What to put in your request
A supplier can only price what they can see. Answer these and the quotes come back for the same job, which is the only way they can be compared.
- What you need: a new fence or wall, a replacement, an electric fence on its own or on top of a wall, gates, gate motors, or repairs.
- The length in metres and the height, with a sketch of the site showing corners, gates and anything in the way.
- The ground: slope, rock, soft soil, trees, and whether the wall will hold back soil on one side.
- The material and finish: palisade, welded mesh, precast or brick, galvanised or powder-coated, and the colour.
- For an electric fence: how many strands and how high, whether it is split into zones, and whether it must link to an alarm or a monitoring company.
- For gates: the opening width, sliding or swinging, the motor and its battery backup, and how people will open it (remotes, keypad, intercom).
- Where the boundary is. If the pegs are lost, a land surveyor can find it before anything is built.
- Whether the old fence or wall has to be taken down and removed.
What to compare when the quotes come back
The lowest total is where comparing starts, not where it ends.
- What the metre rate covers: foundations or post holes, corners and end posts, and removing the old fence.
- The material specification: pale or mesh thickness, post size, and the corrosion protection (galvanised, painted, or both).
- For an electric fence: the energizer make and model, the number of strands and zones, and the earthing.
- For gates: the motor make and model, how many openings a day it is rated for, battery backup, and anti-theft protection.
- Whether a new electrical supply to the gate motor or energizer is included, with its certificate of compliance. New wiring from the board is electrical installation work and needs one.
- The guarantees on workmanship, on rust, and on motors and energizers, and who services them afterwards.
On SupScope every quote arrives with the same three figures: the total, the lead time and the deposit. The first comparison is done before you open anything. The rest of this list is what to read in each supplier's notes and documents.
Paperwork worth asking for
- An electric fence system certificate
- Under the Electrical Machinery Regulations, the user of an electric fence system must have an electric fence system certificate for it, issued after an inspection and test by an installer registered with the Department of Employment and Labour. The certificate goes with the fence when the property changes hands, and an older fence needs one once it is altered or the property is sold. The installer must show you their registration certificate if you ask.
- A test certificate for the energizer
- The same regulations require whoever sells an electric fence energizer to prove it meets SANS 60335-2-76 with a certificate from an accredited test laboratory. Ask for it for the model being installed.
- Clarity on building approval for walls
- Under the National Building Regulations, a free-standing wall or fence no higher than 1.8 metres that does not hold back soil is minor building work, which the municipality's building control officer may, in writing, exempt from submitting plans. A higher wall, or one that retains soil, needs approved plans. Ask your municipality before you build.
And from any supplier
- A SARS Tax Compliance Status PIN
- It replaced the old tax clearance certificate. Checking it on eFiling shows the supplier's status on the day you check, not the day it was issued.
- A B-BBEE certificate or sworn affidavit
- Only if your own scorecard counts it. Small suppliers (turnover up to R10 million) may use an affidavit instead of a verified certificate.
- Company registration and a bank confirmation letter
- Worth having before the first payment, so the account you pay is the company you chose.
General guidance, not legal advice. Regulations change, and some depend on your municipality or the job, so confirm anything you rely on with the authority concerned.
How this works on SupScope
- Step 1
Post it once
Describe the job and choose Fencing, Walling & Gates and your province.
- Step 2
It reaches the right suppliers
Only suppliers who work in this trade and cover your province see it.
- Step 3
Compare and award
Quotes arrive side by side. Accept one and the others are told.