Weird Post hole repair question

[meanwhile]

Weird Post Hole question:

We have very large Locust Posts in the ground for about 5 years now. At the time we put the posts in the ground, we did not know to peel off the bark first. The posts were put in the ground about 3 feet deep and we did use cement all around the post. Now, of course, the posts are loose since the bark has rotted and pulled off. There are at least 22 loose posts. All huge.
I really did not want to pull up 22 heavy posts.

What If: Could we use that Great Stuff in the can, stick the tube thing down in the ground and let-it-rip to fill the hole up? We used Great Stuff once in a culvert in a wet area and it filled up hole so it seems like it might work?

What else can I do that does not include pulling the posts out of the ground? Thank you.

[Harry Chickpea]

Mortar mix and sand. Ram it in with a ramrod, ground rod, or bit of rebar. You don't need to worry about the water, just put it in dry so it can settle as much as possible before the water eventually reaches it and sets it up.

[Windy in Kansas]

Great Stuff crushes so I don't think it would work long term. Along similar lines but harder to place would be Gorilla Glue via a tube placed over the dispensing nozzle and squeezed around the post. It hardens harder than Great Stuff in my opinion.

Another possibility is placing fine sand all around the post at ground level and wiggle the post until the sand is worked in beside the post.

[meanwhile]

Thanks -- mortar mix with sand would probably go down the cracks. And....Harry Chickpea... can I just stuff it down there and not wet it? Just let the rain wet it next time it rains?

[Farmerwilly2]

The millwrights used a product called PourRock when they set equipment. It was a grout that mixed thin and set up harder than billy-be-darned. It will hold for a while I spect, least till the sap wood rots a bit. Next time rock the posts or have them driven in and save yourself some headaches.

[Harry Chickpea]

Yeah, don't bother to wet mortar mix and sand unless you live in a high desert. The standard way of setting power poles around here is to dump and tamp quickcrete in a hole and then let it be. Using this should be a lot cheaper than alternate solutions, other than the pure sand.

[meanwhile]

Thank you -- I had not thought about trying to sift some mortar down the cracks but that will work. I will have to wait now till we dry out from this rain. It is pouring out there. Thank you

[Jalopy]

I do not know the cost but an alternative could be to use bentonite to fill around the posts. After it has moisture exposure from the environment it will repell any further water infiltration into the posts. It flows just like sugar so it will fill the entire area between the post and the cement you already have there. Just a thought.