I common with many others I expect, my garden fence posts have rotted
at ground level and snapped.Over the years I have tried various things
such as hammering angle iron as close as possible into ground next to
posts and screwing good section to those. Also tried meta-posts in a
couple of places - work for some months then next high winds and
everything is moving around again. The posts were originally set into
quite large concrete blocks/balls so my next idea is to remove the
posts and panels,clear the tops of the concrete and using a kango
hammer open up the square hole in the concrete where the post has
rotted away to about twice its' size now.When holes opened up will
drop in new posts - will modern pressure treated ones be resistant to
rot? Fill in the gap with new concrete ensuring posts are vertical and
job done! Will a kango hammer be OK for this kind of job? I presume I
can hire one for a weekend. This plan is an alternative to having the
whole job done professionally as that could be expensive.

Mortimer wrote:
I common with many others I expect, my garden fence posts have rotted
at ground level and snapped.Over the years I have tried various things
such as hammering angle iron as close as possible into ground next to
posts and screwing good section to those. Also tried meta-posts in a
couple of places - work for some months then next high winds and
everything is moving around again. The posts were originally set into
quite large concrete blocks/balls so my next idea is to remove the
posts and panels,clear the tops of the concrete and using a kango
hammer open up the square hole in the concrete where the post has
rotted away to about twice its' size now.When holes opened up will
drop in new posts - will modern pressure treated ones be resistant to
rot? Fill in the gap with new concrete ensuring posts are vertical and
job done! Will a kango hammer be OK for this kind of job? I presume I
can hire one for a weekend. This plan is an alternative to having the
whole job done professionally as that could be expensive.

I think one of the fundamental problems is that wooden posts set in
concrete are not a good idea. It's much better to simply drive a
treated wooden post direct into the ground. Our round wooden posts
driven into the ground this way have lasted six years so far and seem
good for several years more. If you need more strength against the
wind then use longer posts, don't try and improve things with lumps of
concrete.

--
Chris Green

wrote in message ...
Mortimer wrote:
I common with many others I expect, my garden fence posts have rotted
at ground level and snapped.Over the years I have tried various things
such as hammering angle iron as close as possible into ground next to
posts and screwing good section to those. Also tried meta-posts in a
couple of places - work for some months then next high winds and
everything is moving around again. The posts were originally set into
quite large concrete blocks/balls so my next idea is to remove the
posts and panels,clear the tops of the concrete and using a kango
hammer open up the square hole in the concrete where the post has
rotted away to about twice its' size now.When holes opened up will
drop in new posts - will modern pressure treated ones be resistant to
rot? Fill in the gap with new concrete ensuring posts are vertical and
job done! Will a kango hammer be OK for this kind of job? I presume I
can hire one for a weekend. This plan is an alternative to having the
whole job done professionally as that could be expensive.

I think one of the fundamental problems is that wooden posts set in
concrete are not a good idea. It's much better to simply drive a
treated wooden post direct into the ground. Our round wooden posts
driven into the ground this way have lasted six years so far and seem
good for several years more. If you need more strength against the
wind then use longer posts, don't try and improve things with lumps of
concrete.


The thing is that the concrete is well established at each place there
is a fence post, I don't fancy having to excavate it all out hence my
idea of enlarging the exsisting hole and re-using the solid ballast of
the concrete to support a new post.If I use well treated posts and
keep then free of loose soil they should last OK shouldn't they?

Mortimer wrote:

The thing is that the concrete is well established at each place there
is a fence post, I don't fancy having to excavate it all out hence my
idea of enlarging the exsisting hole and re-using the solid ballast of
the concrete to support a new post.If I use well treated posts and
keep then free of loose soil they should last OK shouldn't they?

Why not use the existing posts (after cutting of the rotten bottoms)
with concrete repair spurs, which are made specifically for this
purpose, set into the enlarged holes in the concrete?

http://www.andertonconcrete.co.uk/An...iscPrecast.htm

Mortimer wrote:

I common with many others I expect, my garden fence posts have rotted
at ground level and snapped.
....

The posts were originally set into
quite large concrete blocks/balls so my next idea is to remove the
posts and panels,clear the tops of the concrete and using a kango
hammer open up the square hole in the concrete where the post has
rotted away to about twice its' size now.

What size are the existing holes? We had a fence made up of 3" posts set
into concrete with pannels between. When one of the posts rotted and
fell over in a high wind I obviously needed to do a repair.

I found the easy option was to dig out the rotten post from the concrete
and hammer a new post in its place. Took less than half an hour...

