how deep do I need to plant a 4m high pole?

[Bob Minchin]

Standard Scaff is 1 & 29/32" so a nice rattling fit in 2" or 50mm bore

Bob

[Skipweasel]

Depends on the garden and the wife. Our garden isn't well suited to a whirlygig and neither is the wife.

[Bob Martin]

We have a rotary washing line which is at least 60 years old (and still working well). It is of a much heavier construction than today's flimsy-looking things.

[The Medway Handyman]

What makes a wife unsuitable for a whirlygig?

[Jules Richardson]

33% of total length - that's what I was always told and so what I usually go by with posts, but I don't know if it's any kind of "industry standard" :-) Others have mentioned 25% and maybe that's fine (although a scaffold pole + damp washing in the wind will be a fair old force trying to pull things over, I'd think)

;-) Yeah, it's a monster of a setup - the lines are all solid fencing wire several mm thick, too. Bet it was put in by previous owners decades ago.

cheers

Jules

[Jules Richardson]

33% of total length - that's what I was always told and so what I usually go by with posts, but I don't know if it's any kind of "industry standard" :-) Others have mentioned 25% and maybe that's fine (although a scaffold pole + damp washing in the wind will be a fair old force trying to pull things over, I'd think)

;-) Yeah, it's a monster of a setup - the lines are all solid fencing wire several mm thick, too. Bet it was put in by previous owners decades ago.

cheers

Jules

[Skipweasel]

Cerebral palsy - she likes the line to stay still when she leans on it for support rather than flip her into next door's garden.

[PeterC]

Oh, the mental image of a flying Squid!

[Skipweasel]

More of a flollop than flight.

[pintofmince]

Man you people talk some shit. I'll go with 30%. Thanks

[Brian Gaff]

Do they have poles in the team then? Brian

[dr.s.lartius]

That depends on the solidity of the local soil and subsoil, on the mass of the washing, on the "sail area" of the washing and the exposure to local wind, and on the degree of line sag allowable. For the last point, persuade SWMBO to put socks and undies in the middle, and bedclothes at the ends.

Local geography and SWMBO permitting, you should consider putting guylines (slope about 45 degrees) at one or both ends. A single in-line guy may suffice in a sheltered location; a pair splayed at +-30 degrees (more in non-English UK and in Cornwall) will be better - like a ridge tent but without canvas.

For posterity, plant a pair of trees to use as posts. I was once told, in Finland, that lightweight Finnish tents do not have poles, just a length of rope at each end - because, in Finland, one can always find a pair of suitable trees.

[Martin Bonner]