The fence around my property needs to be completely replaced. It's a standard 6' good neighbor fence. I already have permits and written permission on file from the neighbors so I am legal to build a 7' fence (up to 8' max). My neighbors can see into my backyard, and an extra foot wil give me the privacy my wife and I need.

How do I replace the concrete footings? If I remove the current footings there will be a huge gaping hole that will need to be filled with a ton of concrete. I've heard of using cardboard tubes. The new holes will be 3 1/2' deep (6" pea gravel, post 3' deep) so it will be 1 1/2' new hole, but the first 2' will be much bigger obviously.

Do I pull the concrete out, dig it deeper, put the tube in, fill it with concrete, remove the cardboard and fill in the rest with dirt? Is there a better way to do this? How solid could this dirt backfill be? Will my new fence posts shift? I live in a high wind area, so the footings need to be solid (7' solid fence is a nice wind break if ya know what I mean...)

Thanks!

 

Welcome to the forums!
What diameter is your present concrete? Are there posts embedded in the concrete presently? For a fence, there would be little need for sonotube installation. Much too much overkill. If your hole will be more than 12" or so across and the present hole is larger, yes, you can purchase smaller 9" or 12" sonotubes, insert them in the hole, backfill and tamp dirt against the sonotube, insert your post and fill with concrete. The sonotube will biodegrade in time, or you can cut the excess off once the pour has set up.

 

Re-space the first post so all the others will be re-located to fresh ground and then dig what ever size hole you want. This will mean you will have to modify the first panel to fit the new spacing.

 

I see the part about it being a standard good neighbor fence...

Is it made of PVC , WOOD,. CHAIN LINK(with slats) or ALUMINUM.

What is the spacing between posts now... ? And of course as a previous question already posted, what is the diameter of the posts and their cement bases?

There are different answers to your question based upon the answer you have.

Gregs Fence NJ ~

 

I just had my 6' privacy fence replaced a few months ago, and had the same concern with the old posts and footings. My posts had been replaced at least 3 times during the life of the fence, and each time, the concrete had been excavated further and further until the current posts were anchored in a 3 foot wide concrete base. The fence company had to dig out the corners, since those were determined by the property lines, but for the other posts, they simply sheared them off level with the ground and dug new holes, offsetting the spacing of the posts from the originals. For the corner posts that were dug out, they used the cardboard tubes to set the new posts, and backfilled dirt into the oversized excavations.