How to Sink Clothesline Posts
Not only can a clothesline save money by air-drying your laundry, it also enables you to use less energy by drying your laundry outside in the sunshine. When you take your laundry down from a clothesline, it will smell fresh and clean from drying outside in the breeze. As you prepare to install a clothesline, one of the first tasks is to sink the clothesline post into the ground properly. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Posthole digger
- 60-lb. bags concrete mix (3)
- Concrete-mixing bucket
- Trowel
- Level
- Rope
- 3 stakes
- Hammer
Instructions
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1
Use the posthole digger to dig a hole 18 inches deep and 12 inches wide. Angle the sides of the hole so it is narrower at the top and about an inch wider at the bottom to help keep the post stable as the soil settles.
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2
Mix concrete in the bucket according to package instructions, adding water and stirring it until the mixture is smooth.
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3
Set a 6-by-6-inch post that is 6 to 7 1/2 feet fall into the hole. Pour concrete around the post to fill the hole a third full.
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4
Place the level against the post and adjust the post in the hole so it is straight.
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5
Fill the hole to the top with concrete. Add enough concrete so the center of the hole is slightly mounded with the ends tapering down. This will ensure that water does not pool on the concrete. Smooth the top of the concrete with the trowel.
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6
Check the post again for straightness, using the level.
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7
Secure the post by tying three 4-foot lengths of rope around it about 3 feet above the ground. Pound one stake into the ground at the point where an outstretched rope meets the ground and attach one of the ropes to the stake. Stretch another rope to the ground on the opposite side of the post. Drive the stake into the soil and attach the rope to the stake. Repeat the process with the last rope and stake.
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8
Check the post for straightness with the level and tighten the ropes, if necessary, to hold the post straight.
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9
Leave the post undisturbed for at least 24 hours, then remove the ropes and stakes.
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1
Tips & Warnings
An assistant can make this task easier.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit Jupiterimages/Pixland/Getty Images
