Had a conversation with a old school fence guy about post hole diggers

He told me he still uses a manual digger for every job even on big commercial projects. Said power augers mess up the soil too much and make posts shift later on. I been using a power auger for 5 years and never thought about that, am I missing something?

2 comments

2 Comments

jenniferwells27d ago

Honestly, "power augers mess up the soil too much" is something I've heard a few old timers say too, and it makes a ton of sense when you think about it. Ngl, I never really questioned my power auger either until a buddy pointed out how much compaction happens around the hole. Tbh, I'm kinda rethinking my whole setup now because that's a solid point about posts shifting.

troy_adams27d ago

Yeah but hold on, power augers aren't all bad. I've seen guys dig perfect holes with them in clay soil no problem. The real issue is people rushing and not letting the auger do the work, yanking it out too fast and turning the walls into glass. I dug a fence line last summer with a two-man auger, took it slow, let the spoils come out natural, tamped the post in with gravel not dirt, and it's solid as a rock still. Just gotta know your soil and slow down, you know.