Post Holes

Hi,
I have 80 4inch posts to sink and 4 weekends before the cows re-appear.
Has anyone used the hand and/or petrol augers.?
I look at the petrol ones and see myself ending up in hospital with broken wrists.!
The manual ones might be harder work , but safer.
Maybe I can rig up a tall sliding hammer, any ideas.?
My field id about 18inches of earth , then co**** sand.

thanks
Howard
deep pockets - short arms

 

80 posts in 4 weekends is only 20 per weekend. If you can get someone to help you then you'll have it done in no time using just a sledge hammer and a pick axe to break up the ground a bit first.

Don't do it on your own though. My dad very nearly smashed one of his own legs off knocking fence posts in when fatigue got the better of him and he missed the post on a good swing. He couldn't walk properly for days afterwards. The daft old fool, if he'd said he was planning to do it I'd have given him a hand

 

Use a iron bar to start things off, assuming you are using pointed treated posts. Stand on the trailer, I used to use a Maul, when I was younger, and drive them in before the ground gets too hard. Rather you than me though.

 

Post driver maybe? (Two man job)

 

You could always use a post hole spade - you can get them at builders merchants.

 

I've put 10 4-6" posts in under three hours and its flints after the top 3" of soil. Started off with the pointed metal bar and then used the one-man post rammer.

But if you are putting in livestock then the fencing needs to be stronger with supported corner posts, tensioned wire and netting and barbed wire at the top. And if its not level ground then its even more work.

As you are responsible if the cattle get out I would do the thing properly and get a fencing specialist in or at least someone to help who knows what they are doing (ask a local farmer or at the pub).

In the mean-time put up electric fencing, probably two sets until they settle down.

 

I hired a hand auger once but it wasn't a success. The ground was too hard and flinty. I just wasn't strong enough. There's some better ideas already posted above, though.

 

I've used a petrol screw type hole borer before worked very quick for me but definately needed 2 men to operate though I didn't think it would be dangerous just go at a reasnoable speed. One hole probably took 1-2 minutes so you could have the 80 holes done in no time. If your ground was very rocky I could see you having difficulties.

 

Id ask around the local farmers, one of thems bound to have a tractor mounted post bumper and this will do the job in the space of a few hours for around the cost of hireing an auger.

80 posts are a lot to do by hand, I wouldnt try and im fit and young!

Post augers are ok but if the grounds stony they are next to useless, the two man versions are the best. The manual versions are slower and harder work than driving the posts in with a maul.

 

Thanks folks
I will try a petrol jobby first
I've done the strainers, they're 1.5 metres down, used tilly my little digger.

 

I don't about Scottish Law, but in England it is the responsibility of the owner of the grazing land to fence the Cattle in.