How to replace loose 4x4 wood fence post with a steel post

Question

The original 4x4 wood fence post for my home's side gate (that holds the catch part of a gate latch) is very loose and wobbles.

The post is surrounded on 3 sides with my concrete walkway, and the 4th side is right next to my house.

I'm pretty sure the home builder company that installed the posts and fence (and built my home) didn't dig deep when they installed all the posts for my fence, nor cemented the base of each post at all (after 15 years at the house, all the wood posts are in fact wobbly and very very loose).

I'm pretty sure I can just yank out the post (hopefully).

I want to replace the wood post with something like the Halco Postmaster steel post. I was hoping I can get the 8 foot version and somehow get the steel post 2 feet into the ground and then cement it (so that 6 feet of the post stands above the concrete base).

But as you can see from my pictures, the hole is only slightly larger than the 4x4 wood post.

For a proper steel post install, would I need to cut the surrounding concrete walkway to make a 10" or 12" hole, and then dig out a 2 foot deep hole to properly install and cement the steel post?

Or can I still install the Postmaster steel post somehow (e.g., hammering it down with a sledge hammer) down the existing 4x4 hole, but then I can't cement (or pour gravel) down the tight gaps to make it strong and stable, correct?

I read that using something like the Simpson Strong-Tie EZ-base product isn't good/ideal for fences, right?

Something like this:

https://www.strongtie.com/fences_decksandfences/ezproducts_productgroup_wcc/p/e-z-base.e-z-mender.e-z-spike

Any suggestions?

Thanks!

Answer 1

Have you tried tightening the nut on the bolt that holds the post to the saddle anchor?

I had a very similar setup though my saddle had two lag screws. My post was quite wobbly so I pulled the lag and drilled through the saddle to get a setup like yours. Once I tightened the saddle to the post it was quite a bit more stable. My setup has two bolts and nuts. If tightening the one in your saddle doesn't work then you might want to consider drilling the metal and adding an extra bolt and nut.

Since the legs of the saddle are facing the direction of swing for the gate the force should be put against the saddle. If you wobble the post does the saddle wobble or is the post wobbling within the saddle?

If the saddle wobbles then I'd chop it off and drill a new hole, epoxy a new saddle in place and put a new post in. You can get heavier duty saddles or you could even add lengths of plate steel (choose a sufficiently thick piece and bolt it to the saddle to extend the vertical resistance).

Since the saddle wobbles I'd remove it. I've attached an image of my setup. This post does not wobble at all in the direction of the saddle legs. You can drill into the concrete and epoxy threaded bar to secure the saddle to the concrete. I didn't originally install this saddle but it seems to me it was installed after the concrete pathway so I'd bet my saddle is only secured by wedge anchors and they appear to be doing a fine job 25 years on.

Answer 2

Just attach the post to the wall.

Answer 3

You really have two options, and you've mentioned them both. Either attempt to drive the post into the soil to a depth of at least two feet (three would be more reliably stable), or cut out the concrete and pour a base around the post.

The challenges to driving the post will be overhead swing room and risk to the stucco. You could stand a sheet of 1/4" plywood against the wall to deflect accidental strikes. You'll need to constantly check plumb and adjust as you go. Obviously there's no moving the post once it's set unless you pull it and start over.

The challenge to cutting out the concrete is that it's tight against the building. However, if you rent a "maniac saw" (large diamond wheel on a chainsaw body), you can cut out a 12 or 16-inch square fairly easily. A rotary hammer would let you punch holes through the remaining concrete at the corners to crack the section to be removed free.