raising pole barn posts

[acausey1]

anyone have any hints for raising 16' - 20' 6x6 posts for a barn. I will be doing this by myself and would like to do it without equipment.

 

[BryanM]

This might sound stupid but what do mean raise the posts? Did they rot off or did they sink doo too too heavy weight?

 

[20 20]

I believe the person is trying to raise them from a lying position to a standing one???
You can make a jig that will raise them, but it is hard for me to explain. Are they going to be going into the ground, if so how far? Give us a little more info, like what types of tools etc you have handy?

 

[acausey1]

Sorry for the lack of information. This is a new barn. Poles/posts will be lying on the ground and need to be placed in 36" holes to be plumbed and braced.

 

[magicheater]

This is how I do it with my tractor and Loader Buddy. This pole is 16" at the butt end and 16' long. I can't imagine doing it w/o any equipment.

 

[acausey1]

Forgot your tool question. I will have come-a-long, chain and tamping bar.

 

[JB4310]

I'm pretty sure you'll be able to just lift them up, the 16 footer anyway. get one end right over the hole and start lifting the other end, once the end starts sliding in the hole you should be able to walk it up. You might need another set of hands for the 20 footer and to hold them in place so you could brace them.

I've never done it myself but seems like it would be doable.
By yourself with no equipment might not be possible though.

JB.

 

[20 20]

It can be done with what you have. The jig would look something like < . I've tried 3 times to explain and I can't{not very good with words} deleted what I started. I'll do a search and see what I can find.

 

[MikeD74T]

Make a tripod with three 12'-16' 4x4's. Center tripod over hole. Slide post under tripod until centered horizontally over the hole. Attach block & tackle to tripod & attach other end to the post just off center. Lift post until butt will rotate into the hole then lower. Move tripod to next hole & repeat. Labor intensive but doable by one person. MikeD74T

 

[George2615]

I'd say to ask for help from a strong young buck. Don't be afraid to ask for help. I'm sure you must know somebody who can help for a day or two. I think working alone with 16 - 20' poles is asking for an accident to happen. I put my 12' and 16' 6 x 6 posts in by hand. I had no young bucks to help but did have a couple older bulls like me that helped. In two days we had dug all the holes with a post hole digger and set 12 posts. Two of us carried the post to the hole then set one end in the hole and the two of us raised it by walking it up with no problem. Two of us held it level while the 3rd staked it in place. When we originally started we strapped the post to my loader bucket and set it in place. We decided that took too long and the posts weren't that heavy and we set the rest much quicker by hand.