Hamilton, NJ Fence Regulations: Material Restrictions (2026)

A opens the Township's fence chapter with a blanket material restriction: no fence may be erected of barbed wire, topped with metal spikes, or built of any material or in any manner that could be dangerous to people or animals. Two carve-outs exist. Farms are exempt from the whole provision. Industrial uses located in the RD, REO, REO-4, MFG or I Districts may still top a security fence with a barbed wire protective barrier, but that wire must be faced into the property rather than toward the street or a neighboring lot, consistent with the general rule in the same subsection that every fence's finished side face adjacent properties.

The provision applies regardless of a fence's height or location on the lot, meaning a homeowner cannot install even a short decorative barbed-wire topper on a rear-yard fence bordering a residential neighbor. B(1), is the operative citywide limit for prohibited fence hardware. Chain-link, wood, vinyl, split-rail and ornamental metal fences remain unaffected as long as they carry no spike or barb topper and present no hazard to passersby or animals.