Fence materials calculator template

Free build guide: Fence materials calculator for WordPress

This guide rebuilds the Fence materials calculator from this site in Gravity Forms: 6 inputs, 4 live results and no submit button. Expect about 30 minutes by hand. The template above is the same form as an import file, and the bundle adds a PDF version of this guide with a screenshot of every setting, plus the stylesheet.

You will end up with:

• Posts
• Rails
• Pickets
• Concrete bags

What you need

• Gravity Forms (any license) — Calculation fields are in core.

Everything here is core Gravity Forms. No add-ons.

1. Create the form

1. Go to Forms → New Form and name it Fence materials.
2. In Form Settings → Form Layout, set the CSS Class Name to fo-live-only. Step 3 uses it to hide the submit button.
3. Leave the form open in the editor; the fields come next.

2. Add the fields, in this order

Field IDs are assigned as you add fields. If yours come out differently, change the {Label:ID} references in the formulas to match your IDs. Settings not mentioned stay at their defaults.

1. Fence length (ft) · Number · ID 1
Number Format 9,999.99; Default Value 100; Description “Total run, all sides added together.”.

2. Post spacing (ft) · Number · ID 2
Number Format 9,999.99; Default Value 8; Description “8 ft is standard; 6 ft for tall or windy sites.”; Layout: half width, on the same row as its neighbour (drag the field beside it in the editor; no CSS class needed).

3. Rails per section · Number · ID 3
Number Format 9,999.99; Default Value 2; Description “2 up to 5 ft tall, 3 for 6 ft and over.”; Layout: half width, on the same row as its neighbour (drag the field beside it in the editor; no CSS class needed).

4. Picket width (in) · Number · ID 4
Number Format 9,999.99; Default Value 5.5; Description “A 1×6 picket is 5.5 in wide, a 1×4 is 3.5 in.”; Layout: half width, on the same row as its neighbour (drag the field beside it in the editor; no CSS class needed).

5. Gap between pickets (in) · Number · ID 5
Number Format 9,999.99; Default Value 0; Description “0 for privacy, 2–3 in for a spaced picket fence.”; Layout: half width, on the same row as its neighbour (drag the field beside it in the editor; no CSS class needed).

6. Concrete bags per post · Number · ID 6
Number Format 9,999.99; Default Value 2; Description “50 lb bags. Two for a 4×4 in a 10 in hole, three for a 6×6.”.

7. Posts · Number · ID 7
Number Format 9,999.99; Description “Round up. Add one more for every gate and every corner that is not at the end of a run.”; Custom CSS Class (Appearance tab) fo-result; tick Enable Calculation, Rounding 1.

( {Length:1} / {Spacing:2} ) + 1

8. Rails · Number · ID 8
Number Format 9,999.99; Layout: half width, on the same row as its neighbour (drag the field beside it in the editor; no CSS class needed); Custom CSS Class (Appearance tab) fo-result fo-result--sub; tick Enable Calculation, Rounding 1.

( {Length:1} / {Spacing:2} ) * {Rails per section:3}

9. Pickets · Number · ID 9
Number Format 9,999.99; Layout: half width, on the same row as its neighbour (drag the field beside it in the editor; no CSS class needed); Custom CSS Class (Appearance tab) fo-result fo-result--sub; tick Enable Calculation, Rounding 0.

{Length:1} * 12 / ( {Picket width:4} + {Gap:5} )

10. Concrete bags · Number · ID 10
Number Format 9,999.99; Custom CSS Class (Appearance tab) fo-result fo-result--sub; tick Enable Calculation, Rounding 0.

( ( {Length:1} / {Spacing:2} ) + 1 ) * {Concrete bags per post:6}

3. Hide the submit button

The results are live, so nothing needs submitting. Add this filter to your theme’s functions.php or a code-snippets plugin; it hides the button on any form carrying the fo-live-only class:

add_filter( 'gform_submit_button', function ( $button, $form ) {
	return str_contains( (string) rgar( $form, 'cssClass' ), 'fo-live-only' ) ? '' : $button;
}, 10, 2 );

Or with CSS alone: .fo-live-only_wrapper .gform_footer { display: none; }

4. Put it on a page and make it look like this

Add the form to any page with the Gravity Forms block, or the shortcode [gravityform id="X" title="false" ajax="false"]. The form inherits your theme’s styles; the classes you set in step 2 are hooks for the look you see on this site:

• fo-result on a calculation field makes it the big teal result panel.
• fo-result fo-result--sub makes the smaller secondary figures.
• fo-segmented on a radio field turns it into a segmented switch.
• Two fields on one row is the editor’s own column layout: drag a field beside another and the row splits in half. No CSS class is needed, and the old gf_left_half Ready Classes are deprecated.

The bundle includes the two stylesheets that implement those classes, with notes on matching your brand colours. Without them the form still works; it just looks like your theme’s default Gravity Forms styling.

How the maths works is explained under “How it’s calculated” on the live Fence materials calculator.