Creosote or concrete?

[Beaux Duke]

The posts for my front gate are pretty much gone and I need to replace them soon. I could go with creosote I suppose which in all likelihood would outlast me but for some reason I have got this urge to build some nice, big concrete posts. Nothing fancy, say 6 inches by 6 inches. The current gate is light weight but I might upgrade to something more substantial later. I have never done any serious concrete work and have no experience with concrete posts. For all I know they may not be such a good idea.

Would a novice be foolhardy taking on such a project? Or would prefab be a better idea? Creosote would surely be faster. Either way I want to get 20+ years of service

 

[Industrial Toys]

Wood is such a temporary (garbage) material. It does exactly as nature intended. It rots. Where does anyone get creosote? I'd buy a barrel of the stuff! I love it. Especially the smell.

Go concrete, if you don't want to have to do it again.

 

[Jw5875]

You could buy some "sono-tubes" in 6" dia. and fill them up with concrete and rebar.
Set the tubes 2' into the ground. ie: 8' tube would give you a 6' post.
There is a calculator for how much concrete that you will need for each tube.
After concrete cures, peel away sono-tube and seal concrete post.
You might be able to put the gate pins into the sides of sono tubes before you fill them.
Sorta like doing forms for light posts in parking lots.

jw5875

 

[Tractor Seabee]

If you live close to a city there may be a concrete specialty company that fabs rebar. They usually have pre-made rebar cages to go into various sizes of sonotube; best way to reinforce. May find it on the web also. Presetting the hinge pins anchored to the rebar is also a good idea.

Ron

 

[3 Horse Ranch]

You could also think about masonry blocks, filling the cores with rebar and grout if you want extra strength. For a finishing touch of class, whether sonotube concrete or masonry you could cover it with a stone veneer product.

 

[oosik]

I have two gates on my mile long driveway - inner and outer. The four gate posts are railroad ties obtained in 1982 when I had the driveway built. They were brand new - never uses - rail road ties in 1982 and you can still smell the creosote treatment on a hot summer day. They are full ten foot ties buried five feet - five feet exposed. I would estimate, based upon their current rate of degradation after 35 years - they will probably still be around, holding up the two gates 120 years from now. When I redid the mile and a half of four strand barbed wire fence around my 80 acres - there were still about 6 to 12 wood fence posts that were structurally sound. I later determined these were cedar posts - most likely obtained from somewhere further north here in WA state.

 

[Egon]

You might find concrete water pipe that could be utilized.??
Example of precast catch basin.
[video]http://www.concastpipe.com/products/catch-basins/[/video]

Concrete/Masonary would be one way to go. Using rock for cladding could make for an impressive post.

 

[fried1765]

The posts for my front gate are pretty much gone and I need to replace them soon. I could go with creosote I suppose which in all likelihood would outlast me but for some reason I have got this urge to build some nice, big concrete posts. Nothing fancy, say 6 inches by 6 inches. The current gate is light weight but I might upgrade to something more substantial later. I have never done any serious concrete work and have no experience with concrete posts. For all I know they may not be such a good idea.

Would a novice be foolhardy taking on such a project? Or would prefab be a better idea? Creosote would surely be faster. Either way I want to get 20+ years of service

Pressure treated marine pilings - short pieces ......(cut offs?)
Marine grade pressure treated pilings will likely last 40 years.
Much less work than sonotubes, and concrete!

 

[davedj1]

You can buy concrete filled pipes at the lumber yard, they are called lolli columns. Just weld on some pins for hinges.

 

[Soundguy]

Pressure treated marine pilings - short pieces ......(cut offs?)
Marine grade pressure treated pilings will likely last 40 years.
Much less work than sonotubes, and concrete!

Agreed, and the correct wood, like cypress, or imersion boiled cresote will last a loooong time too.