c/fence-erectors

Had one of those perfect days last Tuesday in Austin

I put up 200 feet of cedar privacy fence by myself in like 6 hours. That never happens for me. The ground was soft from the rain the day before so digging was easy. Every hole lined up perfect on the first try, no having to re-dig or adjust string lines. Even the gate I built swung true without any sag. I was done by 2pm and went home early. Anyone else ever get those days where everything just clicks?

Just spent an hour fixing a gate that sagged because of bad corner bracing

Put up a fence for a guy in Springfield last week, looked perfect when I left. Got a call yesterday that the gate wouldn't close. Drove back out and the whole corner post had twisted because I skimped on the diagonal brace. Had to dig it out, re-set it with proper bracing, and now I'm eating the cost of the extra concrete. Anyone else ever skip a step on a gate and regret it bad?

Hit 200 fence posts in a single day last week and my body still hurts lol

Just checked the lumber prices for a basic 6 foot privacy fence today

I was pricing out a job for a customer in Bakersfield and the treated pine 2x4s jumped $3 a board since last fall. That adds up to an extra $180 on a standard 150 foot run. Has anyone else seen these random price spikes messing up your bids?

I finally hit 500 feet of fence in one day by myself

Been doing this solo for about 4 years now and my personal best was always around 350 feet. Last Tuesday I had a straight run on a ranch property outside town, no corners or gates. Just post hole digger, auger, and panels. I got to 500 feet by 3pm and just kept going. Ended the day at 520. Felt like I unlocked something with my pace and prep. Anybody else track their personal records for feet per day?

Those cheap wooden post caps cracked on me in the rain yesterday

I put up a cedar fence for a client in Portland last summer and used those bargain bin post caps to save them a few bucks. Got a call yesterday saying half of them were cracked and split after that heavy rain we had. Had to go back and replace all 18 of them with some good vinyl ones, cost me an extra $200 in materials and half a day. Any of you guys had luck with a certain brand of wooden caps that actually hold up in wet weather?

A customer told me my gate hinges were ugly and she was right

After she pointed it out I switched from those standard black strap hinges to some stainless steel ones with a decorative curl. Cost me an extra $40 for the set but now I'm using them on every job where the gate is visible from the street. Has anyone else had a client's comment change the way you spec hardware?

Just got back from a trip to Savannah and saw a fence that made me stop the car

It was a long privacy fence on a corner lot, maybe 150 feet total. What got me was the gate setup. Instead of a single big gate, they had three smaller, staggered gates along the side, each about 4 feet wide. It looked really sharp and seemed to solve the problem of getting big yard equipment through without one giant, heavy panel. I'd never seen that done on a residential job before. Has anyone else built a fence with multiple access points like that? I'm curious if it's more work than it's worth for the average homeowner.

Drove past a job site in Omaha last week and saw something odd with their post spacing

I was heading to a supply house near 72nd Street and noticed a crew setting posts for a chain link fence. They had the posts about 12 feet apart, which seems way too wide for standard 6-foot fabric. Has anyone else seen builders try to save money by stretching post spacing like that?

Been setting my post holes too shallow for a decade... a bad storm in Dayton showed me why

I always went down about 24 inches for a 6-foot privacy fence, thought it was plenty. Then that big wind storm last spring came through Dayton and took out three sections of a job I'd just finished... the posts just tipped right over. The inspector who came out said, 'Son, you're fighting Ohio frost heave with a toothpick,' and told me the code is 30 inches minimum here. How deep do you guys go for a standard wood privacy fence in your area?

I thought those new composite fence posts were just a gimmick for a long time

Everyone on my crew swore by steel posts for chain link. Said composites would bend or crack. Did a job in Phoenix last year, client insisted on them for the whole backyard run. I was sure we'd be back in six months to fix something. Used the 6x6 ones from a brand I won't name. Two years later, the client sent me a picture. Not a single bit of rust or warping, even after that brutal summer sun. The steel gate posts we put in next to them already have some surface rust starting. Convinced me. They cost more up front, but maybe they last longer in rough weather. Anyone else switch and have a good run with them?

Appreciation post: Hit 1000 feet of vinyl fence in a single day

Had a three man crew on a big subdivision job in Henderson and we just kept moving. The key was pre-assembling all the panels in a staging area before we even touched a post hole. Anyone else find that method saves more time than you'd think?

I was setting a fence line in Springfield and saw a crew using untreated posts in a flood zone.

The whole bottom section was already showing rot after just one winter. How do you guys handle ground contact in areas that get soaked?

