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?

4 comments

4 Comments

david_jones381mo ago

But doesn't that just push the water problem deeper into the ground?

vera_johnson91mo ago

Ever think about what kind of stone you're using? In my experience, not all crushed stone is the same. Some gravel holds water like a sponge and defeats the whole purpose. I look for clean, washed stone with no fine dust in it. That stuff lets the water pass through fast so it doesn't just sit there. Your boss has the right idea, but the material choice makes or breaks it.

murphy.mason1mo agoMost Upvoted

Honestly @vera_johnson9, you're making it sound like we're building a spaceship. It's a ditch. I've seen guys use the cheap stuff from the yard and it works fine for years. Water still goes somewhere, it's not like it turns into a swimming pool overnight. Maybe for a fancy project you need that clean stone, but for most driveways? Seems like overthinking it to me.

the_alice1mo ago

Vera_johnson9 probably has a point, but man, I'm out here just trying to make sure my car doesn't float away in the driveway puddle, not engineering a drainage system for NASA lol. I tried the cheap gravel once and ended up with a mini swamp that smelled like wet dog for a month. Guess my DIY skills are about as solid as my attempts at baking bread during quarantine. Vera_johnson9, you're talking to someone who once used kitty litter for traction in a pinch, so your professional gravel advice is probably wasted on me. At this point, if the water drains at all, I call it a win even if it takes three days.