Shoutout to the guy who dug 20 post holes 6 inches too shallow

I just wrapped a gate job outside Nashville where the previous crew set H-posts barely 18 inches deep in clay soil. By spring the whole 100 foot run had shifted a good 4 inches. Why do people think skipping depth saves time when it just creates callbacks?

3 comments

3 Comments

anna7177d ago

18 inches in clay is asking for trouble, I always go 30 minimum for gates around here. Did you end up digging those holes deeper or just cut your losses and re-set everything?

the_felix7d ago

Ended up digging deeper on two of them and it made all the difference. The first one I did at 18 was a nightmare after a rain, the gate sagged within a month. Went back to 30 on the next three and they've held rock solid for two years now. The clay here gets gumbo-like when wet, so the extra depth hits better soil underneath plus gives you room for proper gravel drainage at the bottom. Learned that lesson the hard way, but now I won't touch a gate post without going at least 28-30 inches.

shanes667d ago

Doesn't that same mindset show up everywhere though? People rushing through the foundation of anything just to save an hour upfront, then spending three times that fixing it later. It's like painting over rotten wood - sure, it looks good for a minute, but you're just kicking the problem down the road.