Question about my crooked fence post I fixed last weekend
I put in a new wooden fence post three years ago and it started leaning bad after the first winter. Last Saturday I watched a video where a guy used a gravel layer at the bottom instead of just dirt and concrete, so I dug mine out and redid it that way. Has anyone else tried this method and had it hold up longer over time?
That gravel layer trick sounds familiar. I tried it on my own post after my first one looked like the Leaning Tower of Pisa after one season. Digging it out again was brutal, I was cussing like a sailor. But it's been two winters now and that post is still straight as an arrow. I'm almost scared to touch it again, might jinx the whole thing.
Yeah the gravel thing works but you gotta get the depth right too. I dug my post three feet down and put six inches of gravel at the bottom before the concrete. That drainage is key for frost heave. But here's the thing - you also need a bell shape at the bottom of your hole, wider at the bottom than the top. If you just pour concrete straight down it can still tilt even with gravel. I learned that the hard way on my second post.