Loose fence post.

[Skooterj]

Okay, not really a garage question, but you guys know a bunch about everything. I built a fence a few years ago. I had the post put in by a fence installer, then ran 1x6's horizontally between them. Posts are every six feet. The fence is great, except where I had the installer leave a 12 foot opening for a gate. I decided against two 6 foot swinging gates and instead installed a barn door style slider using post frame sliding door hardware. It was great for a season. The second year, the weight of the gate started to lean the 2 of the posts the gate hardware is attached to a little. I wasn't too worried about it because I planned on eventually replacing the barn door gate with a powered cantilever gate. Well, everyone wants $6000 to install the cantilever gate, so it is going to have to wait if I want to really get my garage built this year. The two fence posts are leaning even worse this year. I took a closer look, and the posts themselves haven't bent, the concrete around them in the ground hasn't been strong enough to counter the weight. I assume the only real solution to this problem it to dig around the existing concrete, make the hole bigger and deeper, and add more concrete after bracing the posts back plum. Am I missing any easier solutions? I'm still recovering from covid 18 months ago and am not looking forward to digging out a 3 to 4 foot deep hole to expand the concrete from 10 inches to 20? I'm sure I can pull the posts back to plum with a come along, or I'll just push them with my truck.

 

[GreenIron]

Skooterj, posting a couple pics of the problem (leaning post) would be helpful.

 

[Skooterj]

Here's what I have on my phone. I can take more when I get home.

 

[Bondo]

Ayuh,.... Short term, push 'em up, just past plumb, fill the void with 3/4" minus stone, compactin' all the way, with whatever ya got,.....

They'll probably be good, til next spring,....

 

[nadogail]

Perhaps the leaning post can be sistered to a more ridged post

 

[toolmiser]

Maybe a cable with a turn buckle from the top of the post back to the base of the previous one. Or you could got overhead to the other side of the opening.

 

[Captain Spaulding]

Posts likely need to be set deeper in the ground. More concrete won’t help as it’s the soil that is failing to resist the movement.

 

[Jbullfrog]

How deep are your posts? that fence looks tall and heavy compared to the posts.

 

[Skooterj]

How deep are your posts? that fence looks tall and heavy compared to the posts.

Post is set about 3 feet deep. Used 2 man post auger with a 10 inch, 3 foot long bit and drove it till the engine bottomed out on the soil. Fence is about 7.5 feet tall at the gate.

 

[mike93lx]

If you aren't in good shape to do the digging, maybe call the fence guy back for a quote?

 

[racecougar]

Another solution: wheel/tire at the swing end of the gates.

 

[CraigStu]

I think captainspaulding is correct in that the soil is the problem but how to fix that. Even w/o covid, the idea of digging more than you did initially would be more than I would be willing to do. I would combine toolmiser's cable and turnbuckle w/ racecougar's wheel. Our last house had a traditional double gate swinging on posts and they were just 4 ft tall. Over the 5 years we were there I adjusted hinges, I adjusted the latches, I added a cable and turnbuckle run to a 2 ft spike I pounded into the ground about 4ft away. As we were prepping to sell, I cranked the turnbuckle another couple of turns but that was a very small adjustment compared to previous so I think it was a reasonably permanent fix.

 

[Skooterj]

If you aren't in good shape to do the digging, maybe call the fence guy back for a quote?

Already did that. Said it would be July before he could even come take a look. Called a few other fence guys, and they either said it wasn't a big enough job for them to even consider at this time, or they were booked until at least June. Just watched a YouTube video about a guy in Florida who had a similar problem after a hurricane, he dug out around the posts, pulled them back plumb, and added about 4-5 bags of concrete to each leaning post. Sounds fun....

Think I decided to plumb it all back up with the come along, screw some diagonal 2x4's to hold it plumb, add a horizontal 2x4 brace at the base to keep it in plane with the rest of the fence while I dig out a larger and deeper foundation. May even try to chip off enough of the concrete right below the surface to add another permanent 2x4 under the grass perpendicular to the way it wants to lean to spread the load out to more soil. Just going to have to take my time with the digging until I can exert myself for more than 5 minutes at a time. May take me a month. If I start now, at least I won't have to mow around all the bracing too many times.