Why does nobody talk about the 6-inch gap rule for corner posts?

I was fixing a fence in Tulsa last month that kept leaning, and the original guy had set the corner post right against the property line. That meant the brace post had to go on the neighbor's side, so they never installed it. After 2 years, the whole corner gave out. Now I always measure back at least 6 inches from the pin for any corner. Has anyone else seen a fence fail because the posts were set too tight to the line?

3 comments

3 Comments

michaeltorres24d ago

That 6 inch rule sounds like overkill to me. I've set posts right on the line for years and never had one fail, as long as the concrete footings are done right.

joel_jones24d ago

So @michaeltorres, you've never seen a frost heave lift a corner post or watched a deck start that slow, ugly lean? I guess if your ground never freezes and your soil is perfect, you can skip the rule. But for the rest of us, that six inches is cheap insurance against a cracked post base or a wobbly railing. It's one of those things that seems fine until you're the one fixing it.

grays1324d ago

Nah, seen too many lifted by frost.