Setting Fenceposts

I'm a contractor not a farmer so take this for what it worth. Where I live in pa we have a 3 ft frost line. When I set 6x6 for framing I cut the bottom of the post to a point so when the ground heaves it kinda pushes around the posts. And go at least 1 ft below frost line. Pound it tight around it.

IF you can set the corner posts 2ft deep, and the posts 18in deep, and keep the corner post brace post at least 6ft apart from the CP, It will hold your lifetime IF the posts are free of bark, and you plant them in the dry sign of the moon

The key to setting poles and posts is 2' + 10%. At mimimun then, a fence post 8' tall should be buried 2' 9.6". I have never concreted corners unless it was chain link, where all posts were concreted in. I used sacrete mixed in a 6 gallon bucket.

We use gravel, tamped well. It is wet here and 3/4" gravel lets the post dry when it isn't raining, posts last a long time. I like 3' deep. If you get the bottom ggod and tight you can have a post that doesn't move, if not you never get it set good. Solid tamping at the bottom is most important. I like H braces, wired both ways, very tightly.I like a good taper, top to bottom on the corner posts, big butts are good here....James

your fence is only as good as your corner post!In my neck of the woods getting a post houl dug is the big problem! it needs to be at least 3 ft deep and to me the benifit of concrete is that it gives it bigger footprint,meanin that when you strech,instead of a 6in side pull you have 12-14in side pull= bigger foot print,so that said,deep post hole+big footprint= happy fence

That is the way I set corner posts. Pour the dry concrete around the post, make sure it straight with a level and pour in water, let set for couple days and nail her up. I would use at least 8" for a property corner. And bigger is better at least 3' deep and perfer 4'.

The key place to tamp in a post are the bottom. It's critical to tamp the bottom tight otherwise none of the rest of the tamping will make the post stand solid.

__________________
"Do you believe in the devil? You know, a supreme evil being dedicated to the temptation, corruption, and destruction of man?" Hobbs
"I'm not sure that man needs the help." Calvin

Is it typical in other areas then to DIG the post holes? Up here everyone pounds 'em in. Curious.

I can drill post holes any time and when I want. If it isn't too dry, and I was doing many, I could hire someone to pound them in. But the red clay won't yield to wooden posts, when dry.

...............I spent $2200 on a hydraulic post pounder that was mounted on my diesel tractor...........pounded a few posts every now and then but was never really happy with the results . When a wooden post would hit a rock 2 feet down you just end up destroying the post , ONLY posts cut from telephone poles could be depended upon to stay together .
...............Heavy steel pipe now would work quite well , but again , when encountering a rock I'd usually have to start over because I wasn't willing to accept a post that 1.5 feet deep when all the others were 3 feet deep ! I had a lot more options when digging all my holes , cause I could usually bust up a rock with a rock bar , then the the digger would auger the pieces out of the hole . For a fence builder who was getting paid by a customer , there is much satisfaction in looking down into a clean , 3 foot deep hole ready to drop a piece of 3 inch OD pipe into and then fill with cement . I knew I had done my job and the customer got their money's worth . , fordy

I am currently building a fence for a large garden (100x200). The corner posts and gate posts are drill srem from a salvage yard. 11 ft with 3 in the ground. These are set in sackcrete. I am welding a diagonal bar from the top of the corners to brace posts also set in cement. The line posts are galvanized 11 ft.tamped in. The wire is 4 ft wire with 2"x4" mesh. Ththis is topped by 4 strands of horse wire 1' apart. Should keep the deer out.