Fence Post Holes

[pwd72s]

Originally Posted by Bill Douglas

Oh so true. And my brag about digging post holes was from days gone by when I was a much younger pup.

Same here. I dug the hole & mixed & poured the concrete for my metal mailbox post. That was nearly 40 years ago. Would hate to do it today. Took several hours with shovel, a bar to pry rock with, and a pick axe. The ground here is old river bottom. Full of what the crew that installed 228' of hurricane fence for me said it's full of "dinosaur eggs". They brought in a John Deere with a hydraulic auger, and even it had tough going.

The lightweight power augers wouldn't work. Might be fine in loose loam or sandy soils...

[DanielDudley]

Originally Posted by look 171

Once in a while , we will build these stupid elaborate fences/gates for my deep pocket clients. I hire a fence contractor and have them dig the holes and we set the poles ourselves because I like / need then to be perfectly plumb and spaced exactly a certain distance apart or else my finish panels may look off. Last time I did this they charges me 900 bucks and was done in one day with two guys. This was on a pretty steep hill side. About 25 holes 4' deep

Don't know if you have this up in Winnipeg, but we have these 1 yard premixed concrete that you can haul on a trailer from the yard to the job site. I think max was 1.5 yard. Its a life saver not having to mix and shovel.

Some of the fence guys here will dig two holes, set the first tow posts with the panel and then set each panel as the post holes go in. Saves on measuring and alignment for them.

[Nickshu]

Rent a skid steer w/ an auger attachment?

[GH85Carrera]

Having watched Bob Vila dig a post hole by hand in nice soft soil I always wanted him to come to Oklahoma and show me how to do it in clay. The "dirt" in my yard is pure clay. Great for pottery or making bricks but it sucks to dig in. First you take a scoop and then use a scraper to peel the clay off of the shovel and then you have to use a second scraper to dig the clay off of the first scraper.

Renting a hand held auger just requires two guys that look like a young Arnold Schwarzenegger. The only way to do it without making it a month long project is rent a bobcat sized tractor with a auger or hire it done.

The advice about finding the property lines is solid. Make sure the neighbors agree with the line you mark out and if they don't get the property surveyed. You sure don't want to tear it all down and move it 12 inches.

[vash]

i rented one of those two man augers once..it took technique to get it done. i clearly didnt have it down. i took it back before i hurt myself.

i used a digging bar and PHD and got it done fairly quick..once you get a rhythm it went fast. i dont think i would volunteer to do more than 15 holes.

bobcat with an auger attachment kicks ass..

[recycled sixtie]

I have not read all the posts but I am betting that a professional post hole digger can get both the post holes and the posts straighter than somebody that does not do it for a living. If you do it yourself and if they are not perfect the person you are doing it for may not be happy. Once that is done then applying the wood is pretty straightforward.

But you say that you have done if before so you know all this.....

[cabmandone]

Rent a bobcat with an auger. If you only have 220 feet of fence that's about 30 holes. You'll do that in a matter of a few hours if you have the location staked and ready to drill. What type of fence have you settled in on? When I did my vinyl fence around my back yard, I drilled all the holes, set my corners, ran a string line top and bottom on the corners to set height and to align and then set all the line posts.

[look 171]

Bengay, chiropractor's bill and a few days of soreness maybe worth your time, especially if you use that dumb power post digger and hurt yourself. Is it worth saving a few hundred bucks doing it yourself unless you are sitting in that lil' Bobcat pushing the button to that auger. I know, I know, this is your typical do it yourself place but is it worth that thing hitting you in the face when it get pinch. The clutch on that thing may not save you. Hey, it will get you some exercise.

[recycled sixtie]

I think you have to ask yourself do you really want to do it? Your friends perhaps are looking at you and saying you did it in the past and you have lots of experience. They perhaps think that they can get a better deal by your doing it.

[Tobra]

On further consideration, it occurs to me that maybe you ought to run this whole "building my neighbor a fence" thing by your heart doctor. You know, so you don't drop dead with a post hole digger in your hands.

[widebody911]

Originally Posted by Tobra

Thom, you dug 4' deep holes in the ground in Carmichael? Either you are lucky and the hard pan is more than 4' down or you had a line on some dynamite to loosen things up. We rented one of those gas powered augers when we did my sister's fence

If you do it when the ground has been really wet, but not super-saturated, it's possible. The hardpan turns into a non-newtonian fluid, it's a PITA, but it's doable. A couple weeks ago I put in a small tree in the front yard and had to use an air chisel to dig the hole.

[rusnak]

I don't want to be an a-hole, but honestly. How many of you guys are going to dig 30 holes in any kind of soil, and by the way, they have to be aligned and on-center. And there may be hardpan.

[widebody911]

Originally Posted by Baz

Your fence height is 8' then? Nice!

Yes; actually a schmidge over 8'

What diameter pipe did you use?

IIRC, it's 2 1/4" - the same OD as the poles they sell @ Home Depot etc, and it uses the standard 2 3/8" clamps.

