How to drive a steel fence post

There are several ways to drive a steel fence post into the ground. The particular way that you choose will depend on the size of the job you’re intending, your overall budget for equipment, and how much elbow grease you’re willing to put in.

Below are three options for different post-driving equipment depending on the job at hand.

3 tools for driving fence posts

Cheap and easy: use a mallet

For a simple job in a domestic setting, for example, where you want to install a star picket fence, you can probably make do with driving the posts in with a mallet. This is okay if you have a mallet with a copper, brass or lead head as this will be softer than the steel you are striking.

The steel picket won’t be deformed by the strike of this mallet, but the use of excessive force may deform the mallet head. So, if you have a lot of steel poles to drive in the ground, this is the least preferred option.

Still fairly cheap and much easier: manual post rammer

A better option for a small scale job is the use of a manual post rammer.

This is a steel tube that is closed at one end to fit over the post and with handles on each side. By gripping the handles, the implement is moved up and down in a ramming action to push the post into the required depth into the ground.

Some resourceful contractors have been known to make their own post rammers by using steel tubing and some welding know-how and equipment. But in reality, the shop-bought models are built to last and very affordable.

At Jaybro, you will find a 90cm stake/post rammer made from galvanised steel which is good to use for both steel and wooden posts and which well lives up to its claim to make light work of ramming many posts.

The handles on these post rammers are welded to the lid and body of the post rammer to minimise any jarring during the ramming action. Some manual post rammers also have a guide lug at the base to allow you to square the post into position once the rammer is in place, and to twist out of position upon release of the rammer.

For serious fence post installations: hydraulic post rammers

The hydraulic post rammer (or hydraulic post driver) is for post driving on a more industrial scale in a professional construction setting. As the name suggests, this implement is powered by hydraulics, the movement of liquid in a confined space under pressure.

There are five key parts to a hydraulic post rammer: the back head, cylinder and front head (forming the main body of the rammer), the case (which houses the main body) and the post cup which is the part at the top of the stem which strikes the post. The initial hydraulic action is triggered by a foot pedal or button on the rammer which releases hydraulic oil to control the movement of the piston in the cylinder which then causes the post cup to strike. The piston then moves upward, compressing nitrogen in the cylinder which expands to push the piston down again.

The post cup is an important part of the hydraulic post rammer to consider in terms of the machinery’s longevity. A cup size that is much larger than the diameter of a post, for example, can lead to premature wearing or cracking of the cup. A high post cup weight to low piston weight ratio contributes to a short production life.

In this respect, it makes good sense to talk these factors through with a supplier when looking to invest in a hydraulic post rammer.

• How easy will the stem and cup of a particular model be replaced?
• How customisable is the equipment with the machinery it will be attached to? I.e., with an excavator, tractor or telehandler among other options.

Key takeaway:

To recap, the best way to drive a steel fence post depends on the nature of the task at hand, what sort of equipment you already have, and what sort of equipment you’re willing to invest in.

For the typical domestic job, you can’t go past a simple manual pole rammer – a one-time purchase which will probably outlast your fence and takes a lot of the grunt out of fence building.

For larger-scale jobs, a wide range of hydraulic post rammers can be found to suit your needs.

Buy a post rammer online at Jaybro

For either job, the team at Jaybro will readily point you in the right direction from fencing materials and related equipment to post ramming options. Give our team a call today for great prices on fence post rammers.