Setting a fence post in using a "cast-in post shoe&quot

[benraz69]

Afternoon all

I've had a wooden fence post blow over (it broke off at ground level). I've gunned quite a bit of the concrete base out & the remaining section of post is completely soaking/rotten. Unfortunately, because it's a shared fence, I'm obliged to put a matching wooden post back in its place (would prefer concrete)

I'm reluctant to set the post directly back into concrete/postcrete, as it seems like a water trap & I don't want to be replacing yet another rotten post in a couple of years time. So my plan was to set this "cast-in post shoe" in its place > www.toolstation.com/shop/p50644.

• Will this work okay?
• If so, should I set it in with concrete or postcrete?
• If not, alternative suggestions?

Thanks in advance, Ben

 

[Burnerman]

These Metpost things aren't anywhere like as stable as setting the timber post into concrete, but they do work....better still if you concrete in some rag bolts at the same time.
I go for concrete instead of postcrete - a bit more of a faff but at least the mix is right.
John

 

[benraz69]

These Metpost things aren't anywhere like as stable as setting the timber post into concrete, but they do work....better still if you concrete in some rag bolts at the same time

Thanks John. Regarding the rag bolts, are either of these the sort of thing you mean > www.toolstation.com/shop/p22455 or www.toolstation.com/shop/p92665 ?

I go for concrete instead of postcrete - a bit more of a faff but at least the mix is right.

Okay, will do. In your experience, how long does a lump like that take to set?

Thanks again, Ben

 

[Burnerman]

Those are sleeve anchors and rawl bolts......they are meant to be used with a drilled hole in concrete - which of course you can do.
A rag bolt (sorry, no pic) has actually got a spiral shaft which is pushed into poured concrete which is left to set.....I've made my own on occasion by using a length of studding with a large nut and washer, again pushed into the concrete and left to set.
Either way - postcrete sets at the speed of light. With normal concrete mix, allow 24 hours to be certain of the cure. I like 'normal' concrete because it can be worked in and tamped down - with postcrete you pour in dry, then add water. It does work well in its own way.
John

 

[benraz69]

A rag bolt (sorry, no pic) has actually got a spiral shaft which is pushed into poured concrete which is left to set.....I've made my own on occasion by using a length of studding with a large nut and washer, again pushed into the concrete and left to set.

Are these rag bolts?

If so, it might be easier to do what you've done & make my own, as I doubt there'll be any available locally. So would a (large) regular nut, bolt & washer such as either of these do the trick > www.toolstation.com/shop/p10853 or www.toolstation.com/shop/p10322 ?

 

[Burnerman]

Those pictured bolts are fine - the spread out ends prevent rotation in the concrete.
If you intend to make your own, use studding that will just pass through the hole in the post shoe - maybe 10 or 12mm. Lengths of studding are readily available from the DIY sheds. Any method that you can come up with to stop them spinning will be good - a simple screw head may just rotate with the nut.
John

 

[benraz69]

Okay, I think I've found the studding > www.toolstation.com/shop/p26973. Still not sure how I'm going to guarantee it won't spin in the concrete with just nuts & washers, but I'll give it a go!... Maybe I could drill a hole through some kind of metal plate & use that as a large washer for each piece of stud-?

 

[Burnerman]

Thats the sort of thing...you could cut up the thread for an inch or so and splay it like the rag bolt pic - you can drill a hole through a piece of scrap plate, and lock it on with two nuts....quite a few ways really! So long as the concrete is tamped around the bolt, it'll be fine....slight movement isn't a problem, but naturally it mustn't be possible to draw the rod out as the top nuts are tightened.
John

 

[fencer35]

a good qulity douglas fir or larch post concreted will out last those shoe things easy as well as having more than 20 cm of support those things provide, when the wind blows.

 

[benraz69]

Thats the sort of thing...you could cut up the thread for an inch or so and splay it like the rag bolt pic - you can drill a hole through a piece of scrap plate, and lock it on with two nuts....quite a few ways really! So long as the concrete is tamped around the bolt, it'll be fine....slight movement isn't a problem, but naturally it mustn't be possible to draw the rod out as the top nuts are tightened.
John

Apologies for raising the dead, but I thought it might be useful to respond incase this thread pops up again in a search or something... Anyway, I'm pleased to say that after a little trial & error, it all worked out nicely

As suggested, I tried splaying the stud to make my own rag bolts. I used an angle grinder, but found that it took too much out of the metalwork & when I tried to bend the legs, one or both would always snap. So I ended up just cutting a tiny notch out of the studding & then bending it into a elongated "L" shape, which worked like a charm. Thanks again John