Unpopular opinion: people are setting fence posts way too shallow in sandy soil

I was out on a job near Myrtle Beach last week and saw three different fences already leaning after one season. The ground was pure sand and the posts were maybe 18 inches deep. I always go at least 30 inches in that kind of dirt and use a concrete collar. Has anyone else run into this problem down south?

2 comments

2 Comments

andrew8547d ago

Buddy of mine in Charleston put 24 inch posts in sand, whole fence fell over in a thunderstorm last June. Now he digs to frost line or hits 36 inches minimum.

sarahpatel7d ago

Whoa hold on, @andrew854 has a point but I think there's something else going on here. It's not JUST about depth-it's about the SOIL composition around the post. In sand, your post is basically floating, so even 36 inches won't help if the sand shifts like water. I've seen guys in coastal areas use these big concrete "mushroom" footers at the bottom, kind of like an anchor, to stop the post from tipping in loose ground. Without something to grip the soil sideways, a deep hole just becomes a deep hole of shifting sand. So maybe your buddy needs wider footers, not just deeper ones.