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Hide Ugly Outdoor Units

Here’s an easy way to hide ugly outdoor units.

Hide Ugly Outdoor Units with Freedom Connections™

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Freedom Outdoor Living. All opinions are 100% mine.

We have a pool heater, pool filter, and two air conditioning units on the side of our home.  They are along the sidewalk that everyone uses to walk around our home, and there is nothing pretty about it.

Fencing BEFORE

Adding a fence around pool filter

Even my flowers could not make that ugly pretty.

I was excited to partner with Freedom Connections Decorative Fencing and fence everything in!  Freedom Connections™ is a flexible, decorative fencing product available exclusively at Lowe’s. It’s easy to install with materials you can find at Lowe’s (requires no hardware or glue) and can be reconfigured as your needs change. It can be installed without digging holes, which is often the toughest part of installing a fence.

The vinyl fencing is available in three heights, three decorative panel options, and a two-sided solid panel that can be mixed and matched, stacked, staggered, used in straight runs, or joined to form corners.  For my project, I used 10 3-tier posts (you always need one more post than panels to finish your design).

Freedom Connections 3-Tier Post

I also used 20 plain panels.

Freedom Connections Solid Panels

And finished the fence with 5 circle panels.

Freedom Connections Circle Panels

To begin, you take out the stake stored in the post and pound it into the ground.

Installing Connections Fencing

I marked off the halfway point on the stake, and we drove them into the line.

Installing stakes

The stakes are put 37 1/4″ apart.  It’s very important you get the link of stakes and straight as possible.

Spacing Stakes

Once the stakes are down, you can add the posts.  Then, you simply begin sliding the panels in.

Freedom Connections

The bottom panels require removing the top.

Remove top piece on panel

 I used two solid panels and finished with the decorative panel.

Hiding air conditioner

Adding fence to outside

Once the side was complete, we worked on the other side repeating the process.

Fencing around air conditioners

Easy panel installation

And she looked great.

Fence Complete

Until we realized our mistake.

Fence Mistake

The fence went beyond the house which meant this panel would be set back further than the other side since it had to be in front of our house.

So, I pulled down the panels we had just installed (which was really easy), and I began working on the other side first.

We had trouble with the wall being unlevel on our first attempt, so I leveled the ground before I installed the panels this time.

Adding a DIY fence around air conditioners

Steve was gone, but I was able to install everything completely on my own.

Freedom Connections from Lowes

How to hide air conditioner unit

Unfortunately, we have high winds in Indiana, and there is no windbreak coming from the field behind us.  After a storm and some higher than normal winds, one of the panel’s end stakes bent.

Fencing too heavy

We added a 2×2 to the end post of both sections of the three-paneled fencing.

Adding post to fence

We made sure the post was level, and my husband drove it into the ground and secured the fencing post to the 2×2 with screws.

Adding support to fencing

If you need to reinforce the fencing, an easier option I just discovered is the Blue Hawk Steel rebar, available at Lowe’s in a .75″ X 36″ Size that would be long enough to support three Connections panels. The rebar is available in stores for $4.88 per stake. Lowe’s also has a Blue Hawk Steel rebar that is even stronger and it is available online.

Freedom Connections Fencing

This fencing is really easy to install (one person can do the installation), and the sides which only have two panels are very secure.  If you go longer than two panels on the three-tier fencing, you may want to secure using the suggestions I mentioned.

Circle Panels

I love how tidy the side of the house looks with all the ugly units tucked away inside the fence.

Hiding ugle outdoor units

And my boys love their new nerf gun war fort.

Love outdoor projects?  Check out how we added curb appeal to our home HERE.  

Go create something!

Are you new to my blog? Go HERE to see my home tour and HERE to shop for items I use in our home.

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21 thoughts on “Hide Ugly Outdoor Units

  1. I’ve been looking for something like this to hide my AC units. Do they help the sound as well put off as well? Thanks!

    1. Sorry, what I was trying to say is….do they help block the sound from the AC units as well? 🙂

      1. Hi Kristi! I think this fencing actually did help block the sound of the AC some. However, our units are pretty loud so I can still hear them – but not as well! I hope this helps!

  2. What an improvement! I know you are so pleased to have all of those necessities hidden. If I won, I’d use it to hide my heat pump and trash can.

  3. This is awesome! I would use this to hide my garbage and recycle bins, along with the air conditioning unit.

  4. This would be perfect! We have to replace our little fence because of carpenter bees and unlike the bees, we’re not much on the carpentry! Thanks for the great idea Sarah!

  5. We have no where to place our garbage and recycling. I would love to use a fence like this to hide them n plane sight!

  6. I’m new here, loving your style. I would use the fencing around my veggie garden, we have too many bunnies.

      1. Thanks! We could really use this to screen trash cans. The white would work perfectly with our siding. Thanks for the very helpful review!

  7. Hi – That looks great

    where did you purchase the 3 tier fence posts ? I don’t see them available at Lowes online (they only show the 1 and 2 tier)

    Thank you

  8. very very great article as well as helpful. I really need this to hide my garbage. I will definitely install it from tomorrow. Thanks alot for such a amazing idea. Keep sharing …..

    Thanks:)