I am installing some lattice panels, inside preexisting frame work. The lattice will need to be narrowed to fit. How do you trim it to keep the diagonal slats lined up from one panel to the next ?

If I'm understanding your question, there's generally a rail or stile that separates the panels, so they don't have to line up perfectly. Usually they are pretty close in how they're assembled, so if you cut from similar ends, they should automatically be pretty close. I used to tack them to a board to keep 'em straight prevent them from collapsing as I cut.

quote Originally posted by Taijiguy: I used to tack them to a board to keep 'em straight prevent them from collapsing as I cut.

Thanks for that. I was expecting them to want to flop while cutting.
It seems though if I trim the edges the slats will not line up. I thought about cutting each side equally for the amount needed but don't think that will do the trick. I could trim the bottom of the next panel to bring the slats inline but I don't have that much play. I am pretty much needing 4X8 dimensions.

Aren't the panels 4x8? You can probably flip them in one of 4 ways (upside down and backwards) to get the alignment you need if they don't come close enough.

Another thanks for that.

Are you butting them up next to each other.

As said above, usually they are nailed inside a frame system to cover all the edges, and when you put the next panel in, you have a break covering the seam so you don`t need to worry about lining up the pattern.

If you aren`t going to have that, then you need something to support the edges, otherwise they`ll sag and you will be doing this again in a few years.

I hope its not pressure treated lattice, that stuff SUCKS. It splinters and shreds while you try to cut it, I recommend hand cutting with a plain old saw. It may take longer, but it does less damage. I will never use the treated stuff again.. in fact, I was considering on my next lattice project, to just assemble it myself instead of using the pre-made sheets of it.

I am replacing old pressure treated wood lattice with plastic panels. I am supposed to leave a 1/4 inch gap to allow for expansion and contraction. I am supposed to screw through the lattice, through over sized holes, on the top to hang it and just through the edge trim on the sides.
Playing with it, it seems if I cut an equal amount on each side it will still align close. Or take the same amount off the bottom as one side. I'll get this figured out.
Thanks, .

quote Originally posted by tbone42: I hope its not pressure treated lattice, that stuff SUCKS. It splinters and shreds while you try to cut it, I recommend hand cutting with a plain old saw. It may take longer, but it does less damage. I will never use the treated stuff again.. in fact, I was considering on my next lattice project, to just assemble it myself instead of using the pre-made sheets of it.

Thanks for THAT!
I have a Mobile home at the lake with pt lattice skirting
Some of it is showing its age and will need to be replaced pretty soon.
Since it contacts the ground, I need to use pt wood.
I was wondering about cutting it, too.
I wonder if a fine toothed circ. saw blade would stop the splitting?

quote Originally posted by NEPTUNE: Thanks for THAT! I have a Mobile home at the lake with pt lattice skirting Some of it is showing its age and will need to be replaced pretty soon. Since it contacts the ground, I need to use pt wood. I was wondering about cutting it, too. I wonder if a fine toothed circ. saw blade would stop the splitting?

You have a dremel? That would be maybe the only thing I would use. Fine tooth might work, since it may grab less... which is really what causes the issue. Also maybe consider some kind of shears.. not sure if they make them for this purpose but I bet tree branch shears would work. Also scoring and snapping might be good too, that wood is thin.

[This message has been edited by tbone42 (edited 08-22-2011).]

quote Originally posted by NEPTUNE: Thanks for THAT! I have a Mobile home at the lake with pt lattice skirting Some of it is showing its age and will need to be replaced pretty soon. Since it contacts the ground, I need to use pt wood. I was wondering about cutting it, too. I wonder if a fine toothed circ. saw blade would stop the splitting?

Use the vinyl lattice, No painting and lifetime warranty, all the wood lattice I've seen lately is junk.
Cuts easily with a jigsaw.

quote Originally posted by NEPTUNE: Since it contacts the ground, I need to use pt wood.

Plastic. Comes in choices of fade resistant colors.

quote Originally posted by Wolfhound: Use the vinyl lattice, No painting and lifetime warranty, all the wood lattice I've seen lately is junk. Cuts easily with a jigsaw.

Vinyl ? Possibly. My product bought from Lowes, manufactured by Dimensions Lattice states plastic.
Neptune, I was gonna replace with pressure treated lattice. The plastic was cheaper by about two dollars a sheet, and I think it is more durable. Slats will never bow pulling staples, it doesn't flex in/out/up/down. It says it can expand/contract. If you do not give it room to do so, it will bow I suppose.

I can't use plastic.
It looks cheap and offends my sensibilities.
Next thing you know some clowns will try to make a CAR out of plastic!
(J/K)
Nah....
Seriously, I want to blend a big tin box into a wooded setting, so plastic lattice just won't work for me.

[This message has been edited by NEPTUNE (edited 08-22-2011).]

quote Originally posted by NEPTUNE: It looks cheap ... Seriously, I want to blend a big tin box into a wooded setting, so plastic lattice just won't work for me.

Yeah, well, no, .
Seriously, I also like the weathered look of cedar fencing and cedar/pressure treated lattice. However, (a) color choice(s) come close. Certainly as good as a ten foot paint job looks on a car. It really doesn't look cheap and is not really a thing that the eye would fixiate on anyways. It's sort of a camoflauge. I am just trying to align the slats.
[sarcasm]Go green. Don't cause a tree to be cut down.[/sarcasm]

I have done this around my house with PT lattice, and I found out 2 things.

1. All wooden lattice is not the same. I bought about 12 sheets from a local hardware/lumber yard, and it did indeed want to come apart while cutting it to fit. The brads/staples holding it together didn't want to say in, as the went thru, but weren't bent over on the back side. Also, the lattice itself was not very thick. The rest of it, I bought at McCoys, and it was very well made, thicker diameter, and the staples went thru and were all bent over so I never had a bit of problem with those.

2. No matter which vendor I looked at, you had to be careful what you bought, as in each stack of lattice as it comes from the factory, I found every other sheet was made a mirror image of the sheet above it. That makes it impossible to make the ends match up correctly because if you look carefully at the sheets, they are not made the same. While it is possible to flip every other one over and make them all match, that means 1/2 your lattice will have the back side out and 1/2 will be on there correctly---IOW, every other piece will have the brad points showing on the outside as opposed to the brad heads showing--and yes, it is very noticeable.

As for cutting them, I used a skill saw and laid the edge down on a piece of 10 ft long 2x4, with the lattice cutline just hanging over the edge of the board. If you are trying to trim them after you have them nailed up, good luck with that. A recip or jig saw will work, with a blade with plenty of teeth on it. (fine tooth wood blade)

Don't forget to tape where you're cutting. It helps keep the wood from splintering.