c/fence-erectors

I thought those new composite post anchors were just a marketing thing

A supply house in Boise gave me a sample pack of six to try on a small backyard job last month. I was sure they would wobble or pull out in our clay soil after a winter. Well, we just had that big wind storm and the fence line is still perfectly straight, no lean at all. The install was faster too, since you don't have to mix concrete. Has anyone else switched to these for a full season yet? I'm curious about long-term wear.

A homeowner in Austin asked me why I was setting posts with concrete instead of gravel, and I had to stop and think.

Just read that a 6-foot cedar fence can add over $7k to a property's value in some markets

Found that stat in a real estate report from Austin, Texas. Does that track with what you guys have seen from your installs?

Had a 4-foot section of vinyl fence buckle like an accordion on a job in Tampa last month. Was it the heat or a bad install?

Unpopular opinion: the new composite posts are a step back from the old ones

I just replaced a 5-year-old composite fence in Austin and the new posts were way more brittle during install. Has anyone else seen a drop in quality, or did I just get a bad batch?

That time a post hole collapsed on me in wet clay soil

I was setting a line for a privacy fence in Portland last spring, and the ground was still soaked from rain. I dug down about 2 feet for a corner post when the whole side of the hole just caved in, burying my auger bit. I had to stop, pull the auger out by hand, and pack the hole with gravel from my truck before I could even think about pouring concrete. It added like an extra hour to that one spot. Anyone have a better trick for keeping holes open in super wet dirt?

The day we had to dig 80 post holes by hand in that old cemetery

Got a job about six years back to replace the fence around a small family cemetery out near the county line. The ground was so full of roots and old rubble that the auger on the skid steer just bounced right off. We ended up with five guys, two manual post hole diggers, and a whole lot of blisters over three days. What made it stand out was the quiet, you know? No machines, just the sound of digging and the guy from the historical society telling stories about the folks buried there. Anyone else ever get stuck on a job where the modern tools just wouldn't work?

A homeowner in Denver told me my post hole spacing was off by a foot

He said it made the fence line look wavy from the street. I started using a 25-foot tape and marking every spot before digging, not just eyeballing it. Do you guys double-check your spacing or trust your initial layout?

Shoutout to my uncle who told me to always dig the post holes 6 inches deeper than code in our clay soil

I argued it was overkill, but after that big freeze last winter, my fence was the only one on the block that didn't heave, so who's laughing now?

Set a post in concrete that was 2 degrees off and now the whole run is crooked

My level battery died in the middle of a 40-foot cedar fence job in Spokane last month, so I eyeballed one post. Anyone have a good trick for fixing a lean without pulling the whole thing?

A trick with a string line saved my bacon on a sloped job in Denver

We were setting posts for a 200 foot cedar fence on a steep hill, and my usual level was useless. My buddy, who's been doing this for 30 years, told me to run a string line from the top post to the bottom post and just keep the posts touching the string. It sounds too simple, but it kept the whole run perfectly straight and the tops lined up for the rails. Anyone else have a go-to method for keeping posts straight on a serious slope?

Hot take: I swore by using a 6-foot level for every post until a rocky slope in Boulder ate up a whole afternoon.

What finally convinced me was watching an old timer set a perfect line in ten minutes using just a string level and a plumb bob, so now I ask, what's your go-to trick for uneven ground?

TIL my old way of setting post concrete in winter was a total mess

Had a job in early January for a privacy fence in Grand Rapids, the ground was frozen solid. I always used to just mix the concrete with hot water and pour it in, thinking that would be enough to set. Well, last week I came back to check on a section and three posts had heaved up almost two inches from the frost. The whole line looked like a roller coaster. I had to pull them, dig deeper, and use that insulated foam form stuff around the base before re-pouring. Cost me an extra day and about $200 in materials I didn't plan for. Anyone else run into this and have a better method for cold weather sets?

Remember trying to set a line through that old rock wall in Burlington?

