More Post Pulling
How a former railroad worker used to raise telegraph poles with this trick.
Here’s a variation on the post-extraction methods presented in recent editions of the Tips column (see Extracting fence posts and Improved post puller). Unlike those worthy techniques, which require levers and a fair amount of room, my method is very effective in tight spots where you don’t have much clearance.
First, cut a wedge from a 4×4 or a 6×6. It should be about 12 in. to 16 in. long. Next, wrap a chain around the post to be pulled and slide the wedge between the chain and the post as shown in the drawing. Lay a 2x scrap on the ground under the wedge to serve as a base for a bottle jack. When you pump that jack’s handle and take up the slack in the chain, nothing will keep that post in the ground. When I used to work for the railroad, we raised telegraph poles with this trick.
–Eric Roth, Dorset, None
Edited and illustrated by Charles Miller
From Fine Homebuilding #81
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Pulling a post with a post to pull, Peter Piper, is easy. I use a high lift. Seriously do some of you have tips for pulling posts that have rotted out. You know that ones that rotted out at ground level and have 100 lbs of concrete in the ground to remove!
Cocarpenter, this is a good point. What I do in this situation is get all the rotten stuff out of the hole, clean it out the best I can, then shave a little off a new post at the bottom so it will slide into the old post hole. I then use shims to plumb the new post and fill any gaps with sand.