I have a fence with some posts that have broken off at ground level, just above the concrete. I bought Fencemate metal repair posts to fix the issues. After removing the concrete for one post, I found that the underground part is completely rotten and has some pieces missing. There's even a root growing through it! The fence itself is pretty good quality with narrow vertical planks and three horizontal triangular bars at different heights. The posts have cut-outs for these bars, but I can't figure out how to remove them, if it's possible at all. Should I just fit the repair spike and concrete into the hole while leaving the rotten part, or do I need to remove the rotten wood completely and just use the repair spike? Alternatively, would it be better to replace the whole post instead?
2 Answers
If most of your posts are in the same bad shape, it’s probably best to just replace them all and remove the old concrete too. If replacing them all isn’t an option due to time or budget, you might be able to add new posts midway along each panel for a temporary fix. Just an idea!
How old is your fence? Were those posts made from pressure-treated lumber? If only a few have gone bad, you might still want to check the remaining ones. Also, you could use a concrete cement anchor for a new 4x4 post in the hole after removing the old post. This would help keep the wood out of the soil and avoid further rot, but don’t forget to use pressure-treated lumber!
The house is around 40 years old. I just moved in so I’m not sure about the fence's history. It looks like treated wood, and everything above ground seems fine. Is the repair spike similar to that ground anchor?
That’s helpful! Thankfully, only about 4 out of the 15 posts are affected. I hadn’t thought about putting a new post next to each broken one as a last resort.