Guy
-- --------------------------------------------------------------------
Guy Dawson I.T. Manager Crossflight Ltd

Mortimer wrote:
I common with many others I expect, my garden fence posts have rotted
at ground level and snapped.Over the years I have tried various things
such as hammering angle iron as close as possible into ground next to
posts and screwing good section to those. Also tried meta-posts in a
couple of places - work for some months then next high winds and
everything is moving around again. The posts were originally set into
quite large concrete blocks/balls so my next idea is to remove the
posts and panels,clear the tops of the concrete and using a kango
hammer open up the square hole in the concrete where the post has
rotted away to about twice its' size now.

I doubt you'll be able to do this, not to any depth, anyway. It would
be an b- of a job. I should think you'd be best advised to:

Dig out or smash up the old concrete. Remove it.

Ram (sub) soil down hard into the holes left using a baulk of timber
as a rammer. Put a little soil in, ram down, repeat 'till full.

Re-do the hole using a graft (a long narrow spade) or a border spade.

Insert new concrete post (slotted or TZ depending on fence type) OR
onsert concrete stub.

Fill in around post (or stub) with weak concrete. Bolt on new
timber posts if you've used concrete stubs.

Re-construct fence.

Apply weathering compound to concrete post if necessary.


This plan is an alternative to having the whole job done professionally
as that could be expensive.


It's not a hard job to re-do, but be prepared to take a little time
over it, and you'll get a good job.


J.B.

On Thu, 05 Feb 2004 12:30:05 -0600, "Jerry Built"
] wrote:

Mortimer wrote:
I common with many others I expect, my garden fence posts have rotted
at ground level and snapped.Over the years I have tried various things
such as hammering angle iron as close as possible into ground next to
posts and screwing good section to those. Also tried meta-posts in a
couple of places - work for some months then next high winds and
everything is moving around again. The posts were originally set into
quite large concrete blocks/balls so my next idea is to remove the
posts and panels,clear the tops of the concrete and using a kango
hammer open up the square hole in the concrete where the post has
rotted away to about twice its' size now.

I doubt you'll be able to do this, not to any depth, anyway. It would
be an b- of a job. I should think you'd be best advised to:

Dig out or smash up the old concrete. Remove it.

Ram (sub) soil down hard into the holes left using a baulk of timber
as a rammer. Put a little soil in, ram down, repeat 'till full.

Re-do the hole using a graft (a long narrow spade) or a border spade.

Insert new concrete post (slotted or TZ depending on fence type) OR
onsert concrete stub.

Fill in around post (or stub) with weak concrete. Bolt on new
timber posts if you've used concrete stubs.

Re-construct fence.

Apply weathering compound to concrete post if necessary.


This plan is an alternative to having the whole job done professionally
as that could be expensive.


It's not a hard job to re-do, but be prepared to take a little time
over it, and you'll get a good job.


J.B.

Did this myself along with concrete gravel boards, no more worrying
about rot.
The digging out part is a bugger but you've only to do it once after
all. ;-)

Mark S.

Hi,

Before installing wooden fence posts it's best to soak the end that
will be buried plus about 12" above that in a copper napthanate
preserver such as Cupriol Green, following the recommended rate for
below ground use.

Most pressure treated wood is treated while the wood is still 'green'
so the treatment doesn't penetrate much further than the surface. Plus
pressure vessels don't come cheap so the wood doesn't stay in for
long. This which is why they recommend treating the ends of cut wood.

If you're lucky you might get away with reusing the concrete for the
new posts as they are. I reckon concrete is a bit OTT, all you need is
to spread the load from the post to the surrounding soil so large and
small rubble would work just as well, even with metposts.

hope this helps,
Pete.

On 5 Feb 2004 01:46:09 -0800, (Mortimer) wrote:

I common with many others I expect, my garden fence posts have rotted
at ground level and snapped.Over the years I have tried various things
such as hammering angle iron as close as possible into ground next to
posts and screwing good section to those. Also tried meta-posts in a
couple of places - work for some months then next high winds and
everything is moving around again. The posts were originally set into
quite large concrete blocks/balls so my next idea is to remove the
posts and panels,clear the tops of the concrete and using a kango
hammer open up the square hole in the concrete where the post has
rotted away to about twice its' size now.When holes opened up will
drop in new posts - will modern pressure treated ones be resistant to
rot? Fill in the gap with new concrete ensuring posts are vertical and
job done! Will a kango hammer be OK for this kind of job? I presume I
can hire one for a weekend. This plan is an alternative to having the
whole job done professionally as that could be expensive.

Huge wrote in message ...
writes:
Mortimer wrote:
I common with many others I expect, my garden fence posts have rotted

[15 lines snipped]

I think one of the fundamental problems is that wooden posts set in
concrete are not a good idea.

Indeed. After all, they only last 25 or 30 years.

And then they only fail at ground level where soil builds up around the
base.