N1K Posted March 2, 2004 Share Posted March 2, 2004 Anyone put up a Vinyl fence? I bought all the posts and pre-made panels this past weekend. There are some relatively vague instructions that came with it, but just wanted to find out if anyone has already done a vinyl install and if you had an suggestions? Its a 6' privacy fence. Couple things specifically... Did you fill the hollow vinyl post completely with cement, or just the portion of the post that took up cement as you dropped it into the hole? I know filling the entire post would make it much more solid, but the posts seem pretty solid as it is, and filling with cement might be overkill.. (not to mention a lot more cement) Here is the size and style I purchased http://www.usfenceonline.com/products/viny...vacy/39972.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EVLXX Posted March 2, 2004 Share Posted March 2, 2004 You really don't need alot of concrete around the base of the post. There is two things that the concrete does. 1. it minorly acts as a ballast or maybe I should say an anchor. 2. and more imortantly, it increases the sureface area and therefor increases the skin friction on the base. So. my suggestion is this.... Drig your holes, Set your posts with 6 inches of dirt around the base. This will allow you to reset and adjust the posts if you need to. Put your fence up. Yes the hole thing. Because you haven't poured any concrete yet, you can reajust your posts with a tamping bar if needed. Then pour the concrete, leaving it 4-6 inches below groun level. 2 days later cover the remaining concrete with dirt and landscape. A fence is a fence. and I've installed miles of the stuff. Not the vinyl, but it's all the same.... trust me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EVLXX Posted March 2, 2004 Share Posted March 2, 2004 Nice fence by the way! And I'm assumeing you are going to have 18 inch holes. :wink: because you really only need 6 inches of conrete no matter what you do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RodeRash Posted March 2, 2004 Share Posted March 2, 2004 On the vinyl fence that I looked at, the vinyl posts were hollow, and slid over pressure treated wooden posts that you set like you would normal fence posts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
N1K Posted March 2, 2004 Author Share Posted March 2, 2004 Set your posts with 6 inches of dirt around the base. This will allow you to reset and adjust the posts if you need to. What if I set the posts with 6 inches of DRY concrete powder? Then run the whole fence... Then when I have it all straight add wet concrete on top of the dry concrete.. (I'm assuming the moisture in the ground will harden all the concrete that was put in dry over time?) And I'm assumeing you are going to have 18 inch holes. Â because you really only need 6 inches of conrete no matter what you do. Well... I have to at least dig 24" holes in order to get my posts low enough so they look right... I forget how long the posts are, but only 18 inches in, and they would stick up really high over the top of the fence panel. (assuming I kept the panel relatively close to the ground.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EVLXX Posted March 2, 2004 Share Posted March 2, 2004 You're on the right track. The only reason I suggested useing dirt for the first 6 inches is to save you some money, plus you're going to have lots of dirt left over. 24" deep holes, well then if it was me, I'ld go 8" of dirt, 10" of wet concrete, and then top it off with dirt after a couple of days. Roady brings up a good question.... do you have to slip the vinyl post over a wooden one? If this is the case, then I have another sugestion, Dig your hole alittle deeper, say 4-6", then put in some pee-gravel or rock until you are back at the propper depth for the post hieght. The reason is this, the number one reason fences don't last is because of moisture rotting the post, the rock helps to drain any moisture away from the post. :wink: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
N1K Posted March 2, 2004 Author Share Posted March 2, 2004 do you have to slip the vinyl post over a wooden one Not on this type of fence (according to the manufacturers literature) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardCranium Posted March 3, 2004 Share Posted March 3, 2004 Nice fence Nik. That vinyl shit is supposed to last forever...though Im sure you know...its pricey. I don't envy you though...putting up fence sucketh much. We just put up a wood privacy last summer. http://www.blackbirdpilot.com/images/house/fence/ We actually did it the hard way I think...we braced each post to make sure they were all plumb...then poured in the wet concrete...though I thnk you can just dump in the mix and pour water in...we had a concrete mixer so we did it this way to make sure it was mixed well. The nice thing about doing wood is that you can just approximate the holes and then after the posts are set you can go and saw the tops off so that they are all perfect. Unfortunately if we get the house we are trying to get we will be putting up yet another one...though it will probably be a two rail with vinyl coated chain link. <sigh> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
