How to Properly Set a Metal Gate Fence Post

Open a posthole digger's jaws three times as wide as the diameter of the metal fence post. Push the jaws into the ground and bring the two handles together. Continue digging until the hole is approximately 30 inches deep.

Reach into the hole with a hand trowel and use it to widen the hole's base. When complete, the hole is narrower at the top than at the bottom. This prevents the ground frost from heaving out the post.

Determine how much of the gate post will stick out of the ground. Measure down from the post's top end and place a mark on the post with chalk. When installing the post, line up this mark with the ground's surface.

Center the metal gate post in the hole and align the post's mark with the ground's surface. Put a clamp on the post to hold it in place. Hold a level against the post to ensure it is plumb.

Pour a 6-inch layer of gravel into the hole. Use the hand trowel to level the gravel's surface. Pour a bag of fast-setting concrete into a wheelbarrow. Use a garden hose to add water to the concrete to give it a pancake-batter consistency. Stir the mixture with the shovel.

Pour the concrete into the hole until the gravel layer is covered. Reach into the hole with the hand trowel and work the concrete down into the gravel. Finish filling the hole with concrete.

Smooth the concrete's surface using the edge of the hand trowel. Slope the concrete away from the metal gate post so water doesn't pool at its base. Wait at least 20 minutes before removing the clamps.