time for a new run. Vinyl gates are heavy, so a shifted hinge post makes them drag.
Quality vinyl with reinforced profiles and posts set correctly holds up in our wind. See vinyl fence installation for how we spec posts and rails. Salt film on white vinyl in Hillsboro Beach or Lighthouse Point is not storm damage. Wash it.
Aluminum after a storm
Aluminum is what we recommend most around pools and on salt-air lots. It does not rust. After a storm, damage is almost always impact or a moved post.
We replace a bent picket or rail. We do not try to bend it back. Aluminum work-hardens and the coat cracks. Modular bays are a real advantage: one damaged section can come out without tearing down the backyard. Pool gates have to self-close and self-latch. After wind, the closer is often the only thing wrong, and that is a quick fix if the post is still plumb. If the gate post rotated, the closer will never be right until the post is reset.
If the rest of the run is straight, an aluminum repair almost always beats a full replacement.
Chain link, and why gates fail first
Chain link is simple. Fabric pulled off the rail or a bent top rail is a repair. Terminal posts that leaned need to be reset. Widespread rust through the fabric, common on older galvanized runs near the water, is a replacement. Vinyl-coated mesh hides rust until the coating splits.
We check latch alignment, hinge screws in a shifted post, and self-closers on pool gates. Wood gates swell after rain and bind. Aluminum stays the same size; the post moves. Do not keep forcing a dragging gate. You will oval the hinge holes.
Pool gates are not cosmetic. If you have a pool in Pompano Beach, Deerfield Beach, Fort Lauderdale, or Hollywood and the gate stands open, call before you get to the rest of the fence.
HOA and permits, at a high level
We are not your HOA and we are not the building department. A few practical notes from Broward jobs:
Like-for-like repairs of boards, pickets, or hardware are usually treated as maintenance. Full replacement, a height change, or a material change often needs a permit. Pool barriers are the exception, anything that changes a pool fence or gate should be treated as code work.
HOAs in parts of Coral Springs, Parkland, Coconut Creek, and Boca Raton care about color, height, and material on street-facing runs. A storm is not a free pass to switch from wood to vinyl without a letter. Pompano Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Hollywood, Oakland Park, Margate, Tamarac, and Lauderdale Lakes do not stamp the same packet the same week. We handle paperwork on replacements.
First two days, then we come look
Photograph the whole line, the failed posts, and the gate before you move much. Do not leave a pool gate standing open. Do not pour new concrete in a hole full of water and hope it cures.
After a named storm, calendars fill. We work Pompano Beach first because that is home, then Fort Lauderdale, Hollywood, Deerfield Beach, and the other cities we already serve: Oakland Park, Lighthouse Point, Hillsboro Beach, Coconut Creek, Margate, Tamarac, Lauderdale Lakes, Coral Springs, Parkland, and Boca Raton. Storm repair uses the same crews as our Pompano Beach, Fort Lauderdale, and Hollywood installation pages.
On site we check post plumb, adjacent posts, material match, and gate latches. If replacement is the honest answer, we walk you through wood, vinyl, aluminum, or chain link. We are not putting prices here. Storm access and matching older profiles change the number. Call and we will look.
Frequently asked questions
Can I wait until hurricane season is over to fix a leaning fence?
You can, but a leaning fence in August is a weaker fence in September. If the pool gate is involved, do not wait. For a backyard run that is still standing and not a hazard, we can schedule you. Do not assume it will sit still until November.
Will homeowners insurance pay for storm fence repair?
Sometimes. Photograph everything and call your carrier before you authorize a full replacement. We can document what we found. We cannot promise what an insurer will write.
Should I switch from wood to vinyl or aluminum after a storm?
Only if the wood is already failing or you are done maintaining it. A well-built wood fence that lost two panels is still a wood fence. If posts are rotting throughout, that is the moment to talk material. Aluminum is the usual call around pools and salt air. Vinyl is the usual call when you want privacy without painting.
Do you repair fences you did not install?
Yes. Most storm calls are on fences we did not build. We will tell you if we can still match the product, or if a section replacement will look different.
Call EPR Fencing & Pergolas
If your fence in Pompano Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Hollywood, or anywhere else we serve in Broward took wind or water, call (954) 464-9931 or email [email protected]. We will walk the line and tell you whether to repair or replace.
Licensed, insured, veteran-owned. Request a visit from the contact page.