Depending upon the amount of moisture in the soil, it can take up to 45 minutes to complete the 3-foot hole; a blessing of the great rains of late has meant a digging time of 'only' about 20 to 30 minutes.
Once the hole is complete and the pole is thrown down the hole, it is necessary to ensure that it is in alignment with the others. To do this, I string up some bailing twine from one corner post to the other as a line-of-sight gauge.
Once the post is aligned properly, filling the hole commences. Some folks prefer to use concrete or pea gravel to add strength and sturdiness. However, a buddy of mine who has strung up about 2,000 miles of fence across Oklahoma and Texas clued me in to a better system. I slowly add back layers of the fill dirt and tamp it down with a 25-pound spud bar. (As you can imagine, this is where patience and stamina really come in to play.) However, once all of the dirt is pounded back in (this takes about an hour on a hot day), the post is SET and isn't going anywhere. In fact, if feels as if it is set in concrete, only without the expense--and without knowing that I'll have to dig all of it out if I need to replace or remove the post in the future!
The other trick to keep in mind is the H-brace. This is done to conserve the tension on the fence and prevent the posts from leaning over time. I used a couple of nails and hung 1" conduit on them between the posts and I'll soon add some diagonal barbed wire or brace wire (from the bottom of one post to the top of the other) and twist it until both of them are snug against the pipe.
The finished product! I know it ain't pretty--it may not even be straight--but it's mine! (Of course, the milk jug is not part of the fence; I'll remove that at some point.)
Well, I reckon that is about all for to-day. BUT DON'T CRY--I'll post some more soon!
4 comments:
Nice work. Brings back hot memories. On the bright side, you get to use a hole digger instead of a pick-axe.
Good tip about the packed dirt instead of concrete, you might even mix a little portland in with it, but then again it doesn't look like it needs it.
Yeah, I have to admit, my buddy was right. I was pleasantly surprised at how tightly and sturdy it packs in with just the spud bar and the original dirt. We'll see how it fares after ten years of goat wire hanging on it, though...
I know this is going to sound odd, but that looks like a lot of fun, Matt. I know it is probably too hot to really say that and mean it, but I've always enjoyed getting outside and working. Maybe I can come out some day and give you a hand (if it is more than a one-man job).
I love the picture of Ashlee and Gracie Mae. . .hilarious.
Post a Comment