c/fence-erectors

A client's comment about chain link made me think twice

I was finishing a job in Springfield last week, a standard six foot chain link for a dog run. The client, an older guy, watched me and said, 'You know, it's a shame people think this is the cheap option. It's the only one that lets you see through it.' I've always pushed wood or vinyl for looks, but he's right. For a corner lot or a place where you need to keep an eye on kids or traffic, chain link has a real use. It's not just about the price tag. Anyone else run into a situation where the 'ugly' fence was actually the right call?

PSA: I just found out my old boss in Austin had a trick for setting posts in clay that actually works

I was talking to a guy at the lumber yard last week about a job I had in this neighborhood with really thick, red clay. I told him I was fighting it for two days, trying to get six posts set straight. He laughed and said, 'You ever try the potato trick?' I had no idea what he meant. He said his old boss back in Austin would drill the pilot hole, then drop a raw potato down in there before putting the post in. The potato soaks up the water from the wet concrete mix and keeps the clay from sucking all the moisture out too fast. I tried it on a small gate post the next day, and I swear, the concrete set up way more solid than the ones I did before. Has anyone else heard of this or tried something like it for bad soil?

I finally had a client in Denver ask for a 6-foot vinyl fence last week, but their HOA rules only allow 4-foot wood. Do you stick to the code or try to get an exception for them?

Rant: I finally gave up on my old way of setting posts in clay soil

For years, I'd just dig a hole, drop the post in, and pack the dirt back around it. Last month, a job in Franklin had posts leaning after one heavy rain. My boss showed me his method: dig the hole 6 inches deeper, put in 3 inches of crushed stone, set the post, then fill around it with more stone before topping with dirt. The stone lets water drain away from the wood. Those Franklin posts are still straight. Has anyone tried something similar with really wet ground?

Shoutout to the crew I saw using a laser level for a long vinyl run

Last week I was driving through a new subdivision in Springfield and saw a crew putting up a long section of vinyl privacy fence. What caught my eye was they had a rotary laser level set up on a tripod about fifty feet down the line. I pulled over to watch for a minute, which probably looked weird, but I had to see. They were using it to set the top rail perfectly level before even hanging a single picket. The foreman told me they started doing it on commercial jobs about three years back and it cut their time on long runs by almost a full day because they never have to go back and adjust sagging rails. I tried it myself on a 150-foot backyard job yesterday and it was a game changer. No more running a string line and having it get bumped. Has anyone else switched to using a laser for setting rails, or do you stick with the old string method?

Pro tip: I was setting posts in clay for a decade before a guy in Boise showed me his gravel trick

He packs pea gravel around the base after the concrete sets, says it drains water away and stops the post from rotting. Anyone else use this method for wet ground?

Warning: I thought those new composite fence posts were just a fad

A client in Springfield insisted on them for a 150-foot run last fall, and I was sure they'd be flimsy. After a full winter with heavy snow and ice, they haven't budged or warped a bit, while my usual cedar posts in the same area have shifted. Has anyone else put these through a real test over a couple of seasons?

I finally had a post hole digger shear a pin on a rocky slope in Asheville

Was setting a line of cedar posts on a steep backyard job last Tuesday when the auger hit a hidden granite shelf. The shear pin snapped with a loud crack, and the whole unit started to twist. I had to shut it down fast and ended up hand-digging the last two feet with a rock bar, which added about 3 hours to the day. Has anyone found a better shear pin setup or a different method for really rocky ground like that?

I finally gave up on that cheap post hole digger from the hardware store

Honestly, it snapped on the third post trying to get through some clay in Springfield. That was $60 down the drain and half a morning wasted. What manual digger do you guys actually trust for tough soil?

I used to think chain link was just for cheap jobs until a project in Tacoma

Got a call for a big chain link job around a community garden in Tacoma last spring. I figured it would be a quick, boring install. But the head gardener had a specific vision, wanting it to be both secure and look good for the neighborhood. We ended up using a dark green vinyl coating on the mesh and putting in these really nice aluminum posts with finials. Seeing it all finished, with the plants starting to grow up against it, completely changed my view. It looked clean, professional, and fit the space perfectly. Now I see chain link as a solid option when you pick the right materials. Anyone else have a job that made you rethink a material you used to avoid?

I found a way to keep my post hole digger from clogging in heavy clay, and it saved me an hour on a job in Springfield.

We were setting posts for a 200-foot cedar fence and the ground was that thick, sticky clay. Every other scoop, the digger would just pack solid and I'd have to stop and scrape it out with a trowel. My buddy, who's been doing this for 30 years, told me to keep a 5-gallon bucket of water nearby and dip the blades in between holes. It sounds too simple, but it worked. The water made the clay slide right off. Has anyone else tried this, or have a different trick for that kind of soil?

