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Hello, I'm hoping to save this post and fix the rotten bit. Any ideas or tips on how to do it, is appreciate it!
Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community @johany. It's brilliant to have you join us, and many thanks for your question about restoring a rotted post.
How much structural material is left determines whether you can save the post. Take a flathead screwdriver, poke around the top section, and see how much material you can dig out. Anything soft or spongy needs to be removed. Once you've removed all the degraded material, you can soak the timber with a wood hardener. Once the product has dried, you can start building the post shape back up again with Builder's Bog. Only apply enough bog so it is slightly proud of the finished post shape. This doesn't need to be done all in one go; sometimes, it's better to do several coats. After the bog is set, you can shape it with a surshape plane or a rasp and sandpaper for finer details. Please remember your PPE, including a dust mask and safety glasses, when working with the bog and sanding.
If the whole top of the post is compromised with no solid material, then you should consider cutting it down until you reach solid timber and grafting on a new top section. If you're going to this extent, it's worth considering replacing the post entirely.
Remember to use quality exterior paint like Dulux Weathershield to seal the post and prevent moisture ingress.
Please let me know if you have any questions.
Mitchell
Hello MitchellMC, thank you so much for your tips
I was able to fix the post. See image of before and after
Look at that! Good as new, @johany! I bet you are proud of your efforts, as you've done a sensational job.
I'm so pleased I could assist with your project. Please reach out whenever you need assistance or have something to share with the community.
Mitchell
Hi, my problem is slightly different - these posts (total of 6) are only just over 3 years in. It seems that the rest of the post is in concrete, so theoretically there's only about 20 cm or so of the rot. What do I do? one of six posts
Hello @Klaudia
Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community. It's sensational to have you join us, and thanks for sharing your question about your timber post.
I'm afraid builder's bog is not an applicable solution to your timber rot. The concrete footing must be broken up and the posts replaced with new ones. Before installing the new ones into the ground, I suggest coating it with Bondall 1L Inground Timber Protector. It provides a tough bitumen coating to improve protection against moisture and deterioration on timber and masonry surfaces. It's important that your post be treated to at least H4 levels so that it is rated for direct contact with the soil.
I'm not sure why your posts deteriorated so badly in just a few years, but it's good that you caught it early. Replacing it now will save you the trouble of dealing with rotted timber stumps. I don't recommend applying a temporary fix to the rot as the structure of the post has already been compromised.
If you need further assistance, please let us know.
Eric
Hi @Klaudia
I have repaired two fence posts that were rotten at the bottom of the posts , similar to yours, I posted it on this site, hopefully it will help, so far still in place and sturdy. Installed March 2024.
https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/t5/Outdoor/Boundary-fence-post-repair/td-p/200355
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