Garden fencing

[ryanjjones]

Due to (a) the weather; (b) sodding vandals; and (c) 10 years of no maintenance, I need to replace a garden fence.

QUite simply its a straight run, 6' tall, and needs 7 x 6' panels.

The original fence was put up with metpost....

So - thinking of doing a better job and looking for tips.

Thinking of hiring a "post hole cutter" to simply drill a big hole and drop a post in :) SIMPLE! I'm obviously assuming a 2-man device will be pretty straight down. And I'm told if you cut a hole you just drop a post in. So - 6' fence, assuming need to bury post 3' down? (so 9' posts?) The post will be a snug fit (so I'm told) - but what do you fill the gaps with? Or don't bother?

It'll be me and my father helping out - so have 2 "men" :)

Assuming it will take 15-20 mins per panel? (if so - may also do another run of 8 panels whilst we've got the tool on hire)

Advice/things to avoid/and tips most welcome!

[Staffbull]

If you want a proper job then conrete posts with gravel boards at the bottom,.panels slotted into them. Hire a petrol post hole borer and have a mixerfull of concrete for each post to make sure it aint going anywhere, I used 9ft posts with 7ft "out" with 1ft of gravel board and

6ft of vertical panel fence, looks the biz, and when the panels fail I can just slot a new one in :-)

[Steve Walker]

Watch out for the post borer - great fun until it's kicked-back on you a few times.

[JohnDW]

And choose a design that has less wind resistance than those Waney panels...

[Staffbull]

Agreed, I'm over 16st and it flew me round a couple of times :-)

[HLAH]

Shit, I was thinking of hiring one in the next few months. Don't they have some sort of safety clutch?

H

[nightjar]

Fences over 2 metres high require planning permission.

Colin Bignell

[Staffbull]

You are also required to stick to the speed limits, but thousands get done every day !! who cares about 6 in !! :-)

[Stuart Noble]

Concrete gravel boards that slot into the posts make the spacing a doddle I would have thought.

[Matty F]

The cheapskate way that I have always done it is to use a 4" hand operated posthole borer, and bore down 3'. Drop 3"x4"x9' posts in and tamp soil in firmly with a piece of 1" pipe. My fences have lasted 30 years so far without leaning over. If you ever want to pull the posts out one day, there isn't a bloody great lump of concrete on the end of them.

If you do use a powered borer you should hold it so that you can let it go if the handles suddenly start revolving

[Bookworm]

Use the special Fast Post Fixing Concrete mix that Wickes (or others sell).

Drop the post in the hole and get a mate to hold it upright throughout.

Split the bag and pour it down the hole and round the post.

Pour in water from a watering can, (no need to mix). Rock solid in about 3-5mins. Dont believe me? Try it?

[Alan]

I've hired these a few times. They have a centrafugal clutch that engages when the engine speed rises above tickover. The throttle lever *should* be spring loaded so if you let go it instantly returns to tickover and stops.

One of the ones I hired was missing the spring - and didn't stop when let go..... And while boring a 10" hole hit a large flint that caused the argor to stop dead and the machine complete with engine and me hanging on to spin round wildly, whilst trying to get to the throttle (on the opposite handle from me being a 2 man machine) to try and stop it! Several bruses gained that day.

Alan.

[Staffbull]

I beleive you, but how much each? a fiver or so? and for a couple of shovels of concrete!! get a dumpy bag delivered and five bags of the finest portland, and flex ure biceps, it'll save you a fortune :-)

I can never beleive the price they charge for pre mixed stuff, I saw a bag of pre mixed cement in B&Q not long ago for =A37 !!! bloody crazy

[nightjar]

To judge by the boundary disputes that go on, quite a lot of people do. However, I was mainly posting as a warning to the OP. As with speeding, it is a matter of personal choice as to whether to break the law, but it helps if you know what the law is to begin with.

Colin Bignell

[Steve]

I know that it is too expensive but it does a brilliant job when you need to do a quick job.

I used half a bag of "postcrete" per pole to get a rigid support within

15 mins and then filled the rest with wet concrete left to cure.

Result was very good and meant that minimal bracing was adequate to support the posts as the concrete cured.

One tip: ignore the instructions to just pour the mix into a hole half filled with water but find an old bit of wood and give the water postcrete mix a good stir.

Steve

[The Medway Handyman]

£3:49 a bag in Wickes. I agree with Bookworm, bloody wonderfull stuff. Trouble with concrete is the setting time.

Whilst the OP is in Wickes buying the Postcrete I'd suggest buying one of these post hole diggers

and a demolition crowbar use this combination all the time. Post hole digger gives a nice neat tight hole (oooh errr missus) and the crowbar persuades any rocks or stones to give in.

[ryanjjones]

OK - thanks everyone - much apprecaited.

Sorted on the fencing and I am going to hire a post-borer machine

I have 2 people telling me different things;:-

A says: cut a neat 100mm hole 33% as deep as the hight of the fence (e.g. 2' for a 6' fence) and put in a 100mm x 100mm post straight in and dont to anything else

B says: cur a big hole (200mm +) put in post and fill with concrete.

Are both correct or is one wrong?

Note - simple garden fence - live expectancy 5 years minimum. Posts & "Premium" Panels fom Wickes. Posts will be as delivered - e.g. pressure treated from supplier. Note 2 - the last fence put up in 20 mins (ish!!) with metpost and cheap as sh*t panels lasted 10 years.

[e-mail] wrote:

[Andy Hall]

Are you using concrete posts? If not and they are wood then standing them in a solvent preservative is a good plan.

However, since the main cost is labour it makes much more sense to do the job properly and use concrete posts. The wooden posts are going to rot either way and 10yr life is typical.

[The Medway Handyman]

Concrete posts do add a lot to the labour aspect, especially if working alone. Much heavier, anything above about 8' is really a two man lift.

[The Medway Handyman]

Personally I'd concrete them in. Use Postcrete or similar.