jake_hall88•2mo agoProlific Poster

Pro tip: always check for old concrete footings before you start digging new post holes

I was putting up a cedar fence in a 1970s neighborhood and hit a solid chunk of concrete exactly where my first post needed to go. Thought it would be a quick break with the demo hammer, but it was a full 18-inch deep footing from a long-gone chain link. That one hole took me almost 3 hours to clear out. Anyone else run into these old 'surprises' buried just under the grass?

3 comments

3 Comments

perry.joel2mo ago

Yeah, that "full 18-inch deep footing" is a special kind of misery. I hit one last year that was basically a small boulder. The demo hammer just bounced off. What finally worked was using a regular hammer drill with a long masonry bit to drill a bunch of holes close together, almost like perforating it. Then I could break it apart with a digging bar and a sledge. It was still a long, sweaty job, but it beat trying to chip away at the solid face of it.

skyler_kim2mo ago

Pro tip" feels like stating the obvious, I mean you should always check.

laura_ross2mo ago

Exactly. It's like those "life hack" videos that show you how to put cereal in a bowl. I saw one last week that was a "pro tip" for wiping down a kitchen counter. It makes the whole phrase feel useless now. If everything is a pro tip, then nothing is.