How to Remove Old Fence Posts

Maintaining your fence is a necessary element of maintaining your yard and securing your privacy. Occasionally, old fence posts may need to be replaced due to deterioration, rot, settling or damage. According to Kim Watson of Agweb, "Any fence older than 10 years should be evaluated to see if the posts are still solid..." If you do find that your old fence posts need removal, you must determine if they are secured with concrete or simply soil. Removing posts from concrete is much more difficult than removing them from soil.

Difficulty: Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Screwdriver
• Nail pry
• Shovel
• Slate bar

1. Remove the fencing from the post to be removed. Use a screwdriver to unscrew the screws from the fence, or use a nail pry to carefully pry the nails away from the post without damaging the fencing panels.

2. Dig the soil away from the area surrounding the post. Dig enough away to loosen the post and pull it up out from the ground if the post is simply mounted in soil; most posts, however, are secured with concrete.

3. Dig all soil away from the area surrounding the concrete (if the post is mounted in concrete). Dig about 6 inches deep to expose at least 6 inches of the concrete.

4. Use a slate bar to pry the concrete from the ground by pushing down and around the concrete and then pulling up and angled to move the concrete.

5. Continue prying the fence post until the post and concrete release from the ground.

Tips & Warnings

• Dig completely around the base of the concrete so you can push soil beneath the concrete as you pry it upward to help move the concrete toward the surface.
• Manually removing a fence post from concrete is exhausting physical labor. Beware of a rotted post falling apart; take care how much pressure you apply to rotted posts so you don't injure yourself.

References

• Agweb