I didn’t get anything done yesterday, don’t know why but the trip to the big town took it all out of me. I’m not a lot more ambitious today, but tomorrow it’s supposed to be cold and rainy (ie, seasonal for once) and today I wanted to finish getting the woodshed torn down.
The hard part is done: finding and then cutting or untwisting a couple of dozen wire ties holding the tarp to the stock fencing, untangling the fencing from the fenceposts, then pulling out the fenceposts. That last part wasn’t the nightmare I anticipated because I deliberately didn’t sink them very deep to begin with. Just deep enough that the pressure of the wood on the fencing doesn’t cause them to bow out is deep enough to be good. If you sink them properly you’ll never get them out of the ground without a post puller, which I don’t have.
Taking the wood part down to its pieces is just a matter of unscrewing a whole bunch of screws with a driver until it falls apart. Don’t be under it when it falls, don’t leave the screws laying around, easy peasy.
You do realize that a post puller is nothing more than an old bumper jack and a chunk of chain long enough to wrap around the post a couple of times, don’t you?
I realize that bumper jacks are not a common item these days, but suspect that most junk yards should have them readily available at little cost. And it don’t have to be in too good shape. It’s not like you’re counting on it to keep your car from crushing you while you change a tire on the shoulder of the freeway…
Hey Mark, I think the jacks you were writing about are now known as Farm Jacks and are as common as dirt being available at places like Home depot.
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Big-Red-48-in-3-Ton-Farm-Jack-TR6501B/100594525
Yeah, I wish I had a bumper jack. I’ve thought of that. But the only nearby junkyard is a perpetually-closed relic, so…
I was thinking about his perpetual financial situation when I posted that, MJR.
Yeah, those big suckers are great . . . but you can pull a steel post with a regular old “bumper jack”.
There are a few other ways, but they involve a tractor . . .
Heck, I just realized you could do it with a screw/scissor jack. Might take a couple of “bites” but it would work.
The challenge with those, Kentucky, is getting a sufficiently reliable grip on the post and the jack with the chain before you run out of stroke. With a two foot (or more) stroke on a bumper jack, you should get a significant amount of movement each time.
As I said, it might take more than one “bite” on the post to totally extract it. Not optimal, but if all you have is a scissor jack that’s what you use.
Obviously a conventional bumper jack would be better . . . if you have one.
Kentucky, for those of us who have never pulled a post with a scissor jack, would you describe the method. Every time I have to pull a post I have to go borrow a post puller/post jack but I have two scissor jacks. Help please.
Bear with me while I attempt an explanation. Required pieces are said scissor jack and whatever passes for a handle for same, and a length of chain long enough to provide at least a couple of wraps around the post and leave enough “tail” to be interfaced with the jack. This does not have to be 10,000-lb log chain, basically it’s whatever you have handy, as usual.
Take the wraps of chain around the post right at ground level and make sure it won’t slip when pulled up parallel to the vertical post. Those little nubbins along one side of most steel posts help here.
Place the collapsed jack alongside the post, right up against it on the side where the “tail” of the chain is accessible. If the ground is soft, place a board or large rock or something under the jack so you don’t force the jack down instead of pulling the post up.
Pull the “tail” over the top of the jack and somehow affix it to the top saddle of the jack. How? Vice-grips, c-clamp, whatever works.
Work the jack. It should be leaning right snugly against the post so’s it cannot tip over. You’ll just have to see this to know how to adjust for field conditions. Crank the jack up until you either free the post or run out of stroke on the jack. If this happens, re-rig the chain attachment to the bottom of the post, lower the jack, and do ‘er again. Repeat as required.
Cumbersome? Yep. Awkward? For sure. Inefficient? Certainly. Inelegant? Doubtless. But if it’s all ya got . . .
🙂
An actual post remover, for the record, is just a lever on a post, with a hook on one end that can catch one of those nubbins on the t-post. A very simple gadget in principle, though in practice it’s complicated to the tune of about $35 which makes improvised alternatives more attractive.
Yes, indeed.
And I just noticed that Zelda has two scissor jacks available. Seems like you could put a jack on either side of the post, lay a suitable thing across the saddles of the jacks, affix the chain “tail” thereto, and crank away, alternating between the two jacks. Would make for a straighter pull, methinks, even if a little more complicated.
🙂
This is wonderful stuff. You all are a huge help and I learn so much from you. Looking at a scissors jack, I’d never in two lifetimes have thought to use it as a post puller. Thanks so much.
Zelda, it works better if you have a helper. Regardless of how you do it, it’s nice to have extra hands to keep the upper end of the post under control so’s it doesn’t bonk ya.
Also, moral support is always welcome . . . and someone to dial 911 . . .
😉