DEER FENCE INSTALLATION: EARLY STEPS 2
EARLY STEPS, CONTINUED If you don’t have suitable trees along the fence line, or if you choose not to use them, either wooden or metal deer fence posts can do the job. In general, wooden deer fence posts should be either cylindrical cedar posts 6+ inches in diameter or pressure-treated 4x4 posts. Plan on setting them two-and-a-half feet into the ground or below the frost line, whichever is deeper. Metal angle-iron posts studded with holes every two inches and painted flat black are also suitable, and smooth round metal posts can be can be interspersed with any of these or used alone. These metal posts should be driven at least two feet into the ground. Set your deer fence corner posts in cement footings that are roughly one foot wide and that extend two-and-a-half feet down or below the frost line, whichever is deeper. And provide similar footings at intervals of roughly 40 feet for every other post. (Unless the soil is extremely loose, you do not need to provide a footing for every post). Dig a 10 to 12 inch diameter hole for the post with an auger or manual post-hole digger. This hole should be below the frost line if there is deep winter ground frost, and 2 feet deep if frost is not a problem. If the hole is, say, 3 feet deep, fill the bottom 12 inches with large rocks (softball size to hardball size), place the post in the hole, and measure to ensure that the top is 7 feet above the ground, adding or removing rocks as necessary to obtain the proper height. If the hole is 2 feet deep follow the same procedure without initially placing rocks but adding rocks if necessary. Plan on using a high-strength concrete mix (cement mixed with crushed rock) that should be available locally in 60 or 80 pound bags. Do not use the quick-setting type unless that is the only kind available. Mix up two batches of cement, one a soupy mixture and the other a mixture with a jelly-like consistency almost like peanut butter. Use the soupy mixture to fill the hole to a few inches above the rocks if the hole is 3 feet deep, or to a depth of a few inches if the hole is two feet deep. Then return the pipe to the hole and use moderate-size rocks to secure it firmly in place until it can stand on its own, keeping the post as close as possible to the center of the hole. Take a carpenter’s level and place it against the side of the post to make sure the post is straight up and down; adjust as necessary until the post is vertical. Put some of the smaller rocks (golf ball size) into the hole to fill in some of the spaces between the larger rocks, and fill the hole to the top with the firmer cement mixture. Now take another level measure to ensure that the post has not shifted. Let the cement set for 12-24 hours if the temperature is above 60º F, or for 24-48 hours if the temperature is below 60º F (it is not advisable to do this work if the temperature is below freezing). |
McGregor Fence Co. 508-888-8305