steel post vs. wood post

For ease of install if you are doing it your self I would do wood. That way you dont have to worry about any welding or any special tools. Like attaching the fence to post with wood you can just use a hand full of staples and a hammer where as with steel you have to buy the ties and the tie chuck for a drill. I also like my wood for the look. They blend in real well and dont get as much attention as the steel (for a more natural look)

It kind of depends on whether the steel post your talking about is T post or like drill pipe. I only use T post on interior fence or in a spot where for some reason you can't use a post ( like too many big roots next to a tree). I have a spot on a inside pen with T post every 15'. We had a beagle get in the pen a few years back and ran 5 deer into that span of fence and two of the T post bent down and my now breeder buck actually rolled over the fence. If that had been a perimeter fence I may have lost that buck. With that said if you use steel pipe the fence will be every bit as strong as a wood post for many years. Heavy pipe like drill pipe would probably last as long as a telephone pole.The way you fasten the fence to the pipe can cost more than staples in a wood post and for me take longer to install but a fence made with drill pipe fastened with those round pipe clips look really nice and can have a professional look to it. If you have a place to buy old drill pipe you can save some money compared to buying it new which is expensive. If you have access to power poles you may be able to save alot of money and this was a reason I went the way of wood poles on my place. I found 2 power companies that would give me poles if I went in and cut them up and threw all the left over pieces in thier dumpster. The third company will sell me 36' poles for $10 bucks a piece. I would cut these into 12' sections so they cost me about 3.33 a pole. They are heavy to work with and you have to be able to put down at least 12" post holes but when you are done you have a very solid fence. I would check out whats available in your area and make my choice accordingly. Rick

I have both and if I price was not a factor. By that I mean welding was the major difference and time. I would only use steel for corners and gates. Been to alot of farms with steel and once painted make a very sharp looking farm! Just my opion........Good Luck

SIZEMATTERS said:

could you guys tell me which you prefer and why. let me know some of the pros and cons like price, life of the post, strength, etc.....

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I myself have not been happy with the price on posts this year so I did not buy any but I do sell the staples or clips with chucks for the drills. I prefer wood over metal posts as they seem to be easier to work with. I am located just outside of harrisburg and would be honored to supply you with you deer farming needs. I sell just about anything you need and if i dont have it I will do my best to get it for you as long as I can offer you a savings

You can find 10 foot Tee Post as low as $9.29 and Wood post as low as $10.34 on http://www.whitetaildeerfarmer.com/ Suppliers page



Or you can find them at most Tractor Supply’s

http://www.tractorsupply.com/fencin...ed-t-post-10-ft-1-33-lbs-lbs-per-foot-3609162

We used white cedar that we logged from a local swamp that worked very well for us.

One pen we used oil well drill rod but found that we needed to go back and drill in self taping screws to keep the fence from sliding down as we had it on the property line and the neighbors trees would blow down occasionally. We placed the oil well drill rod post with 5 tee post in between.

One pen had Cutoff power line post in the corners and 5 tee post then a 5 inch cedar post.

We use steel mostly in Texas. And then paint it. At least, that is what i do. I also cap them, and they last about forever,

Hardpan

Yes I forgot to mention that we also welded a plate on top to keep the rain out as it would freeze in the winter and split the pipe.

In Cloverland Wisconsin they welded small tabs on the side of the pipe to keep the wire from sliding down as they had Bears climbing the fence.

With over 1200 acres fenced and divided into 80 acre pens there was a lot of pipe and Tee post.



We rented a standard hydraulic post pounder that we put on our bobcat to drive the Drill Rod and Tee post, 4 guys put up a 2 1/2 acre pen with 1 gate in 6 hours.



When we did wood post it took about twice as long.



All the wire ends were wrapped with a homemade tool that I made.

The wraps all looked like a factory machine did them.

I will post a picture of a wrap later when I help a guy build some gates it the near future.

i have all fiberglass posts and i would recommend them to everyone. many things i like about them. they wont rot off in time as wood ones will, and also if the deer get running and hit the fence.. they have some give to them, so its not like hitting a brick wall. they cost a little more but as far as i think, completely worth it. also from what ive seen, i think they are stronger than wood posts. the pipe i use is all used or rejected high pressure oil pipe.

forgot to mention. i used 9 inch on the corners and (about) 2 3/4 inbetween