Hit a seam of solid granite about three feet down that the probe missed, and it took us two full days with a demo hammer to clear it instead of the planned three hours. I mean, we used to just muscle through stuff like that, but now I'm looking at small rock drills for next time. Anyone have a model they like for tight spots like that?

Update: My trick for setting posts in wet ground without a concrete truck

Had a job last month in Portland where the whole yard was basically a swamp after rain. Couldn't get a concrete truck back there and mixing bags by hand for 20 posts was a nightmare. I started using a 5 gallon bucket with a big hole cut in the bottom as a form. I'd set the post, slide the bucket down around it, and fill the bucket with dry concrete mix from the bag. The ground water seeps up and sets it perfectly over a couple days. Saved me hours of labor and mixing. Anyone else have a go-to method for wet soil installs?

Worst day ever was a 90-foot cedar fence in a Kansas windstorm

Got a job near Wichita last spring, supposed to be simple. Wind picked up to 50 mph while we were setting the 6x6 posts. Had three panels, about 30 feet total, just snap and blow over before we could brace them right. Cost me a full day and about $400 in ruined wood. Anyone ever had to salvage a job after weather wrecked it like that?

Trying to set a post in that dense, rocky soil up near Boulder added a full day to a simple 3-day job.

We ended up having to rent a pneumatic hammer drill for half a day and go through three carbide bits just to get six holes dug deep enough, so has anyone found a better method for that kind of ground?

A client in Denver told me my post holes looked like a drunk squirrel dug them

Honestly, I was setting posts for a cedar fence last month and thought I was doing fine. The homeowner came out, pointed at my holes, and said they were all over the place and looked like a drunk squirrel did the work. He was right, they were a bit off my usual line. I started using two strings instead of one, a main line and a parallel guide line exactly 8 inches out. Ngl, it added maybe 20 minutes to the layout but the posts went in perfectly straight. Has anyone else had a client call them out on something simple that you just got lazy about?

Showerthought: I saw a cedar fence go from gray to green in under a year because the homeowner insisted on no sealant.

Installed it for a client in a damp, shaded part of Seattle. The constant moisture and lack of any protective coating just let algae and moss take over completely. What's the fastest you've seen a material degrade when someone skipped a basic step?

Just hit 500 linear feet of vinyl fencing installed this season

I was adding up my invoices from the spring rush and the total surprised me, because I usually focus more on the number of jobs. It made me realize how much more efficient my two-man crew has gotten with our post-setting routine. Anyone else track their footage and notice a big jump after changing a small part of their process?

Burned a full day on a single post hole because I didn't listen to the ground report

Took a job in the north end of town where the soil looked fine. The homeowner gave me a ground report from a year ago that mentioned some rock, but I figured I could muscle through it. Hit solid limestone about a foot down on the first post. Spent eight hours with a demo hammer and a spud bar just to get that one hole dug. That's a full day's pay gone on a single hole. Anyone else ever get burned by skipping a proper site check?

Realized I was setting posts wrong for a decade

Was fixing a leaning gate in Tacoma last fall. Customer pointed out all my posts leaned the same way, into the slope. He said his old farm fence posts always leaned out, to shed water. Dug one up, saw the rot pattern. Changed my concrete base shape that day. Anyone else learn a basic thing way too late?

Remembering the week we put up that cedar fence in a downpour

It was in Tacoma, and it rained for three days straight. We had to dig post holes in mud so thick it felt like glue, but the crew never complained once. Anyone else have a job where the weather just would not quit?

TIL that fancy new subdivision in Oak Creek uses a hidden concrete curb under every vinyl fence line.

I was checking out the work on a site there and the crew foreman told me they pour a 4-inch curb first, then set the posts, which apparently stops the panels from sagging into the dirt over time, so has anyone else seen this method and does it actually save on callbacks?

Just read the average fence post lasts 15 years before needing replacement

Saw it in an old industry report from the National Association of Home Builders. I've been telling customers 20 years for a decade, assuming I was being conservative. Makes me wonder if I need to adjust my maintenance advice. What's the shortest lifespan you've seen on a properly installed cedar fence?