mailbox post: concrete or not?

[Fred]

I've been reading contradictory advice on this. For a 4x4 pressure treated mailbox post, does setting it in concrete make it rot faster or slower than setting it in the dirt? Thanks.

[Don Phillipson]

Embedding in concrete and dirt would be similar so far as both will hold moisture close the timber, accelerating rot. The post will last longer if set on large gravel or stones that let moisture drain away from the timber.

You may wish to consider also local rain/snow/ice and the time it takes to dig a large hole for drainage or a small hole for the post alone.

[Steve Barker DLT]

Best to sit them on coarse gravel, then fill with coarse gravel up 4 or so inches on the post, THEN concrete. That leaves the bottom open to drain.

s

[hallerb]

no concrete, if a concreted one gets bumped its near impossible to set it straight, no concrete makes it easy.

I had a mailbox kids liked to take out:( replaced post with a heavy steel I beam. later had to move it, no concrete made it much easier.

the kids respect that post, once they took out 20 or so but didnt touch mine, it would of demolished their car.

the 4 by 4 is likely illegal too, but i got sick and tired of the hassle, and no longer own the home

[RickH]

IMO it really doesn't matter, someone will clip it with their truck before it can ever rot anyway. A nice big boulder on the oncoming traffic side will steer them away.

[Fred]

thanks for all the answers. But is the rock legal? It'd be on public land, whatever the road easement is called. Who's liable for damaging any vehicle? We do have a wacky law situation in the US, after all.

Practical idea, though.

[JIMMIE]

I found an old high pressure seam valve at an auction. It was made of stainless steel and had a big coil spring on the bottom. Cost me about $5.00 USD. I set it in concrete up to the spring. The school bus has backed into it several time pushing it all the way back to the ground without harm. In 20 years everyone else in the neighborhood has replaced theri's. People are still asking me what the heck is that thing.

Jimmie

[aemeijers]

This subject comes up on here at least yearly. As much as people want to have tank traps for mailbox posts, in most areas they are illegal, with varying levels of enforcement. (Usually after county plow guy runs over it in winter, and they bill the homeowner for repairs.) Mine is about due for replacement- I'll probably go with a pre-made breakaway post that drops over a driven pipe. Not one of those fugly rubbermaids that seems to be standard rural issue these days, tho. I'm in a quiet subdivision, with no kid 'mailbox baseball' problems that I have noted in 3 years. If I lived on a busy county 2-laner, I'd likely go with a spring, or a cantilevered design on a break-away pivot, so if the plow tags it, it just gets out of the way. I do note pipe or rebar 'halos' on a lot of the farm mailboxes around here. I imagine that hurts like hell if you swing a bat into one of those in the dark, but the mailbox stays undented and on its mounting plate.

-- aem sends...

[gfretwell]

Concrete is not necessary. Just set it in the dirt and compact it as you backfill.

[Noahbuddy]

Fred wrote in news:g8pjuk$m20$ [e-mail]:

You could get something called a Ground Screw. No dirt, no concrete.

[Red Green]

Fred wrote in news:g8pr9f$i2s$ [e-mail]:

They need to prove it's YOUR rock and YOU put it there. Everyone knows rocks just seem to grow overnight where they are unwanted. And if it is public land then it's their rock on their land.

[SteveB]

Build up around the top of the concrete so it doesn't puddle there. It will last a long time.

[SteveB]

Okay, your story is this: God put the rock there. You had nothing to do with it.

Steve ;-)

[DerbyDad03]

re: I do note pipe or rebar 'halos' on a lot of the farm mailboxes around here. I imagine that hurts like hell if you swing a bat into one of those in the dark.

An option to the halo is this:

- Put a standard size mailbox inside one of those oversized "package" mail boxes.

- Bolt the smaller one into the larger one so it stays centered

- Pour concrete around the smaller one to fill the gap.

- Mount it on the post and wait for someone to hit it with a bat at

30 mph.

[DerbyDad03]

//

34" long would not be below our frost line, although I don't know if that is required for mailboxes.

However, I love how the picture and description makes it sound/look so easy.

What are the odds that the user will actually be able to screw the device 34" into the ground both plumb and level *and* without hitting a root/rock/pipe/etc?

At least with a post hole digger plumb and level is not an issue and I can see into the hole to deal with any obstructions.

Who konws...it might work. Has anybody tried one?

[Chuck Payne]

I have set many mailbox posts in my 74 years. I have found that setting in soil is about the same a setting in concrete - not satisfactory. Both hold moisture to the post resulting in premature rot. Also, the post will invariably loosen with use. You have seen mailbox posts tilting forward, the box sagging at the front. Also, with concrete used to set the post, replacing the post is a monumental pain in the behind.

What to use? Glad you asked. I recommend using stone ballast; that is, NOT smooth, rounded gravel. Rather, use the gray stone that has sharp edges. Stone size should be about 1 to 2 inches in diameter. Why ballast stone? because the sharp edges cause the stones to wedge together and hold firmly, whereas rounded gravel like what you might put down for a driveway or to top-dress a landscaping feature is like marbles - they roll against each other and do not hold together.

Using stone allows the water to drain away from the post. It also allows you to re-stabilize the post if it should become loose, simply by adding and compacting a little more stone. I also recommend using landscaping fabric to line the bottom and sides of the hole, so the stones do not migrate through the soil and away from the post.

[Tony944]

Pressure treated post can last long time But? it needs to be weather treated painted every couple years in the summer when is totally dry so that post can absorb liquid and be well saturated. With out treatment 10-15 years??? pending what part of country you in.

[gfretwell]

Just pack them in the dirt. It is a lot easier to get it out when it is time to replace it. I am about 50:50 on the replacements around here over the last 30 years. Half get replaced as a maintenance issue of some sort, the other half are just mowed down by some moron in the middle of the night. If you want a post that will last forever, use a 6" PVC pipe full of concrete with rebar in it. I may do that myself next time. At least I will get a good look at who hit it while they are waiting for the tow truck. .

[DerbyDad03]

Beside the reinforced post, buy an oversize mailbox, center a normal mailbox inside it and then pour concrete in the gap.

That will be a rude awakening for the next bat-welding moron that takes a swat at it.

[krw]

You need to get posts that are rated for ground contact. They'll last quite some time.