Caught myself digging post holes wrong for 2 years until a contractor called me out on it

I always dug my post holes with the auger straight down, but a site inspector flagged my fence line in Austin last month because the bottoms weren't flared out enough. Turns out you're supposed to widen the base a bit so the concrete has a wider footprint to grip the ground. Anyone else skip that step early on in their career?

2 comments

2 Comments

kelly9686d ago

Wait, you're supposed to flare the bottom? I've been going straight down for years too. That's wild, I never even thought about that.

wadebailey5d ago

My buddy Tom tried planting a 6 foot post for a pergola last summer. Dug the hole, dropped it in straight, packed it tight. Two months later a storm rolled through and that whole thing tipped over like a cheap lawn chair. He had to dig it out, redo it, and this time he flared the bottom. Hasn't budged since. I learned from watching him that spending those extra 10 minutes shaping the hole saves you a whole weekend of fixing it later.