Wooley, J. C. (John Cochran), 1884-

University of Missouri: MOspace

UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURE AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION COLUMBIA. MISSOURI --------------------------------------------CIRCULAR 108 DECEMBER. 1922 The Durability of Fence Posts J. C. \\ ' O()LE Y FI .:. 1. ].;'iI"PlllPIiI UR(·tI III gl dll l,: Ill) " l s [Ill ' dOli hI e la" k Il'cI I1111 ent. Tn th e fa ll of 1913 a n ex perim ent to dete rmin e th e dllr~ bi l ity of f nee posts was s tartet! b y th e fores try c1 cpa rtlll Ilt of th e 1I[ isso llri Ex ) erim ent S tation . Thi s project was und r th e dir ec ti o n o f Frn 5t . P gg a nd a nnll~1 ins pec ti ons a nt! r eport s were mad e by him lin til th e fa ll of ]02 l when th e ex perim ent wa s tran s ferred to Ih e a griCllltlll'a l eng-in e ring departm ent. This experim ent was we ll p lann ed and w orked Ollt a nd so me valuabl e data w ill be avai la bl e w h en it is co mpleted . It w as th ug ht, how ve r, that so me timely inf renee mi ght be drawn at thi s tim e. The purpose of the ex perim ent was thre fold. Firs t, to cI term in th life of co mmon var ie ti es of wood used a s fenc posts. Second , to de termin e the effec t of diffe rent treatments on th e servi cea bl e life o f posts. A nd third, t o determine the ca uses of deca y a nd if po ss ibl e to di scover the b 5t mean s of retardin g it. Twenty-s ve n com mon varietie s w er Ll sed and the pos ts of eac h va ri e ty were g iven seven different kind s of treatm nt. The three rows of posts 2 11 SS0U RI AG I<T U LTl ' I{AL EXI'ERIl\fENT STATlON C I R PLAR 108 lInd er Se ri cs I\. werc g il'en n o tr ca tm cn t exce pt seaso llin g , The se pos ts were se t in (h e g ro un d ( 0 a dep th of 18 in ch es, l' OS ls in Sl'I'ics B wcre the sa me as in ,\ \\ ith one excepli ul!. Tiley \\ere tamped in til ho les wilh sc reened g rav el. A ll po s ts in Se ri e s C we re c harr ed fur a b o ut :JG inc he up fr III th e lo \\,('!' e nd , I n Se ri es]) th e pos ts werc pee led a nd th e lowe r :Hi in ch es o f th e pos ts were pa inted w ith cariJo lineulll, The ..:arho lin c l11ll was heated a nd th e one coat was g i\'e ll. I'us ts in Se ri es I': lVe r e peeled and th e lo\\'e r 36 in ches given a two-coat trl'atmcnt of hot creosote, Snic, F poS I, wer e g ive n th e dOllb le t , nk trea tm ent ; two hOllr s w ith th e lowe r e nd tu a height o f 36 in ches slIhm erg'cd in hot c reoso le, J'O , ls wore rl'mo\'cd from thi s iln cl quirkly , lIhl11 c rged tn th e ,aml! depth in cold creosote, Scric', C was th e sa in e as F exce pt th P(" ts were kept in l'<le ll tr e;lt nl('lI t f' lI' 1'1\'(' hou r" in s tea d o f tw o. Fl!-\'. 2 ,-Arl'lln~em~nt of posts In H~ vpn 8(' r\ e8 to deterllline servi ceab le life or ('ne ll 1\\'(IIlt' Y - FI; I'VPIl VHl'if'tlpH of wood. The post s weI' se t o n th e I w la nd s so uth of Hinkso n c reek o n the north s id e of a s teep hill. T h e g ra s and wee d s g r ow a m o ng the pos ts each year. A ll th ese onditio!1s have a tend !1 CY to in crease th e r ate of decay of the po s ts. COMPARISON O F VARIETIES The res ults o f th e experim ent to date show that th e va riet ie divide them selves into four c lasses s o far as their se r v iceab le life a s fen ce post s is concern ed . The pos ts in each c la ss are named in the o rd er o f their f ree-d III wfrom d cay in thi s expe rim ent as a whole. First Class.