Depth of 26' light pole and how to dig it?

[Michael35]

Hello All,

I am a new member and this is my first post. I live in WA State and recently bought my first tractor. A JD 4120 with FEL, Brush Hog and Box Blade. I am currently needing to stand a 8x8 PT 26' pole so I can get internet out here in the boonies.
I think I need a minimum of a 6' hole. I have checked into 2 man augers and such but they only go down to about 4 feet. Does anyone know how I can get a 6' hole without breaking the bank and hiring a utility company?

Thanks in advance for any advice.

Michael E
WA State
JD 4120

 

[vwnotrunning]

Many augers have extension for getting deeper, may check into that. You could also get out the hand post hole diggers and put extensions on the handle!

 

[k0ua]

There are several "rules of thumb" 1/6 of pole. 10% +2 foot. etc. so about 4.5 feet should be suffecient, unless you tell me you are putting up one heck of a wind load on it... What are your historic wind velocities and how many square foot of wind load is the antenna? In general I don't think you need a 6 foot hole.

 

[JPRambo]

10% of height of pole add 2 feet

 

[Mendonsy]

There is another thing you could do (if necessary). Set 4 anchor points in concrete about 5' out on each side and tie them into the pole at about 5' up with steel cable.
Just curious ..... how did you arrive at the 26' height number???

 

[chim]

When I was a young pup working for an electrical contractor I'd sometimes get the task of hand digging for wood poles. Start with a regular long handle round point shovel for a couple feet. Then switch to a manual posthole digger (two handle clamshell type). Then use a digging iron to loosen things up and a "goon spoon" to clean loose stuff as you go deeper.

WHATEVER YOU DO, make certain the diameter of the hole is sufficient all the way to the bottom. I had one misadventure where the pole stopped going down into the hole about 3 feet before it bottomed. The guys seemed pretty upset with me that day. Must not take much to get them flustered.

Oshkosh Tools still sells spoons with handles up to 16 feet long if you get real ambitious!

 

[zzvyb6]

Cut it down to 20'. Then your 4' digger will be OK. :laughing:

 

[weedpharma]

Surely it also depends on the soil type and if you simply drop it in or cement it in. I have a 12m out of the ground steel pole, with 1m in a block .8m sq by about 1m deep cement and rocks. The soil is clay and it isn't going anywhere.

If you are in sand, you could just dig a larger hole and pour cement and rocks around it.

Weedpharma

 

[ace10]

What is your soil like?

Two man augers are not fun in rocky soil or hard pan. Or even hard clay.

If your tractor has hydraulics on the FEL, just rent an auger with an extension for the bit. No back aches. No short cutting the depth.

 

[jenkinsph]

I would call a couple of local electricians to see who they use to stand up temporary poles. It should be cheaper to do than you think and would save you a lot of grief and hard work. Making the hole is a big job but standing up the pole can be difficult too.