11
Had to choose between driven posts and concrete footings for a sloped yard in Austin
I was putting up a 6 foot privacy fence on a hillside lot last month. The ground was rocky clay, so I figured driven posts would save time. But after hitting solid limestone 18 inches down on the third hole, I switched to concrete footings with brackets. It took twice as long but every post is dead level and the customer was happy. Has anyone else had to switch methods mid job because of unexpected ground conditions?
2 comments
Log in to join the discussion
Log In2 Comments
miab872d ago
Yeah driven posts are a gamble around here, I've swapped to concrete mid-project more times than I can count.
3
ellis.susan2d ago
Driven posts are a gamble anywhere with rocky clay, I learned that the hard way myself. If you hit limestone or caliche within the first two feet, you are better off just switching to concrete right then before you waste half a day fighting it. Concrete footings with brackets give you way more control on a slope too, you can adjust each post height without worrying about the ground fighting you. For Austin dirt specifically, I always test dig a few spots first with a bar to see what is underneath before I commit to driven posts. Saves a lot of cussing later.
-1