PDS Top Lock Slats: Privacy, Durability, and a Clean Finished Edge

Pexco PDS® Top Lock Fence Slats offer an economical way to enhance an existing or newly installed chain link fence while preserving the practical benefits that make chain link a popular fencing solution. Chain link fencing provides dependable security, visibility, and value. However, some properties require additional privacy and a more finished appearance. 

For many contractors, distributors, and property owners, Top Lock is also the system they know and trust. Top Lock utilizes a proven slat design that has been used in communities for decades. This makes Top Locking slats a natural choice for customers who prefer a familiar installation method and a traditional finished appearance. 

What Are PDS Top Lock Fence Slats? 

PDS Top Lock Fence Slats are vertically installed privacy slats designed for chain link fencing. Each flat, tubular slat includes notched holes near the top. Once the slats are placed into the fence, a flexible locking channel is threaded horizontally through these holes to secure the slats in position. 

The locking mechanism is located near the top of the fence, creating a straight, uniform edge across the completed installation. Pexco has more than 50 years of experience manufacturing its proprietary PDS Top Lock products, with a focus on quality throughout the manufacturing process.  

Innovative Channel Design

The most visible portion of a slatted chain link fence is often the top edge. When the slats are neatly aligned, the entire fence can appear cleaner, more organized, and professionally finished. 

The flexible top-locking channel helps maintain this consistent alignment. Instead of allowing individual slats to sit at noticeably different heights, the system creates a continuous visual line near the top of the fence. 

This clean appearance is the primary reason many customers continue to choose Top Lock. In certain regions, it is also the slat system that contractors and installers have traditionally worked with. Familiarity can simplify product selection, planning, and communication between distributors, contractors, and customers. 

How Much Privacy Do Top Lock Slats Provide? 

PDS Top Lock Fence Slats provide an approximate privacy and wind-load factor of 75 percent. This level of coverage helps reduce direct visibility through a chain link fence. It also helps maintain the familiar structure and function of the original fence system.

Top Lock Slats can be a practical choice for a wide range of commercial, residential, municipal, recreational, and industrial environments. They can also be used along data center, wind farm, and solar farm property boundaries, where chain link fencing is commonly used to define and help secure the perimeter of a site.

Common applications include:

• Equipment and storage areas
• Utility and service areas
• Commercial and industrial properties
• Schools and recreational facilities
• Data center property boundaries and secured areas
• Wind farm and solar farm perimeters
• General property boundaries

In addition to providing screening, Top Lock Slats help create a clean, uniform appearance along the fence line. A selection of standard colors allows the slats to complement surrounding architecture, landscaping, branding, or other property features. Available colors include black, white, gray, beige, brown, redwood, green, royal blue, and light blue.ement surrounding architecture, landscaping, branding, or other property features. Available colors include black, white, gray, beige, brown, redwood, green, royal blue, and light blue.  

Reliable Pexco PDS Durability 

PDS manufactures Top Lock Slats from high-density polyethylene (HDPE) with color pigments and ultraviolet inhibitors. The UV inhibitors help slow the damaging effects of sun exposure and extend the product’s service life.

The HDPE construction helps Top Lock Slats resist severe weather, salt water, sand, road dirt, and many common environmental pollutants. These durable material properties make the slats well suited for outdoor installations that face regular exposure to harsh conditions and surface contaminants.

PDS backs Top Lock Slats with a 25-year pro-rata warranty against breakage under normal conditions. For long-term performance, installers should design the chain link fence to withstand local wind conditions and the additional wind load created by the slats.

Are Top Lock Slats Easy to Install and Maintain? 

The Top Lock system simplifies installation with a straightforward, two-step process. Installers first insert the slats vertically from the top of the fence, positioning the locking holes at the top. They then thread the flexible locking channel horizontally through the notched holes to secure the entire row.

The elliptical holes stay open during installation, allowing installers to thread the locking channel more quickly and easily. Because installers insert the slats from the top, they can complete the locking process without kneeling along the bottom of the fence.

The system also makes maintenance simple. Property owners can typically remove surface contaminants with water and pressure cleaning, helping them maintain the fence’s appearance without a complicated cleaning process. 

Proven Privacy with a Clean, Consistent Finish 

PDS Top Lock Fence Slats are a strong choice for customers who want privacy, durability, and a clean top edge from a familiar slat system. With approximately 75 percent privacy, durable HDPE construction, multiple height and color options, and a straightforward locking design, Top Lock provides an attractive and economical way to enhance chain link fencing for a wide variety of applications. 

Frequently Asked Questions