Most garden fences are made from wood or metal. Unfortunately, wood rots and becomes damaged by insects, and metal rusts. Making a garden fence out of concrete is inexpensive and allows you to create a more durable construction. You don’t have to be a concrete expert to create a unique garden fence for your yard. Using simple molding methods, you can create concrete fence posts in little time.
Instruction
Things You'll Need
- 2-inch boards
- 3/4-inch plywood
- Nail gun
- Nails
- Wood glue
- Playground sand
- Shovel
- Quick-set concrete
- Trowel
- 2-by-4-inch boards
- Concrete release agent
- Garden hose
- Posthole digger
- 2-by-4-by-51-inch boards
1. Create a box using 2-inch-thick pieces of wood for the sides and a piece of 3/4-inch-thick plywood for the bottom. Make the box 8 inches larger than you want the width, length and height of the fence post. The length of the post should be long enough to insert the end in the ground 8 inches. Lay out the four boards to create the box and secure together, using the nail gun and wood glue. Attach the plywood to the bottom of the box and secure with more nails. Place the box on a flat work surface.
2. Fill the box with playground sand to the top of the box. Use sand that's moist, not wet, and that clumps together when you squeeze it between your hands.
3. Draw the outline of the fence post in the top of the sand with your finger. Center the drawing in the middle of the sand, using the dimensions you want for the post. Dig out the sand inside the drawing with your hands or shovel. Press the sand along the walls and bottom, making them even and straight, to create a sand mold.
4. Prepare a batch of quick-set concrete according to the package directions. Mix the concrete so it pours but isn't runny. Create a texture similar to pudding.
5. Pour the concrete into the sand mold. Fill the mold until the concrete is even with the top edge of the sand. Smooth the surface with the trowel, if necessary. Let the concrete sit for two to three hours to set slightly.
6. Spray the end of a 2-by-4-inch board with concrete release agent. Insert the board into the concrete where you want the fence crossbar slat located. If you want just one slat, center it in the concrete 3 inches below the top. For two slats, space them evenly, leaving enough room at the bottom to insert the post in the ground 8 inches. Press the board so it goes through the concrete and into the sand. Leave the concrete to dry for three to four days.
7. Remove the board from the concrete. Remove the concrete post from the sand and spray the excess sand away with a garden hose.
8. Repeat steps 1 through 7 to create as many fence posts as you need to place one post every 4 feet around the garden’s perimeter.
9. Dig a hole in the ground with a posthole digger. Make the hole 4 inches larger than the post and 8 inches deep. Place the post in the ground, centering it in the hole. Fill the hole with dirt and pack it down. Repeat the process with additional holes and the remaining posts, spacing them every 48 inches around your garden.
10. Slide a 2-by-4-by-51-inch board through each of the slat holes you created in step 6.
Tips & Warnings
To make concrete slats for the fence, use the same molding method. Create one slat for each hole in the fence post.
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