Setting posts for fencing

[Barry_White]

This might be a bit late posting but I have put up few rural fences and was taught by my father-in-law who spent 70 years putting rural fencing up.

No rural fence is put up using concrete, just dirt. Some of these rural fences have been standing for up to 60 years.

Corner posts or gate posts or strainer usually have a stay to take the strain of the wire but the posts depending on the length of the fence run the gate post or corner post can be up to 600mm in dia. remembering a fence run can be up to 2 klms or more with a 14 foot gate hanging off the post.

The hole for the post usually has about 3 to 4 inches clearance around it. The dirt is put into the hole in layers and the most important part of ramming the earth is the bottom six inches and the top six inches. Posts should be 2 feet into the ground.

The problem with round posts is over the years the sap wood rots away quicker than main timber. That is why split posts or sawn posts last much longer.

Remember none of these fences use treated timber, just good old Australian hard wood like Stringy Bark, Red Gum, Yellow Box or Iron Bark.

[Tiger]

Never too late Barry. Thanks for all the information boys (and maybe girls?). I am now prepared for the next fencing job which I might undertake. I've just realised how much collective information this forum has, awesome.

[seriph1]

me too! I will be re-doing front and side fences and as far as I can tell, provided I adhere to some obvious principles, no cement will be necessary

Thanks everyone

[neddy]

Thanks every one. I love your work Big Bazza. I'm now convinced and I'll be using the rammed or tamped earth method with cryprus pine posts at 600mm deep. I'll go 700mm deep for corner and gate posts. No concrete for me. Thanks again every one.

ps - Barry, have you heard of using scoria to fill around the posts or using dry cement mix in with the dirt?

[Barry_White]

ps - Barry, have you heard of using scoria to fill around the posts or using dry cement mix in with the dirt?

Hi Neddy

I haven't used scoria, but I guess it would cost an arm and a leg to get here, and anyway the soil in my area is granite. Granite is a soil that compacts down like concrete after it has been wet a few times. Up here it is used as road base by the RTA and some of the local councils.

It is ideal for compacting. Looking at the properties scoria I don't know that it would compact so good. May be ok to be used as an aggregate for concrete.

[yogifnbear]

this moreso regarding paling fencepostrs than rural..
i usually do the ramming method, mix cement with dirt, slightly damp, and pack down every shovelfull with the back of the crowbar..

but there's another way that i wouldn't mind a bit of feedback on, 600mm deep hold, bottom of post cut to a V, por a bucket of water in, pour a third of a bag of cement powder in, put a shovel of dirt in, about equal to the cement , then slosh it all around to a thick cement laden mud, plonk post in, leave it to set a few hours, maybe back fill with a bit of tamping to the top..

its basically labour saving when you are doing a dozen posts, what i'm still wondering is long term, i am hoping they dont rot off as bad as when concrete is used, as its more a solid mud , and the tamoped soil on the top half of the hole should stop the water settling like a collar, as when you use wet concrete, or am i just kidding meself..

over a short period , 3 years, the posts put in this way are still solid as (the mud sets solid underneath), just hoping that over 5-10 years its not going to all end in tears if they do end up rotting above the cement mud level....

[havabeer69]

you are posting in a thread which no one has commented on for 19 years...


some of the people in this thread havent logged in to this site since 2015...

[Wrongwayfirst]

you are posting in a thread which no one has commented on for 19 years...


some of the people in this thread havent logged in to this site since 2015...

but the force is strong , I find the best way to regurgitate an old thread is post something completely wrong, that usually brings them out of the woodwork, puns intended
cheers