N1K Posted March 3, 2004 Author Share Posted March 3, 2004 Dude.... Did you dig all those post holes by hand? (I saw the manual post hole digger off to the side in one of the pictures) You're nucking futz.... I'm renting a motorized post hole auger. Manual labor sucks... lol The vinyl is expensive, but I really liked the look/no maintenance.. I got about 125' of fence/post/hardware for $1,600 Only other thing I need is c-ment. That should only be a hundred bucks or so... My friend has a mixer if I want to borrow it, but I'm not sure if I'll mix the cement, or just let the ground moisture set it... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardCranium Posted March 3, 2004 Share Posted March 3, 2004 Hehe...there are actually a couple of pics of me running some post hole diggers too. For some reason we didnt get any pics of the auger. No fucking way I would dig all those holes by hand. The auger was the type that you can tow behind your truck...and powered by Honda. :wink: Even with that the clay content here is so high we had a hard time. I think we put in around 230' and with cement and everything I think it was around $1100. From what I read the vinyl doesnt really pay off for about the first 10-15 years (unless of course its what you want) but after that its time to replace the wood and the vinyl is still good to go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
N1K Posted March 3, 2004 Author Share Posted March 3, 2004 I liked the way the vinyl looked. That was my reason for buying it. I'm hoping to drill my holes in the next couple weeks... The ground is REALLY soft now from it being spring and all the snow melt... I just need to make sure it isn't frozen anymore, and then I'm diggin... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
N1K Posted March 12, 2004 Author Share Posted March 12, 2004 More questions.... In my researching getting ready to do this fence, I found out that frost heaving will be an issue... Does anything know about frost heaving? I've been told I need to dig down 4" to make sure I don't get frost heaving of my fence. Since I can only put my fence posts 24" into the ground, what do I fill the rest of the hole with? Just concrete???? Or Gravel? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vetteman Posted March 15, 2004 Share Posted March 15, 2004 you mean you have to dig down 4' (feet) not 4" (inches) right? thats pretty common around here. why not just buy longer posts? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
r3ckl3ss Posted March 31, 2004 Share Posted March 31, 2004 for frost heaving... you just need to get below the frost line... In Upstate NY, the code required that for decks, you had to get down 36"... frost line somewhere around 30"... here in Kennewick, WA I am sure it can't be more than a foot or so... your Town Hall surely knows but then again, maybe you don't want to ask them 'cause they might require a permit -John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
N1K Posted April 5, 2004 Author Share Posted April 5, 2004 Did about 1/3rd of my fence install this weekend. Talked to the building inspector and he said I'd be safe going down 36" He said for decks and houses, they require 48" but 36" would be plenty for a fence. I rented a post hole digger... I was going to rent one from Home Depot, (approx. $55 for a day) but found a local Contractor Supply place that rented for a better machine for the entire weekend for $71 tax included. This is the kind Home Depot rents Here's the one I got... I had never used a post hole digger before, but my friend who helped me with my fence had... He said the machine I used was WAY WAY easier/better then the 2 man unit home depot rents... Twice as powerful and 1 person can do it. No exaggeration... The holes took about 30 seconds each to drill... (well, the one exception was a hold that we hit a buried stash of brick/cinderblock) My friend brought over his cement mixer and a really nice remote controlled laser level which also helped. Heres a pic of the yard before... (old pic, but the only I could find) Here is one after part of the fence was in I'm REALLy pleased with how the fence looks. I was a little suprised that the vinyl posts are not as rigid as I expected they would be.. you can flex them a bit if you push on them... I had not intended to before... but now that the fence is up, I think I'm going to pull the end caps off of the posts and pour cement down in them to make the fence more solid. All in all though, I'm really impressed with how the vinyl looks and how easy the panels install etc. I'll post more pics when Ive got the rest in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jcrich Posted April 5, 2004 Share Posted April 5, 2004 Hey Nik, I am considering using some of the vinyl fencing. What do you do for sections that are less than the standard width? Are you able to cut panels? Looks real nice!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
N1K Posted April 5, 2004 Author Share Posted April 5, 2004 Yes, you can just cut the panels... I used a sawzall... But anything would work... Skil saw... Rotozip... Only thing I wish I had done differently... I cut down the middle of a slat.. I wish I'd have planned it so that the 'break' would have been between slats (pickets) Would have looked much better then cutting a sliver of a partial slat I think... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jcrich Posted April 5, 2004 Share Posted April 5, 2004 Thanks Nik. Some folks in the neighborhood have had it installed, but did not see the install so was not sure how they did it. Gotcha on the "where to cut" the panel, prolly would look better making the cut between the slats, instead of cutting the slat itself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardCranium Posted April 5, 2004 Share Posted April 5, 2004 Looks like your webserver is having "issues." None of the pics are loading...including your avatar. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vetteman Posted April 6, 2004 Share Posted April 6, 2004 pics loaded fine for me, just way too slooow on my dial up. fence looks great. the digger machine looks cool too. i just helped a buddy of mine use the 2-person one from home depot and it is a lot to wrestle around. his yard was chocked full of rocks which didnt help matters much. if you feel like doing another fence come on down. :wink: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveK Posted April 8, 2004 Share Posted April 8, 2004 NIK....Looks amazing ! Sharp fence, I am impressed! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.