Fencing and Posts

   / Fencing and Posts #21  
I put up a lot of fence and a 6"-7" x 8ft PT post every 50 ft, 7ft heavy T posts every 10 ft. Wire stretched super tight I put 10" up. Every bend three posts 5ft apart with 4" post at top, cross ratchet/wire strapped and at gates.
 
   / Fencing and Posts #22  
Very few use wood posts around here. 10 to 20 year life - maybe. T-posts is the normal way folks go. I fenced my 80 acres with T-145 posts. They are a very HD post and survived well. I installed the fence in 1982. 665 T-145 posts. 28 rolls of Eversharp barbed wire. Also called Redshank.

Brother - am I ever glad I did that 40 years ago. It was a real PITA - even 40 years ago.
 
   / Fencing and Posts #23  
I'm a bit surprised by the negative comments on wood posts. I guess it's a regional thing because I've had great luck with round wood posts in the ground. My soil is acidic red clay, my climate is humid with an average of almost 60 inches of rain in a year. It's not uncommon to get a few thunderstorms that drop 3 inches in an hour or two a few times a year. One inches of rain from a thunder storm is common.

In my experience, I've neve seen a wood post of any kind rotted out in the ground. In every case, the part that in the ground is always pristine. Almost brand new looking. The rot is always at ground level, where the water sits around the base of the post after it rains. Usually this is a low area that doesn't drain. When I replace these posts, I build up the soil or concrete so the water flows away from the post. In the last couple of years, I've removed several of my wood posts to change the location of my fence, and 100% of them where in perfect condition, even though some of them have been in the ground 20 years. Some have only been in the ground 10 years. They are also mixed between being set in concrete and packed dirt. The ones in dirt come out easier then pulling T posts. The ones in concrete take the most effort to get out.

All of my wood posts are round. The worse post for anything is a treated 4x4 because they twist and bend more then anything else. They used to be fine, but when all the changes happened to how they had to be made, they are no longer worth using. I'm not even comfortable with 4x6 treated posts for anything higher then a foot or two above grade.

For staples, I'm still hammering in the barbed staples. I looked at a few of the staple guns out there, but the barbed staples that I saw where not hot dipped galvanized, and they where thinner then the ones I'm hammering in manually. Some of them will only take smooth staples, which I believe are worthless.

To make it a little easier, I have a tool that holds the staple while I get them started. They staple fits into a slot, and after you place the staple, you hammer the tool until it's started. Something that surprised me was how important a good hammer is. I have several hammers, and I started out using a solid wood handles hammer. But my forearms started hurting so bad that I almost gave up, but then I tried my Bostic framing hammer with a rubber type handle for the gripping area, and all the pain I was having when hammering wasn't there.
 
   / Fencing and Posts #24  
My 80 acres is a pure rectangle - 1320x2640. The homesteader had the property fenced. Some of the heaviest flat barbed - barbed wire I've ever seen. Fortunately - the corner posts were a very resilient wood. Perhaps - cedar or black locust. The remainder of the posts - long gone.

I have an idea why so few use wood posts around these parts. T-posts are so much easier to pound in. The wood posts around here are from wood that, simply, has a short life span. The majority of fencing, in these parts, is to control cattle - not horses.

My fence line goes thru a wet area. It's either wet or the water is 2 to 3 feet deep - most of the year. The T-posts will only last 6 to 8 years thru this area. They "rust off" right at the ground level. So...... every five years or so. I go down to this area - called the "moat" - and pound in new T-posts. The idea being - pound in new posts before the existing ones fall over.
 
   / Fencing and Posts #25  
EddieWalker said:
I'm a bit surprised by the negative comments on wood posts. I guess it's a regional thing because I've had great luck with round wood posts in the ground. My soil is acidic red clay, my climate is humid with an average of almost 60 inches of rain in a year. It's not uncommon to get a few thunderstorms that drop 3 inches in an hour or two a few times a year. One inches of rain from a thunder storm is common.

In my experience, I've neve seen a wood post of any kind rotted out in the ground. In every case, the part that in the ground is always pristine. Almost brand new looking. The rot is always at ground level, where the water sits around the base of the post after it rains. Usually this is a low area that doesn't drain. When I replace these posts, I build up the soil or concrete so the water flows away from the post. In the last couple of years, I've removed several of my wood posts to change the location of my fence, and 100% of them where in perfect condition, even though some of them have been in the ground 20 years. Some have only been in the ground 10 years. They are also mixed between being set in concrete and packed dirt. The ones in dirt come out easier then pulling T posts. The ones in concrete take the most effort to get out.

All of my wood posts are round. The worse post for anything is a treated 4x4 because they twist and bend more then anything else. They used to be fine, but when all the changes happened to how they had to be made, they are no longer worth using. I'm not even comfortable with 4x6 treated posts for anything higher then a foot or two above grade.

For staples, I'm still hammering in the barbed staples. I looked at a few of the staple guns out there, but the barbed staples that I saw where not hot dipped galvanized, and they where thinner then the ones I'm hammering in manually. Some of them will only take smooth staples, which I believe are worthless.

To make it a little easier, I have a tool that holds the staple while I get them started. They staple fits into a slot, and after you place the staple, you hammer the tool until it's started. Something that surprised me was how important a good hammer is. I have several hammers, and I started out using a solid wood handles hammer. But my forearms started hurting so bad that I almost gave up, but then I tried my Bostic framing hammer with a rubber type handle for the gripping area, and all the pain I was having when hammering wasn't there.
Click to expand...
Can you share a photo or link to your staple holder? I'm with you on staples; heavily galvanized with barbs is the way to go.

I switched to a Fiskars anti-vibration hammer, and I'm not going back. It is sooo much easier on me. (Ok, I was too cheap to buy it, but it was gifted to me one year. I would buy it another in a heart beat. Lifetime warranty, too.)

Fiskars® Pro IsoCore™ 16 oz Finishing Hammer (13.5") | Fiskars

Great for adding trim, mounting cabinets or any detail work, this finishing hammer features our patented IsoCore™ Shock Control System to reduce shock and vibration by 4X.
www.fiskars.com www.fiskars.com

All the best,

Peter
 
   / Fencing and Posts #27  
I use this staple starter/holder, works quit well.

Staple Starter Standard

Staple Starter-Driver is very simple to use and has no moving parts to damage. Just insert the staple into the slot and hammer on the pin (instead of your finger!)Prevents staples from mushrooming when driving into hardwoods. Simply insert the staple into the slot and hammer. A few additional...
kencove.com kencove.com

And I use double barb staples.
 
   / Fencing and Posts #28  
MAX-24-Dean said:
I use this staple starter/holder, works quit well.

Staple Starter Standard

Staple Starter-Driver is very simple to use and has no moving parts to damage. Just insert the staple into the slot and hammer on the pin (instead of your finger!)Prevents staples from mushrooming when driving into hardwoods. Simply insert the staple into the slot and hammer. A few additional...
kencove.com kencove.com

And I use double barb staples.
Click to expand...

That’s the one I use. It’s been great!!!
 
   / Fencing and Posts #29  
GREAT THREAD!

We too, are looking for fencing.

We have 15 acres, wooded, with 2 acres cleared for our homesight we are building. We will do a nice fence around the "yard", with a nice road frontage fence, stone pillars and nice gate along the frontage road. I am looking at T Pole Fencing around the perimeter of our property. We have two 6 yr old German Shepherds that will be out and about on the property. They stay very close to us when outdoors, but I just don't want them to be tempted to stray.

I'm also looking at 8-10' centers between the T Poles.
 
   / Fencing and Posts #30  
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