How far apart did you set the poles?

It varies due to proximity to other features, but no further than 7 1/2' apart. Two of the poles are welded to the poles on the pergola, and it's tied to the carport on one end and to the existing fence in the middle and the opposite end. I am tempted to tie it into the shop at both corners as well.

And what did you use for the actual fencing material?

I used 2x6 redwood mounted vertically to each pole, and then 1x12 redwood mounted horizontally. The bottom board that contacts the ground is 2x12 pressure-treated and the very top is 1x8 redwood. Recently I covered the horizontal gaps using 1x4 redwood slats from the backside, so you can't peek through the fence at all.

[GH85Carrera]

Our back yard is fenced in stockade fence. It was all wooden fence posts when we moved in. They were rotting out on a regular basis. I have replaced them all with these.



It is super easy to run a screw through the post since it has holes everywhere. The round posts fill with water and still rust out. These are just tougher and have survived several 80+ MPH wind storms.

I made up a rig to pull the rotted out wooden posts. I started with the longest lag screws sold at the big box store. I used my electric impact wrench to drive the bolt down into whatever wood was left, set up some old wooden posts as a base and used a chain over the top of another post to make a lever that would pull out the old post. Often with the concrete still attached.

My neighbor two doors down saw me doing it and I helped pull some posts up as well. Now it is all metal posts so no more worries.

[GWN7]

"I don't drill and set posts"

From my first post.

I'm touched by your concern about my health. My Cardiologist's only limit is lifting nothing over 25 lbs. Yes I'm still recovering from my MI but I'm getting better.

My same buddy who I will be building the fence for put an addition onto his house and the guy who did the foundation was supposed to install Styrofoam 3' down at a 45 degree angle (frost heaving preventive measure) but didn't so his wife wants it done. Only problem is now with the addition there is no room for a digging machine to get in without cutting down some trees. Some of the trees would be in the way of the new fence too. Solution: I cut down 6 trees last week. From 12" to 20" across. Maple. Now there is lots of room and my saw only weighs 8 lbs. I didn't clean up, all I did was cut. So I didn't break my Dr's rules. Took me 8 hrs, over 3 days. Day one as 4 hrs. Day two was 3 hrs and every part of me hurt from Day 1, even my hair. You try not doing anything for over a year and see how you feel.

"I don't drill and set posts"

I've watched two Charles Atlas types using a 2 man gas auger with the 3' arms on it. It had a rock tip on the auger and promptly got stuck throwing both guys off it and the throttle stuck wide open. They finally shut it down by breaking the spark plug with a 2x4 not before those arms tried to break their jaws a few times and grabbing the 2x4 ripping it out of their hands.

"I don't drill and set posts"

My air nailer only weighs 8.1 lbs. and nailing up the stringers and boards is the easy part of the job once the posts are drilled and set.

When your working for free you set your own pace and the "owner" can't complain about how long the job is taking. I won't be breaking my Dr's orders. If something goes wrong then I went helping a friend.

Oh "I don't drill and set posts"

I do like Glenn's U post idea. It's about 1/2 the cost of wood posts.

[recycled sixtie]

Originally Posted by Tobra

On further consideration, it occurs to me that maybe you ought to run this whole "building my neighbor a fence" thing by your heart doctor. You know, so you don't drop dead with a post hole digger in your hands.

I am with Tobra on this one.

[rusnak]

Try not to die when you drill and set those posts, will ya?

[Tobra]

Bruce, glad you are staying inside the parameters set by your cardiologist.

Those power augers are nasty beasts. Thought I broke my pelvis when we hit a tree root digging holes for my sister's fence in San Jose. Turned out was only chipped a little, fortunately it stalled. That sucked

Originally Posted by widebody911

If you do it when the ground has been really wet, but not super-saturated, it's possible. The hardpan turns into a non-newtonian fluid, it's a PITA, but it's doable. A couple weeks ago I put in a small tree in the front yard and had to use an air chisel to dig the hole.

Patient of mine planted a lot of the olive trees along Fair Oaks Blvd. They went to Emigh hardware, bought dynamite and used that to make the holes. Probably easier to get an air chisel nowadays.

[cabmandone]

Originally Posted by look 171

Bengay, chiropractor's bill and a few days of soreness maybe worth your time, especially if you use that dumb power post digger and hurt yourself. Is it worth saving a few hundred bucks doing it yourself unless you are sitting in that lil' Bobcat pushing the button to that auger. I know, I know, this is your typical do it yourself place but is it worth that thing hitting you in the face when it get pinch. The clutch on that thing may not save you. Hey, it will get you some exercise.

No danger doing post holes with a bobcat. They don't turn that many RPM but the'll punch a hole quick! I have done my own fence, my own pole barn holes and holes for several other barns plus, I sell the silly machines used. It wouldn't scare me a bit to punch some holes for 200 feet of fence.

[cabmandone]

I'm starting to think you don't drill posts
Seriously though, hire a teen to set the posts and you just sit in the bobcat and drill them. It's really not a hard job.