How to choose concrete pillars for the fence?

At arrangement of a country site one of the most responsible moments is installation of a reliable and strong protection. Strong supports are necessary for any type of fence. This type of support for the fence are, above all, concrete pillars.

Concrete bases for the fence are traditionally considered the most reliable, thanks to a number of their advantages:

• Durability. Concrete fence posts have a very long service life and are guaranteed to last for several decades.
• Strength. Supports made of concrete are of high strength.
• Simplicity in processing and installation.

• A wide range of design. The appearance of concrete pillars can be easily changed using different materials for decoration.You can use paint, plaster, decorative stones.
• Easy to install. Owners of country houses can independently install concrete supports for the future fence. You can not contact the experts, as the installation of pillars does not require professional skills.

Any product has its drawbacks. Concrete supports are no exception.

Minuses:

• For proper and reliable installation of concrete pillars for the fence is needed, above all, a strong foundation. A lot of time can be spent on the work of deepening the foundation to the ground. If you do not pay due attention to the quality of the foundation, the fence may soon be deformed or even fall.
• When self-fabricating concrete pillars, careful consolidation of the concrete during pouring is necessary to avoid the appearance of air clusters.

During the installation of concrete supports for the fence, there are three main steps:

1. First you need to build a formwork.
2. Installed iron reinforced rods.
3. Concrete is poured.

Before proceeding directly to the installation of concrete columns, it is necessary to carefully prepare all the necessary tools, without which it is necessary to do in the process.

In work, as a rule, are necessary:

1. Boards made of wood or plywood.
2. Metal fittings.
3. Polyethylene film.
4. Welding machine.
5. A set of screws.
6. Hammer.

This process requires high attention, since it determines how even and correct the future columns will be. The simplest and most common form of construction formwork - this formwork in the form of a wooden box.

Work on the manufacture of such a box is carried out at certain stages:

• To begin with, it is necessary to cut out parts for three sides of formwork from ordinary wooden boards or pieces of plywood. The formwork itself should be made depending on the size of the future support structure.

• Next, you need to fasten with each other the three sides of the formwork and two ends, and the upper part must remain open.This is done for future pouring concrete solution. The formwork is recommended to be fastened with screws, which then during the process of sorting the form into pieces will be easy to remove.
• Next, you need to tightly fit all the elements of the form to each other and cover the structure with plastic wrap. This is recommended to increase the waterproofing of the formwork when casting with concrete. Sometimes plastic is used instead of polyethylene, which further increases the level of waterproofing and prevents the concrete mixture from flowing out of the mold.

The use of reinforcement is important for imparting increased pillar strength. A pillar of pure cement without reinforcement may not always provide adequate stability to the future fence. Attention should be paid to the quality of the concrete mix.

For the manufacture of the frame of reinforcement should consider some features:

1. Four iron rods should be located along the formwork structure. The recommended diameter of the rods is 12 to 16 mm.
2. It also requires a short reinforcement, which will be located across the future pillars. Their diameter will be approximately from 8 to 10 mm. Cross rods should be located from each other at a distance of 5 to 15 cm.
3. When installing the reinforcement in the construction, it is necessary to provide a gap between the bottom of the formwork and the reinforcement, which should be about 2 cm. This is done so that the concrete mix can completely hide the reinforcement.

After the construction of the formwork and the framework of reinforcement rods, it is necessary to knead the concrete mix. In the preparation of the solution should use three main ingredients:

• sand;
• water;
• cement.

You can interfere with the solution by hand or use a concrete mixer, which will be much more convenient and will allow you to save power.

Next you need to go directly to the process of pouring the solution in the formwork frame.

To avoid air voids in future columns, the mixture should be poured slowly and carefully.

After pouring, the structure is covered on top of the board and left for a period of 7 to 9 days to allow the mixture to completely harden.

Independent production of reinforced concrete pillars for the fence - this is a significant cost savings and personal confidence in the reliability of the structure.

Also, quite often the owners of country houses acquire prefabricated structures that have a number of positive qualities, in particular:

• low cost;
• ease of installation;
• durability;
• saving time and effort.

The main distinguishing feature of precast concrete columns is a quick and easy installation that anyone can handle. In the installation of a concrete prefabricated structure there are no particular difficulties.

To install precast pillars, you must first pour the foundation. A metal pipe or several bars of reinforcement are used as the core of future pillars.

Quite often, the concrete base for the fence is not just a fence at home, but a kind of decorative structure. Design options are many. The main thing is to approach the decor of the concrete structure creatively and with imagination.

When painting reinforced concrete pillars, compositions of the following types are often used:

• epoxy;
• acrylic;
• rubber;
• polyurethane.

To apply epoxy paint on concrete, it is necessary to carry out preparatory work on the surface of the column.This paint has a durable color that is difficult to change when re-painted.

A distinctive feature of acrylic paints is their environmental friendliness. Such paints have a fast drying period, are resistant to moisture and can be applied in one layer. Acrylic reliably protects the concrete surface from the effects of corrosion. Such paint can be applied to the surface with a roller or a brush. The total drying time for acrylic paint is 14 hours.

Rubber paints are fairly new products that are very resistant to moisture. Such compositions can be applied even on a wet surface, but this must be done in several layers.

Polyurethane paints are very resistant and have chemical and mechanical strength. The only drawback of such paints is a long period of drying, which can be from 2 to 14 days.

For the decoration of concrete columns often used plaster.

In this case, there are several types of plaster:

• lime-gypsum;
• mosaic;
• mineral;
• decorative.

A feature of lime-gypsum plaster is its complete environmental friendliness.Lime and gypsum plaster is highly resistant to mechanical damage and mold or mildew.

Mosaic plaster contains in its composition fine stone chips. Plaster is guaranteed to take down all the mechanical damage.

There is a cement-lime mortar in the composition of the mineral plaster.

Decorative plaster gives concrete supports a stunning appearance. Decorative plaster is very strong and durable.

It is also very fashionable to decorate concrete structures with plastic panels or decorative stone. Plastic panels are represented by a wide range of colors and patterns, and decorative stone elegantly imitates the surface of a natural material.

No less fashionable trend is the decor of the fence and reinforced concrete pillars using mosaics.

Usually for the decoration of mosaic used stone flagstone, which is easily cut into the necessary parts. Mosaic can also be represented by a wide range of different colors and patterns.

Such an element of decor as a decorative brick, which appeared on the market relatively recently, is an excellent decoration of concrete pillars for the fence.

Such bricks can be of several types:

• smooth;
• "ragged";
• angular;
• semicircular.

The laying of decorative bricks is no different from the standard.

Such a range of materials for the decor will help to give gray and plain concrete pillars any shape, color, effect, and creativity. And besides, modern design materials not only decorate the surface, but also give it extra strength.

How to choose concrete pillars for the fence, see the following video.