I know there are all sorts of preservatives in B&Q etc for painting on fence posts but isnt there a longer term solution like coating the part below ground with something to stop water soaking in to the posts, like a plastic coating. I am basing my enquiry on the basis of thinking most of the bog standard preservatives are so enviromentally friendly they probably are not really much good.
Any thoughts or ideas on this.
In message , ss wrote
Leave the post standing in a bucket of old engine oil/paraffin for a week. Daily coat the post to "ground level" using an old paint brush
When concreting into the ground take the concrete an inch above ground level and taper it for water run off.
A) Fill base of hole with a load of stones .. compact, fit post then backfill ... allows water to drain rather collect and be socked up by end of post
B) buy pots with vac/pressure treated .. not just dipped. Plus a supplier who does this with high volume of salts.
C) create a small holder ( I used 6" plastic drain pipe) .. and have the post ends stand in preservative for at least 48 Hrs. They need to be dry before you put them in to soak.
D) .. do I what I did fit concrete H section posts, and fit wood between them, paint with Santdtex in colour to match wood - I mixed my own .. unless you go real close you do not know they are not wood. They will not rot, and also will not blow or over or work loose
Use concrete posts. They should last about 70 years.
Colin Bignell
Yes, you don't want wooden posts going into the ground in the first place, at least, not if you're attaching a large wind sail (a.k.a. a fence panel) to them.
25 years ago, I used fence post sockets, which hold the post above the ground. You could get spiked ones you hammer in, or ones to be concreted in. These have worked extremely well, and the untreated unpainted timber posts are still rock solid.Unfortunately, all the fence post sockets I've seen recently are completely crap in comparison with the ones I bought 25 years ago (Fensock was the make), so I don't know that this is quite as viable now. I tried Metapost, and they just don't grip the posts properly. The Fensock ones have a pair of clamp bolts, and haven't rusted. The Metapost ones are already rusty in the builder's merchant's yard.
In addition to the other options mentioned, you might consider the concrete post spurs, which you concrete into the ground with a couple of feet above, and bolt the post to them using coach bolts through the holes. Again, this would probably work by holding the posts above the ground.
all I can say is that all the wood posts I have which were in concrete rotted but the ones a bit longer but put into earth seem not to have done. Brian
Something tells me these will be a waste of money, but by then you won't remember that you used them. I've known people char the bottom of posts but IME nothing makes much difference. As Dave says the problem lies AT ground level, not below ground.
Or clad them in tanalised rough sawn timber - gravel boards are ideal if a bit wide. Then they look like solid timber.
In article , ss writes
At my last house I drilled a 1/4" dia. hole into the posts about 4" above ground level and angled about 45degrees downwards. Each year I squirted 'Cuprinol' into each hole to fill it. Each hole was plugged with a short piece of dowel left protruding by about 1/4". Posts are still there after 30 years. Don't know if that sort of 'Cuprinol ' is still available.
In message , Chris Holford writes
In article , Ian Jackson writes snip
Great minds....! ISTR posting something similar a few months ago, -or did I only think about doing so... -getting forgetful in my old age. Anyway the method does seem to work well if you remember to do it each year.
I fitted gravel boards .. and then fence on top
If you want to use wooden posts, then get decent pressure treated ones to start with, and avoid cutting them.
I've used
I assume similar companies are all over the place - no connection with Jacksons other than being a happy customer! :-)
Darren
I use concrete spurs naked, and they work fine. But then we're on sand.
Andy
Too much information.
In article , Adam Funk writes snip
Indeed! I did this to the ends of the 3" square bearers which supported the floor of my old shed.
Yeah, they aren't cheap. Depends what you are after, and when you order. I found our fence to be reasonable price - compared to local timber yards for decent wood anyway.
Never looked at their gates, but have heard elsewhere that they are pricy.
I'm sure there are plenty of other places offering similar. I only mentioned Jacksons as an example I know of :-)
Darren
.... was in the sig. Whoosh!
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