Fencing Help

[Smallplot]

You are getting varied opinions on the size of auger to use. Let me just caution you on this. If you were a seasoned fence builder you could get away with a smaller auger or even a post driver but you have to be precise in your measurements or you will have to get out the old fashioned hand diggers or spade and go to town. By the way it sounds, you have never built a fence and therefore it is safe to say you will not have the experience of some of the other posters. Believe me it is way easier to tamp in dirt than it is to enlarge a hole using hand tools. Just buy on the side of caution.

I will have to say with setting the posts in line, a lot of the positioning troubles come if the ground is sloped or uneven.

Once you dig a hole with the post hole digger it is very difficult to nearly impossible to dig another one with the digger centered anywhere inside the previous hole. You will usually have to reposition the auger just outside the previous hole.

 

[whistlepig]

Its easier to take more effort in the stringing of your post alignment by string line, bubble leveling, and the measuring your post placement. More time spent doing this will eliminate a lot of tamping and re-digging of holes. Anyone can dig a post hole if they are only digging one.

 

[MossflowerWoods]

If you have heavy clay soil and significant rainfall per year a 4" post will decay quickly even if treated.

Dan,

This is my concern. I have some clay, but what I have is a very high water table. It is GREAT for my crop of pine trees, but I suspect it will be TERRIBLE on my fence posts, PT or not.

The wife wants a pretty fence along the driveway borders of the horse pasture.

Are the half rounds PT? I like the look of the 6" half rounds and 3 board.

As to the black stuff, lots of people around me here in VA paint their entire fences black with some heavy tar/paint. I'm not particularly a fan of it, I would prefer a redwood stain, white paint, or just let the wood silver and age.

David

 

[BotaBigot]

...lots of people around me here in VA paint their entire fences black with some heavy tar/paint...

Noticed that. Across the Potomac, we tend to do ours in white. I like opaque white stain...looks like paint, but weathers off rather than peel like paint...easier to recoat...

 

[EMB5530]

Buying fence posts???
That sounds like expensive farming:laughing:

I guess where im from we are just blessed with the best fence posts around by cleaning up old pasture and fence lines.(hedge)Dont care what ya put it in its gonna last a long time. Lasts even longer if ya keep the water from workin in from the top. Just dont wanna let it age to long before ya drive the staples in cuz it can be a real bear.

And as far as looks go there is nothin better lookin than a good tight all hedge fence(and i mean all hedge no T-post)

we all have our opinions dont we

 

[grsthegreat]

Ive been putting up fence for WAY longer than i ever want to remember. I ended up installing 3 rail white vinyl fence out front ... about 1,200 feet of it if i remember correctly. LOVE that stuff. did it about 8-9 years ago.. still looks like new.

For the rest, i used to use 4x4 treated posts till 3 years ago when a very heavy snow year SNAPPED over 30 of my 4x4 posts.... snapped them like a toothpick.

Now i will only use 6x6 posts. I drill 9" holes 36" deep, then widen them slightly with a hand digger. I tried digging 12" holes but my ground is so hard, i never was successful. I also set all my treated posts in concrete and mound the concrete up at the top to prevent water sitting on the post.

Moose seem to like the fence and drinking fountain...er fountain too

I have friends that swear by 6" round posts, and some even have hydraulic post pounders to set them. I really don't think that they end up going very deep with them though.

I HATE wooden split rail fences, as ive had them in the past and their a maintainance nightmare. Had to paint them every other year to keep them looking half way nice. Split rail fencing just turns black in a few years. Lets face it... real wood sucks for maint.

 

[grsthegreat]

Buying fence posts???
That sounds like expensive farming:laughing:

I guess where im from we are just blessed with the best fence posts around by cleaning up old pasture and fence lines.(hedge)Dont care what ya put it in its gonna last a long time. Lasts even longer if ya keep the water from workin in from the top. Just dont wanna let it age to long before ya drive the staples in cuz it can be a real bear.

And as far as looks go there is nothin better lookin than a good tight all hedge fence(and i mean all hedge no T-post)

we all have our opinions dont we

what is hedge wood? any pics

 

[RobertBrown]

I've used round posts, and i can tell that the joint between boards has to land EXACTLY on the center of the post or you have to cut the board.
If the joints don't line up, top to bottom, and both boards don't end on the center of the post, it don't look good. It looks like an after thought.
Consider using a smaller post at the center of the boards, unless you are going to stagger the joints. Staggering the joints makes a slight stronger fence but it's more difficult to install.

 

[EMB5530]

what is hedge wood? any pics

Sorry bout that
hedge is what we call it round here
Its actual name is Osage Orange

No I dont have pics but I can have the wife take some of our fence out front
(built around 1980's) older than me and still looks good. Just have to fix broken wire and popped out staples(and like I said before wow old hedge is hard as a rock to drive the staples into) basically normal fence maintaince especially since the privious owner really let things go around here(and that is a whole nother story) but yea that is what all good fence is made of around here (Kansas) but most run anywhere from 1 to 3 metal Tee posts for every wood post which works great for keeping cattle in but as far as asthetics ya cant beat the strong beautiful look of an all wood and wire fence line. IMHO

But back to your matter

as far a maintence goes
Out of all the Osage Orange that is on my property (which is about 70% of my fence) there are 2 I have replaced and maybe 8 more that need replaced.
Which is not bad for fence that is 30+ years old. I am currently in the process of cleanin and repairing all my fenceline and want to replace all the Tee posts and other wood posts with Osage Orange/hedge.
Any other wood posts that are not made of hedge are completely rotted including RR ties on the back of the property which as you know are full of creosold which is nasty stuff. The only thing that has been done to the hedge is I have started to cap the tops of the posts to keep water from soaking in during the winter and freezing thus splitting the posts.

In summary of all my bla bla bla
If YA GOTS IT USE IT!
If not plant hedge apples and wait 20 years for your line posts and much longer for your corners oh yea did I mention that the wood also grows thorns. That adds to to fun of the harvest. haha
But with all good things a little BLOOD and sweat equity must be invested.

Eric

 

[boggen]

if you said, just woven wire, and 2 to 3 things of barb. it would not be a big deal.

but if are putting boards up. then "prep" work is important. and in that, is leveling things out nice and smooth. and removing any hill areas. and if you do have to deal with hills. then redo things, so there very small height to length ratio. other words not very steep hills. but very gentle inclines.

if you do not, then there a good chance, your fence boards will look like a zig zag as you follow the ground.

give yourself some wiggle room. meaning you can set your posts. but remember you can come back later with a saw, and cut tops off the posts off once you have the boards in place. so you can get the height of posts right after all said and done vs while you are putting up boards.

use string, or perhaps the eletric hot fence strips (not the wire, but the wider strips) as a quick temp doing to see how fence would look.