I was setting post concrete for 15 years before a guy in Omaha pointed out my slump test was way off.

Watching a crew in Austin handle a huge cedar post changed my mind about lifting gear.

They were setting a 12-foot, 8-inch round post on a steep slope, and instead of just muscle, they used a simple come-along rigged to their truck's trailer hitch. The foreman told me, 'If you can pull a truck out of a ditch, you can stand a post straight.' I've started using a similar setup for any post over 6 inches now. What's your go-to method for handling the really heavy timber?

Got chased by a goat while setting posts in rural Vermont

Was putting up a split rail fence on a farm last fall. Had the first three posts set perfect. Then this goat got loose from the neighbor's field. It decided my post hole digger was a threat. Charged me, got its horns stuck in the tool handle. Took twenty minutes and a bucket of grain to get it free. Now I always ask about livestock before I start a rural job. Anyone else have a job where the local animals became part of the crew?

Showerthought: I used to set posts by eye and then I got a laser level

For years I just eyeballed my post lines, thinking it was fast enough. Last month on a big job in Springfield, I borrowed a friend's DeWalt DW088K laser level to try it. The whole run was dead straight in half the time, and I didn't have to keep walking back to check my string line. What's a tool that made a huge difference for you guys?

Serious question, is a 6-inch gravel base overkill for a residential vinyl fence?

I used to dig 4 inches and call it good, but after a winter in Spokane shifted three posts, I switched to a full 6 inches of compacted gravel. Anyone else think the extra work is worth it, or am I just wasting time?

A client's comment about chain link made me think twice

I was finishing a job in Springfield last week, a standard six foot chain link for a dog run. The client, an older guy, watched me and said, 'You know, it's a shame people think this is the cheap option. It's the only one that lets you see through it.' I've always pushed wood or vinyl for looks, but he's right. For a corner lot or a place where you need to keep an eye on kids or traffic, chain link has a real use. It's not just about the price tag. Anyone else run into a situation where the 'ugly' fence was actually the right call?

PSA: I just found out my old boss in Austin had a trick for setting posts in clay that actually works

I was talking to a guy at the lumber yard last week about a job I had in this neighborhood with really thick, red clay. I told him I was fighting it for two days, trying to get six posts set straight. He laughed and said, 'You ever try the potato trick?' I had no idea what he meant. He said his old boss back in Austin would drill the pilot hole, then drop a raw potato down in there before putting the post in. The potato soaks up the water from the wet concrete mix and keeps the clay from sucking all the moisture out too fast. I tried it on a small gate post the next day, and I swear, the concrete set up way more solid than the ones I did before. Has anyone else heard of this or tried something like it for bad soil?

I finally had a client in Denver ask for a 6-foot vinyl fence last week, but their HOA rules only allow 4-foot wood. Do you stick to the code or try to get an exception for them?

Rant: I finally gave up on my old way of setting posts in clay soil

For years, I'd just dig a hole, drop the post in, and pack the dirt back around it. Last month, a job in Franklin had posts leaning after one heavy rain. My boss showed me his method: dig the hole 6 inches deeper, put in 3 inches of crushed stone, set the post, then fill around it with more stone before topping with dirt. The stone lets water drain away from the wood. Those Franklin posts are still straight. Has anyone tried something similar with really wet ground?

Shoutout to the crew I saw using a laser level for a long vinyl run

Last week I was driving through a new subdivision in Springfield and saw a crew putting up a long section of vinyl privacy fence. What caught my eye was they had a rotary laser level set up on a tripod about fifty feet down the line. I pulled over to watch for a minute, which probably looked weird, but I had to see. They were using it to set the top rail perfectly level before even hanging a single picket. The foreman told me they started doing it on commercial jobs about three years back and it cut their time on long runs by almost a full day because they never have to go back and adjust sagging rails. I tried it myself on a 150-foot backyard job yesterday and it was a game changer. No more running a string line and having it get bumped. Has anyone else switched to using a laser for setting rails, or do you stick with the old string method?

Pro tip: I was setting posts in clay for a decade before a guy in Boise showed me his gravel trick

He packs pea gravel around the base after the concrete sets, says it drains water away and stops the post from rotting. Anyone else use this method for wet ground?

Warning: I thought those new composite fence posts were just a fad

A client in Springfield insisted on them for a 150-foot run last fall, and I was sure they'd be flimsy. After a full winter with heavy snow and ice, they haven't budged or warped a bit, while my usual cedar posts in the same area have shifted. Has anyone else put these through a real test over a couple of seasons?