Since the last blog post I have been working on rebuilding the fence. First, I hired a neighbor's son to help me dig the post holes and remove the old posts. I was worried that it might be too difficult given my recent cardiac health crisis. Together, we were able to dig out the old posts and open up the post holes. As expected, the posts near the bottom were mostly solid. It was the transition zone between the soil and air were the main rot occurred.
After improving the post holes, I placed the new posts in essentially the same location as last time.
I considered moving the Moon Window to center it with the walkway, but the dwarf Maple that was planed on the other side would not have been centered.
So, I settled on keeping the fence the same. Most of the posts were easy to re-post, and the new post protectors on the bottom were easy to install. I tried my best to keep each protector between 10-11" above the soil.
The last post was the most difficult because it was located where the old fence and gate met at a corner. It was also attached to the new fence I installed last year in the stroll garden. It appeared to be solid, but a test dig revealed similar rot. It was only solid because it was being held in place by the other two fence sections. Given its similar age and condition to the other posts, it seemed prudent to replace it and add a post protector. Doing so without compromising the other two fence sections was no easy task.
Once in, it was solid and will last as long as all the other new posts.
The next step will be to start adding rails.
