wood-vs-steel

[Anonymous]

I wonder which will last longer, steel or wood posts for fencing and corals?



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[Anonymous]

For the above ground parts steel usually lasts longer. For the in the ground parts it depends on your soil. In the desert, steel rotted out in a couple of years, wood lasted almost forwver. Don't understand it, but that's the way it worked.

dun

> I wonder which will last longer,
> steel or wood posts for fencing
> and corals?

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks Dun; I was going to put either steel or new cross-ties in red clay ground for the working pens. So again...steel or wood? cs



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[Anonymous]

I would go with the ties in the ground and steel for the above ground. Actaully I would go with oak planks above ground but not everyone has the availability of a hundred acres of oaks to mill into planks. But that's a cost issue. Ties for posts are a good choice in clay because it gives more straight surface edge to pack the clay against to prevent leaning posts in later years.

dun

> Thanks Dun; I was going to put
> either steel or new cross-ties in
> red clay ground for the working
> pens. So again...steel or wood? cs

 

[Anonymous]

Another issue is the pH level of the soil. If you have acid soil, say around pH of 4.5 to 6.0, then I assume it is possible for the acid condition to gradually eat away at the steel...? Neutral soil pH is 7.0. The scale ranges from 0.0 to 14.0 with each 1.0 increase or decrease from 7.0 being on a logarithmic scale--i.e., a pH of 6.0 is 10X more acid than 7.0, etc., etc.

Another wood post choice is Bois d'Arc posts, not usually straight, but very hard (may need short staples and hard hit to get into wood) and can last for decades.

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