Post Buddy Pack of 8 Easy Fence Post Repair Kit (to Fix 4 Broken Wood Posts), Quick and Simple to Install, Effective, Durable Steel Stakes

These work really, really well. Not perfect but better than anything I've ever seen or tried. Will definitely be using more of these on fences in the future

Relatively easy to use and effective. I have never been able to get away with using only 2-I usually put 1 per side on 3 sides of the post and and that gets the post solid enough to last awhile.

Post Buddies are great. This pack of 4 was the 2nd time I've bought them. The 1st time I only bought 2. I have also used the E-Z Mender repair devices made by Simpson Strong Tie (https://www.amazon.com/Simpson-Strong-FPBM44E-Powder-Coated-12-Gauge/dp/B004I3YYN4/) and I would give them a positive review also. There are trade-offs between the two types of menders. The E-Z Menders are much more rigid and stronger because they are much more massive. In fact I've used them to repair several posts and despite the fact that two are recommended, I've found one to be sufficient for all 4 of the posts I've used them to repair. On the other hand, two Post Buddies are definitely required to get a secure repair. A problem with the E-Z Menders is that they can be extremely difficult to hammer in to a sufficient depth in some cases. How hard depends on the particulars of the particular post being repaired. The problem I've encountered is that the E-Z Mender can be too wide for the hole in the concrete that the rotted post is in. If the difference is small, hard hammering can overcome the problem. In one case I actually used a drill and chisel to modify the hole so that the EZ-Mender would fit. With Post Buddies this not-fitting problem doesn't exist. Though they can be surprisingly hard to hammer in sometimes, given that there's no fitting problem. I think than can be due to irregularities in the concrete sides of the hole or to roots that have somehow managed to grow into the hole. There are other post-repair devices available but there's one that I couldn't find, but I wish it were available. That fantasy device might be described as a cross between the Post Buddy and the E-Z Mender. It would be flat (no "L"s at the sides) like a Post Buddy but much wider---just narrow enough to fit width-wise in any hole that is for a 4x4 post (really 3.5x3.5). One of those might be sufficient to repair most posts but it wouldn't have the not-fitting problem than an E-Z Mender can have. Another fantasy device I'd like is something to make both of these post menders easier to hammer in. I'm referring to how awkward it is to hammer so close to the face of the post, not how much force is required to drive them in. I've tried a few tricks to address this issue and the best so far is a section of a 1x1 solid-steel bar. I hold that against the top of the mender and hammer the bar. With the Post Buddy another trick is rotating the head of the sledge hammer 90- degrees from how it's normally used so that a wider face is hitting the top of the mender. The price on Amazon for a pack of 2 Post Buddies is $19.95 + $7.95 shipping, though the shipping charge is the same for packs of 4 and 6 also. For a single E-Z Mender, it's $16.96 & FREE Shipping.

As always, depends on your specific situation, i.e. was concrete poured as a "cup" under post, is there even concrete, how rotten is the post below grade, etc. etc. Is it perfect? No, still some flex with the posts, but it straightened 2 posts that were leaning several inches over, and pulling rest of fence with them, and has since withstood strong wind and rain. I had 2 posts, one with a concrete collar, the other in dense, clay soil, and this worked in both situations. The posts were not completely rotten once you went deeper. Often times posts only rot at ground level, or just below. In a different situation, and post was in better shape, I used 12 guage simpson wood straps (12-16 inches long), and they worked well. But the Post Buddy with the ridges, did drive deeper and bite better. The simpson straps were too short and didn't get below the rotten wood for the worst posts. Also, when you drive in the Post Buddy's , they end up somewhat "v"ed out at the top, i.e. an inch or so separated from the post on both sides, so when you screw them into the post, there is tension. This tension helped to pull the post back to vertical. Tip, drive in the Post Buddy on the side that the post is leaning >away< from first, so you can get post closer to vertical before driving in the one on the leaning side.

Don't expect these things to make your post solid like a new foundation of concrete would: they won't. But they will give you a few more years of life. The post will still rock some, and I wouldn't go leaning anything valuable on it, but it'll keep the post upright and more solid than it was. Fairly easy to use. They give you a link to an instructional video, and you can find tons of videos easy enough. You will need a small sledge hammer, your own screws, and a drill. A second person makes the job a lot easier, but it's not absolutely essential. My dog was jumping on my fence and making it wobble pretty bad. It still gives when he jumps on it, but not as much. Like I said, don't expect an instant fix, but it's sure a lot cheaper and easier than putting in a new post or a new foundation. Have purchased many times and probably will again.

This is a pretty great product. They aren’t thin or weak as you might think, 1/4” thick metal flat bar that is coated in weather proof material. They have predrilled holes in them & work pretty good. I would suggest that you make sure you don’t have posts that are set in concrete because you won’t be able to get them into the ground as deep as they need to go. I had to modify one of them because of this, but I was a metal fabricator for a long time. So if you have concrete set posts? I would suggest buying ones that would be suitable for your needs. Besides that? I would recommend these to anyone who needs to fix a falling post. As a matter of fact, I already recommended them to a neighbor who has a few leaning posts. Hope this helps.

Like most people, I'll take the path of least resistance or the "easy out" and this was my intent when I purchased the Post Buddy to fix rotted wooden fence posts. The Post Buddy works by wedging itself between the rotted post and the concreate poured into the post hole. This system relies on having a something solid to wedge against down inside the post hole allowing it to form a support structure that holds the above ground post in proper position. My post holes are 36 inches deep with the majority of my posts rotted to the ground level leaving nothing in the post hole to anchor against which effectively renders the post buddy useless. To be fair, one of the three posts I attempted to repair did have some solid material remaining down in the hole and the post buddy worked as intended. In conclusion, there is no easy, inexpensive, solution to rotted wooden fence posts. The only real fix is to dig out the rotted post and replace it with a new wooden or metal fence post. I plan on using the galvanized metal fence posts designed for wooden fences. Metal posts are costly but are warranted for the original buyers lifetime so, in the long run, they are worth the extra cost.

Great product. I had a post pushed off plumb by tree growth. Rather than go though the expensive process of removing it, I cut it off near the ground and used this product to splice on a new one. Undetectable after some plantings.

I could not hammer them between the post and concrete as advertised.

I was little skeptical, but the steel is thicker than I expected and seems to work well. The top of the concrete was lower than the ground so the post rotted. I added 2 braces and build up the concrete to be above ground to prevent further deterioration. Some posts were not as bad, so I added 1 brace to the front and added concrete. Time will tell if this works. 2 of the posts are too far gone and I will do a proper replacement pulling the concrete up,.installing new post and concrete. If the posts are not too far gone, this system should work. I was also surprised that it was not that hard to hammer the brace in, I used only a regular hammer.

I used this to fix a fence post that had completely rotted through at the ground. The gate was attached to that post, and it wasn't working very well. With these steel pieces pounded into the ground, on adjacent sides of the post, the fence is now decently solid, and the gate works well. It has lasted for two years so far. We still have to replace the fence at some point, but it's allowed us to defer the costly fence replacement project.

Bent at first application

Excellent product to repair fence