Update: Tried that 'no-dig' post driver on a rocky lot in Boulder and bent the shaft on the third post.

The ground there is basically river rock, so the tool just bounced and twisted. Anyone have a better method for setting posts in pure gravel?

The difference in my post hole digger work after switching to a manual auger

I used to always rent a gas powered auger for any job with more than ten posts, thinking it saved time. Last month, I took on a small backyard fence in Springfield with only eight posts, so I decided to try my old manual auger to save the rental fee. The first two holes were tough, I won't lie, my arms felt it. But by the third hole, I got into a rhythm and the soil was pretty soft. The crazy thing was, I finished setting all eight posts in under three hours, which is about what the gas one would take with setup and hauling. The holes were cleaner, with less mess to clean up around the top, and I wasn't fighting a machine that wanted to jump around. It made me rethink when I really need the power tool. Has anyone else gone back to manual tools for smaller jobs and been surprised?

I used to laugh at the idea of a post driver until a job in Galveston

A crew I was helping with a big chain link job swore by their gas powered post driver, said it cut their time in half. I thought it was just a fancy toy for people who didn't like a good old sledgehammer. They let me try it on a corner post, and I drove a 6-foot post in about 30 seconds without breaking a sweat. My arms were grateful after setting 40 posts that day. What other tools did you think were silly until you actually used them?

I was driving through a historic neighborhood in Savannah and noticed all the original wrought iron fences are still standing after a century.

It got me thinking about how we build things now versus then, and what kind of fence I put up today will still be there in 50 years, you know?

Just figured out I've been setting posts wrong for a decade, a client's dog showed me

Noticed a big change in how long my cedar pickets last after switching to a different post treatment

I used to get about 7 years before rot set in at the ground line on my standard pressure-treated pine posts. Last fall, I switched to using a copper naphthenate paste on the below-grade section before setting them. The difference in the wood's condition after just one wet season is night and day. Anyone else have a go-to method for extending post life?

Finally bit the bullet on a proper post driver and it saved my back this week

Honestly, I've been using a sledgehammer and a block of wood for years, but this big cedar fence job had over 80 posts. I spent about $350 on a manual post driver from a local supplier. It took maybe ten posts to get the hang of the weight and drop, but after that, I was setting them plumb in half the time with zero shoulder ache. Has anyone else switched from the old sledge method and noticed a big difference on longer runs?

That job in Phoenix where we hit solid rock 8 inches down on every single post hole for a 200-foot run

We had to switch from the auger to a jackhammer attachment, which added 2 full days to the schedule and completely blew the budget, so what's your go-to plan when you hit unexpected rock - do you eat the cost and power through, or stop and renegotiate the contract with the client?

Why does nobody talk about the 6-inch gap rule for corner posts?

I was fixing a fence in Tulsa last month that kept leaning, and the original guy had set the corner post right against the property line. That meant the brace post had to go on the neighbor's side, so they never installed it. After 2 years, the whole corner gave out. Now I always measure back at least 6 inches from the pin for any corner. Has anyone else seen a fence fail because the posts were set too tight to the line?

Had to set a post in solid rock on a job outside Sedona last month.

The ground was basically solid sandstone and my normal auger just bounced off. I was about to rent a rock drill, but my buddy said to try a cheap masonry bit on my hammer drill first. We drilled a bunch of small holes in a circle, broke out the center with a chisel, and had a clean hole in about 20 minutes. It saved us a full day of work and a couple hundred bucks in rental fees. Has anyone else found a good way to dig post holes in rock without heavy gear?

Warning: I found out the average fence post hole needs way more concrete than I thought

I read a spec sheet from a lumber supplier that said a standard 4x4 post in a 2-foot hole needs a full 60-pound bag of mix, not the half-bag I'd been using. Anyone else run into this and have a good method for mixing on site without a mixer?

Question about those cheap post hole digger augers

Bought a $90 auger bit online for my skid steer, said it was for rocky soil. Snapped the flighting clean off on the third post hole in my own clay-heavy yard. Lost a full morning's work and the cost of the part. Anyone have a brand that actually holds up?

Always thought those little post leveling jigs were a waste of money

I was setting a line of 40 pickets on a slope in Springfield last month and the posts kept shifting in the concrete. My buddy lent me his plastic leveling bracket, the kind that screws to the post and stakes into the ground. It held everything dead straight while the mix set. Saved me at least an hour of checking and adjusting. Anyone have a cheaper DIY version that works just as well?

Finished a 300-foot cedar fence in two days flat

Honestly, this past Tuesday and Wednesday were just perfect. The weather held, my crew showed up early, and we had zero issues with the ground on that new build in Oak Hill. We pre-cut all the pickets Monday night and used my old Makita impact driver for every single screw. Ngl, the client came out on the second afternoon and just said 'You guys work like a machine.' Has anyone else had one of those dream runs where everything just clicks?