Been using a string level for years because I figured magnets were a gimmick. Last week I had to set 80 feet of chain link on a sloped yard in Medford. Borrowed a magnetic one from a buddy and it cut my time by maybe 30 minutes just from not fighting the string sag. Has anyone else switched to a different tool and noticed a bigger change than expected?
Been doing wood posts for 10 years but tried a concrete footing system with a plastic sleeve last month on a 200 foot run. The difference in dig time was huge, went from 6 hours of hole digging down to maybe 2 for the whole thing. Anybody else switch to those sleeve systems and notice a difference in how straight the posts stay after a freeze?
I spent last Tuesday replacing a whole section of fence I put in three years ago with cedar instead. The pine had already started rotting at the post bottoms even though I treated them, and the whole thing convinced me cedar is worth the extra cost up front. Has anyone else made the switch and noticed a big difference in how long their fence lasts?
I was heading to a site near Omaha last Tuesday (about 45 minutes out) and saw this brand new fence along a corn field. Somebody spent good money on materials but the posts were set maybe 8 feet apart, not even close to standard. The whole thing was already sagging between the posts after what looked like a month or two. Have you guys ever had to go back and fix a job where the gaps were just way too wide?
I was at a supply yard last Thursday and overheard a guy telling his buddy that cedar fence posts will outlast anything if you set them right. He claimed his parents had the same cedar fence for 35 years near Springfield and it was still solid. On the other hand, I've had customers swear by steel posts after a bad run with rot and insects. Around here with all the wet springs we get, I've seen cedar go soft in under 10 years. What do you all think about cedar vs steel for posts in damp climates?
I was out on a job last Tuesday up near Bakersfield and my buddy Mike came by to help. He watched me dig a hole and just started laughing. Turns out I was digging my holes way too narrow at the bottom. I always went straight down like a pipe but he showed me you gotta flare the bottom out so the concrete grips better. I felt pretty stupid since I been doing fences since 2014 and nobody ever told me that. The worst part is I complained for years about fences leaning after a few seasons and now I know why. Has anyone else had a basic technique they just never learned right?
I always figured a digger bar was fine for breaking up rocky soil on a fence job in Reno, but I found out from a local soil report that our ground here has a high clay content that actually compresses worse with that tool. Switched to a manual auger with a pilot bit and it cut my digging time by 40 percent on a 20-post run. Has anyone else tried different tools after checking their soil type?
Last spring I pulled out a stretch of fence that was set without any gravel and the bottoms were rotten mush after only three years. Has anyone else had to redo jobs where the original crew cut that corner?
I was grabbing supplies at the local lumber yard in Springfield and heard this old concrete foreman tell his apprentice that most fence guys don't go deep enough. He said 36 inches for a 6 foot panel is the bare minimum if you want it to survive a freeze-thaw cycle. It hit me hard because I've been doing 24 inches for years now and I've had a few leaners. Are any of you running into frost heave issues with shallow holes?
Thought I was saving time with a fancy auger bit for my tractor. Turns out the rocky soil near my barn in Jefferson County just laughed at it. Anyone else had bad luck with those cheap auger attachments?
Was setting posts for a 200ft privacy fence last Tuesday and this retired guy walks over, says my string line method was costing me an hour a day. He showed me how to mark and eyeball it instead, and I got done by 2pm instead of 5pm. Anyone else ditch the string and just go by eye or am I asking for crooked fences down the road?
I was setting posts on a sloped lot near Portland last Tuesday and kept fighting the string line. Looked up a forum post from a guy in Oregon who said leaving a 5 foot gap between posts at the corner lets you level each side separate. I tried it on my next section and cut my setup time by almost half. Any of you do this or stick to the old way?
I was burning through auger bits like crazy until a guy told me to water the ground 6 hours before digging. It softened the soil just enough to get through without snapping anything. Anyone tried this trick in super hard clay conditions?
Been fencing for about 5 years now, mostly in suburban Ohio. Last month I had a customer who insisted on steel posts for their backyard. Said they wanted it to last forever. I tried to talk them into treated pine but they wouldn't budge. After 6 weeks the steel posts started showing rust near the ground where the coating got scratched during install. Meanwhile I've got a job from 3 years ago using wood posts that still look perfect. Has anyone else dealt with customers pushing for steel when wood is clearly the better fit for their situation?
Bought a $30 auger bit off Amazon last spring for a job in Tulsa, figured it'd handle 20 holes no problem. By hole 6 the blade was bent and I spent 2 hours digging the rest by hand with a clamshell. My old $120 Bosch bit from the supply house is still sitting clean in my truck and I should've just used that from the start. Anyone else get burned by cheap augers that can't handle rocky clay?
I was picking up supplies for a job in Naperville and this older fella, Bob, saw me loading quickcrete. He said the best fence he ever built used crushed stone instead of concrete because it lets water drain away from the wood. Been using that method on my last 3 jobs and the posts feel way more solid. Anyone else try this or stick with traditional concrete?
Bought one of those auger attachments for my skid steer from a local dealer in Austin. Thought it would save me tons of time on a big gate job I had lined up. First hole I tried to dig hit a rock shelf and bent the damn thing, dealer wouldn't take it back. Anyone else had better luck with a different brand or am I better just stickin with a manual clam shell?
I keep seeing guys on job sites argue that you should dig and pour all holes before even touching rails, but I've always set my top and bottom rails while the concrete is still wet to keep everything straight, which way is actually faster and more accurate in the long run?
I bought one of those auger attachments for my tractor from a big box store last spring. Thought it would save me hours on a 40-post job I had in rural Ohio. First hole went fine but the second one hit a rock and stripped the shear pin. After replacing it three times and still only getting 8 holes done in a full day I finally borrowed my neighbor's old manual two-man digger. Finished the rest in half the time. Has anyone else had bad luck with those consumer-grade augers?
I was out measuring for a 12 foot driveway gate near Bozeman last week, and the guy told me he'd rather have a crooked gate that swings smooth than a perfectly plumb one that binds up in the wet season. He showed me how his old posts had shifted over 5 years because the concrete base was too rigid for the soil type around here. Anybody else run into situations where you have to compromise on the look to make the function last longer?
I keep seeing guys set gate posts at 24 inches deep on standard 4 foot gates. Then I see other crews going 36 inches minimum no matter what. I just had a job in Phoenix where the soil is rocky clay and I went 30 inches on a 5 foot gate. The gate is holding fine but my buddy swears I'm wasting labor. What depth do you use for a typical gate post and why? Has anyone had a gate sag because they didn't go deep enough?
I was at the lumber yard last Thursday grabbing supplies and heard this guy telling his buddy that you gotta leave like 6 inches of gravel at the bottom of each post hole before the concrete. He said it lets water drain so the wood doesn't rot from the bottom up. Honestly never thought about it that way since I always just dumped concrete straight in. Has anyone else tried this gravel base method and seen it make a difference after a few years?
Last Tuesday I had a job in Bakersfield where the ground was nothing but clay and broken rock. I spent 6 hours trying to set just four posts with a manual auger, and the damn thing kept hitting hardpan at 18 inches. I ended up renting a powered auger for the rest of the week, but that one day set the whole project back. Has anyone else run into soil that bad and found a trick to speed things up?
I was reading through some old industry stats from the American Fence Association last night and found out that 8 foot post spacing is the standard for residential chain link because 70% of tear outs happen when guys push it to 10 feet. But then I talked to a crew in Austin that swears by 10 foot spacing for commercial jobs and says they never have issues. Which side do you lean on and why? Has anyone here had a gate sag from stretching the spacing too far?