- Whit , edar , atalpa, Osage ran g e, B lack Locust. Secondi Class.- White W a lnut , Honey Lo u s t, White Oak, Red Oak, Blaek Oak, Irol'lwQOci, THE DURABILITY OF FENCE POSTS 3 Third Class.-Black Walnut, Hickory, Sassafras, Black Ash, Hack-berry, Red Elm, White Elm, Dogwood. Fourth Class.-Willow, Redbud, Kentucky Coffe Bean, Birch, Bass-wood, Cottonwood, Sycamore, Sugar Maple, Persimmon. The results to date show that there is a great difference in the effect of the treatments on different varieties of wood. Black walnut, willow, hickory, ironwood elm and ash varieties seemed to be effectively preserved by the open tank treatment with creosote while many other ~arieties are not preserved to any extent by this treatment. COMPARISON OF TREATMENTS The comparisons in the following table are made between the posts receiving no treatment and those receiving the treatments designated by Series B, C, D, etc. TABI .. E .2.-COMPARISON Olt UN'l'Rl~A'rl~D POSTS Wr'I'H THOSE RECtnvING VAIUOUS 'l'RICA'rMEN'I's. No. of varieties Av. Ilfe % of compared In A III B. C. etc. inn'ense Series A compared to Series B. 16 3.9 4.2 1. Series A compared to Series C. 13 3.3 3. -1. Series A ~ompared to Series D. 10 3.9 5. C5.6 Series A compared to Series E. 15 3.3 H.G n. Reries A compared to Series Ii"\ G 3.0 n.s 89. Series A compared to series G. 5 3. S. 166. It will be noted that neither the practice of setting in gravel nor char-ring the posts has been of any value in the varieties which have failed to date. Comparing the brush treatments with' carbolineum and with creosote, we find the carbolineum has been a little more effective in the varieties which have failed to date, showing an increase in case of the carbolineum of 25% and 9% increase in life when painted with creosote. The five-hour treatment is seen to be by far the more effective, almost trebling the life of the posts in the varieties which have failed to date. A homemade treating plant can be made by placing a brick firebox and placing on this a sheet-metal drum at least 4 feet high and at least 3 feet in diameter. If this could be built on the edge of a bank it will make the work of treating posts much less difficult. A damper should be provided for the firebox as it is desirable to control the fire very closely. The creo-sote expands to almost double the volume when heated as it is filled with gases and steam from the sap in the posts. Place the posts in the tank and pour in creosote to a depth of 24 inches. Leave the posts in the hot creosote for two to five hours. Remove the posts from the hot bath and place them to the same dept in colcl creosote. The condsensation of the moisture and the cooling of the gases in the heated, posts draws in th~ ~gld Creosote and gives much better penetration. 4 MISSOURI AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION CIRCULAR 108 Plot showing arrangement of posts in series and rows, also shmY!ng tile serviceable life of the · pe)sts that have already failed. Series Row Variety A ." U lJ l!: P '* R J. :0 ;, l:! ;, Z ;, .. ~ ;, :0 ;, ~ 3 0 Soft Maple ••••• ....... . .. ........ ........ .. .......... . .... . .... ..... s s s 1 White Cedar •••• s s s s s s s s x S S 6 S S S S S S S S S ..... 2 White Walnut ••• s 6 s 7 s s 5 s s s S S 7 s s S s s s s s ......... :3 Black Walnut ••• a a a a a 7 s 4 8 S s s 8 s s s s s s s s s s s 4, Rickory~ ••••••• 44:3 xxx 344 S s 8 4 7 :3 s a s s S 5 S S s 5 Willow ••••••••• 322 3 3 2 2 2 3 444, 233 5 s s S 5 S S S S 0 Cottonwood ••••• 334 3 3 4 3 2 3 444 334 5 a 8 888 s s · s 7 River Birch •••• 3 2 4 455 334 x x x x x x a 8 8 888 ..... 8 Ironwood ••••••• 5 3 :3 344 3 2 4 s 7 5 434 s s s S 5 S ..... 9 White Oak •••••• 884 7 x x 5 8 8 888 8 8 8 6 S 8 s s 8 s s s 10 Red Oak ........ 4 33 4 s 5 s 3 7 'I 8 s 444 s 8 8 s s s . ..... 11 Black Oak •••••• 3 3 :3 6 4 3 3 4 3 S 7 7 5 4 x 5 S s 8 S s ..... . 12 Slippery Elm ••• 6 xx x x x x*x*x x*x s x*x*x x 6 x x·x*x* s s s 13 White Elm •••••• 4 4 4 443 433 8 7 s 444 s s s 888 .......... 14, Hackberry •••••• 3 3 4 xxx 2 2 x 554 333 8 6 6 s s s ..... '15 Osage Orange ••• s s S 6 S S S S S S S S S S S S S 5 S S S -t··· 10 Sassafras •••••• 8 5 8 848 s 8 8 686 s s s s s S II S S ..... 17 .Sycamore ........ 222 222 4 5 444 222 8 8 8 8 8 a s s s 18 Red Bud •••••••• 6 s S s 4 4 3 3 s 8 5 s 8 4 5 5 S s 8 s s ..... 19 Ky. Coffee Bean 4 7 8 s 8 s 7 5 s 8 8 :x 8 8 x 8 8 8 8 s s ...... 20 Roney Locust ••• 6 5 5 s s s 6 6 6 s s s 8 8 s s s S 5 5 S ......... 21 Black Locust ••• s S 5 S S S s 8 s s s S S 5 S S S S 5 S 5 ..... 22 Sugar Tree ••••• Z 34 3 3 3 3 34 4 34 4 3 4 555 6 6 s .......... 23 Basswood ••••••• 2 2 3 2 2 2 2 3 2 2 24 2 2 2 5 4 5 8 s 8 ....... 24 Dogwood •••••••• 333 3 34 3 33 5 s 4 344 6 s S 5 S S ., ... , 25 Persimmon •••••• 2 3 3 33:3 2 2 3 :3 4 3 334 8 8 s 8 8 8 ... , . 26 Black Ash •••••• 445 5 5 4 3 6 5 5 6 7 444 s s s S 5 S ..... 27 Catalpa •••••••• 5 s s S s x 5 S S S s S s s S 5 S 5 5 S S ..... Legend: ~-still Rt'l'vieenh1t'. X-- -110 110zo:.; t nt heg-iIllliug' of pxpel'imput. Xlllllerical-iu(lieates seryiceahle life of 1)()8t tllat 11118 'llrend.' failed. *-·illdicate8 that since he-g-illllillg' of' l'xpel'itnent n s t(lcl post hus llel\l1 8t=~t ill thiR position. THE COST It costs about 4 cents a post for the two-hour treatment and 8 cents for the five-hour treatment. .This includes creosote, fuel and labor. The following table, while it is made up partly of estimates, is a fairly reliable indication as to the cost of the different classes of posts in the fence over a period of 25 years. TABL£ 3 .-COMHRATIV£ COST OF POSTS OF TH£ FOUR CLASSES OVER 25'Y£AR P£RIOD. ']~r(':ltnlell t Setting ancI fast- Life of ser- 'l'ot,ll Class First cost ening fence (est.) vice (est.) cost Ii'irst 3;-'c (1 post) S c 7 c 25 yrs. 50 3 Second .. 39c (1 9/16 posts) 1S.5c 11 c l(j rl's . 6~.5c Third ... 3Ge (2 posts) J() c 14 c l ·!.5 frS. 66 e Fourth .. 27.7c (2 7/9 posts) 22.2c 19.5c !) Y1'8 • 60.4c It will be noted that three of the fourth class posts could be purchased for the price of one of first class variety but the treatment and replacement in the fence line during a period of 25 years brings the total cost to practi-cally 70 cents a post in the fence as compared to 50 cents a post wher·e one po,t of the first class is used. 

The durability of fence posts

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