Need some help with fence posts

Finally closed on our house up here in Raleigh, NC and have had some fence crews come out for estimates. Most say that posts 2 feet deep is the norm around here and that it would be more than enough. For those of you with fences, are your posts only 2' deep as well? Being from Florida and dealing with high winds I always thought I needed posts 3' in the ground. The fence will be a 6' privacy fence. My yard is pretty open and the soil has at least some clay content but I haven't dug around enough to know if it's throughout the whole yard (1.75 acres). I'm looking at $12k for 2' deep posts and $14k for 3' deep posts. Obviously I like saving money but I also like doing thinks right the first time. Thanks for the input.

 

I always err on the side of a deeper hole with a privacy fence because in essence you are building a giant sail

 

You need to be deep enough to be below the frost line otherwise the posts can push up during the winter. 2 ft is minimum here in Nevada, but I usually go 3 ft.

 

I just noticed you are in Orlando. You may be fine with 2 ft, but the deeper the better if you can afford it.

 

I alternated with a bag of cement every other post. No leaning in 10 years.

 

I think you meant CONCRETE. Cement is just one of the four ingredients involved in CONCRETE.

 

Our 6x6's are in the ground 3.5' and we're on the GulfCoast, so.........
You should be ok with 2' on a regular privacy fence.

 

Porter cement, maybe.

 

Thank you for correcting me,I don't know how I would have made it thru the day without knowing that.

 

...^^^... One of the few things in life that I carefully correct ... lol ...

That term, "cement", and the definition of a "calorie" ...

Weird, I know ...

2 ft. in "concrete" ... 2 ft. is fine for residential and metal ... wooden posts should NOT have concrete on bottom and only around side-base so it will drain and 2 ft. is fine for wood too.

Now, if you are going to "winch your Taco" off of a fence post, then go 3 ft. and winch at base.

Soil tests could mean a lot too, but this looks like a simple residential fence, from what you have said ... good luck.

PS ... VERY IMPORTANT ... Make sure they do NOT water down the concrete and it is THICK <<--- most important ... Just had this problem in my back yard with watered down concrete and made them redo it.
.

 

I'm actually in NC now not orlando. Everyone said the 2' is fine with the frost line as we don't get harsh winters here. I guess if everyone trying to take my money says 2' is enough than I don't need to spend more and go deeper. I'm just nervous that it would be more expensive to fix down the road than shelling get out the extra 2k upfront.

 

You could add a bag of cement to the hole and with the ground moisture and aggregate in the soil it would still act to bond the soil together like a low grade CONCRETE

 

Go 3' and backfill with tamped gravel . Skip the concrete , it holds moisture in intimate contact with the posts forever , unless your soil will not free drain at all then it doesn't make any difference with rot time

 

What does the city/county code require? They may specify the proper depth for the posts, as well as other details such as ground clearance etc. I'd guess you need 36-42" depth, at very minimum for any gate posts and likely at least 6" below frost line.

FWIT I installed 500 LF of fence around our yard to meet pool code. Aluminum fence cost me 5k, plus a few hundred dollars of cement (each of 75 posts are in cement). Posts are about 2.5' deep, but in S FL so no fear of frost. And the fence does not budge at all. Would have been more than 2x to have a fence company do it.

 

I wonder what the diameter of your posts is. I don't know much about privacy fences, just barbed wire fences. I do think I know about what your thought process is regarding your privacy fence as I have been there with barbed wire fence. I worry about whether I should go with 12" or 8" pull posts. And what about at the corners. Lotta force pulling on the posts from 6 strands of wire. Just go ahead and go 3 feet deep. You won't be completely satisfied if you don't. Hell, fencing will drive you crazy if you let it. Also, I just use Quickcreet and call it good. Good luck with your fence. It'll be fine.
Edit: You are using treated wood, aren't you?