# Shovel VS post hole digger?



## Jungle (Aug 11, 2014)

Is a PHD really better? I think it is only not to disturb the grass?


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## Blue Jay (Aug 11, 2014)

You get a better shaped hole with the digger, using a shouvle you will have a lot bigger hole and reversed bell shape.


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## Chris (Aug 11, 2014)

What are you digging?


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## slownsteady (Aug 11, 2014)

If you have a lot of large-ish rocks the PHD can be a little frustrating.

(you can get a PHD from the college of hard-knocks)


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## nealtw (Aug 11, 2014)

If you are planting fence posts, the digger will save how much concrete you will buy, It is tricky to dig a hole with a shovel if you are getting close to 2 ft deep. Either way you will likely need a 5ft digging bar too.


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## kok328 (Aug 12, 2014)

rent a power auger, you'll be happy you did.  My post hole digging days are long gone, only augers from now on.


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## inspectorD (Aug 12, 2014)

kok328 said:


> rent a power auger, you'll be happy you did.  My post hole digging days are long gone, only augers from now on.



YES... What he said....so much faster and easier, and you can rent one with a bobcat if you dont have a machine.


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## Jungle (Aug 14, 2014)

Nah, a machine would be more troubs than it would be worth. I have about 15 x 4ft deep holes to dig, the 'new fence.'
The neighbors had their own survey now, once again confirmed, so it is a tactical fence to over take new lands. It involves concrete breakage, precision shed di-sections. It is better to do in sections i figure. So about 5 holes a day and set the concrete footer. 5 holes dug a day will keep the doctor away.


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## nealtw (Aug 14, 2014)

Dig a hole and then  say nah


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## slownsteady (Aug 15, 2014)

At least pick a nice, cool day to start.


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## bud16415 (Aug 15, 2014)

Age and enthusiasm play a big part in how many holes a person is willing to do with a PHD. There was a time when I would have dug 15 fence posts by hand. Now one mailbox post is pushing the limits. I went out and got my PHD out of the shed the other day and one side of the scoop had rusted half off. Seems it was up against a bag of lime and ten years of sitting there did it in. 

The mail box move will have to wait.


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## Fireguy5674 (Aug 15, 2014)

You know what they say:  "Old and crafty will defeat young and strong every time." or the ever popular "Work smarter not harder."  

It took me a long time to learn these truths.


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## mako1 (Aug 16, 2014)

To dig a post hole with a shovel to a depth of 4' you would have a huge diameter hole.


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## nealtw (Aug 16, 2014)

mako1 said:


> To dig a post hole with a shovel to a depth of 4' you would have a huge diameter hole.



There is something called a spoon shovel. Years ago I saw two guys dig a hole 8 ft deep for a telephone pole.


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## bud16415 (Aug 16, 2014)

nealtw said:


> There is something called a spoon shovel. Years ago I saw two guys dig a hole 8 ft deep for a telephone pole.



Grape farmers around here all have one for posts. 


Sent from my iPhone using Home Repair


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## susan-j (Feb 3, 2015)

My back aches from just reading this discussion!  I attempted to go shovel-only years ago, with disastrous results.  I go power auger all the way now.  Not only is it faster, the results are much cleaner as well.


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## frodo (Feb 3, 2015)

I use my PHD to plant veggie plants,  how do you pour your concrete in each hole?  

I figure 1 bag per hole, fill hole with water,  pour concrete in hole,  jewg it with a stick, 

cover  with dirt, go to the next hole


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## Sparky617 (Feb 3, 2015)

I'd rent a Dingo with an auger attachment.  Around here it is rocky clay a very tough thing to dig through.

http://www.toro.com/en-us/professional-contractor/compact-utility/Pages/default.aspx

Well worth the rental cost for a day.


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## Big Red (Feb 3, 2015)

I like using a spade for this.  Once you get down so far, you can sit down and chip away a couple inches of dirt at a time and use your hands, and a post-hole digger to remove the dirt.  It seems like a hard job, but it's really easy digging when you can sit down!!  I dug numerous holes this way down to 40" inches deep--even underneath an existing deck that was poorly constructed in order to get more supporting posts under it.  A spade is my favorite digging shovel.


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## mmb617 (Feb 21, 2015)

Digging post holes is on my list of not favorite things to do, but over the years I've dug a fair number of them. The proper tool depends largely on the type of soil you're digging in. Our ground is full of rocks, some fairly large. I've always used a post hole digger and a digging bar for when I encounter a rock. Ever notice how the big rocks are usually pretty far down in the hole? In those cases the hole gets a good bit oversized but I don't know how you'd avoid that happening.

As I'm getting on in years I thought it was time to rent a gas powered auger the last time I had some holes to dig. It didn't work out at all because it kept hitting rocks which would throw it off course and move the hole out of line. A Bobcat with auger attachment does work, but that's way overkill for a few post holes.

The best way of all I found to dig post holes is to lay out where I want them, then hire a much younger man to do them. I have the equipment, they supply the muscle. This works so well it's my go-to method from now on.


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## nathanpetrelli (Mar 18, 2015)

What is the project and what is the terrain like?


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## frodo (Mar 24, 2015)

forget a shovel,  and a post hole digger.  do like i did,  I got a youngster to do it

http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=ain't+nobody+got+time+for+that&FORM=VIRE11#view=detail&mid=94D9610500257229FF2E94D9610500257229FF2E
I


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