Installing High Tunnel Hoop House Ground Post Anchors - Greenhouse Anchoring

Installing greenhouse ground post anchors. Includes showing how to space, plumb, and drive anchors into the ground to the appropriate depth. Both manual and machinery assisted methods for driving ground post anchors are displayed in this video. www.tunnelvisi...
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[@user-be8zh7sy1l]

A big thank you. This is the best channel about tunnels that I’ve found. Great information. Definitely subscribed and looking forward to more videos. You guys are awesome!

[@tunnelvisionhoops]

Thanks so much for the kind words! We have videos under edit and hope to get more out there for you soon. Thanks for subscribing!

[@TheSamSauce]

LOL ya'll are getting me psyched for the phsyical torture me and my pal are going to go through this week end when we tackle this step

[@tunnelvisionhoops]

haha, I love that attitude. Lean into the pain, my dude. Let's gooooo!

[@hudson8865]

Thank you very much.

[@tunnelvisionhoops]

You are welcome!

[@dirtydogvideo]

thanks for posting i am building one and these vids are just what i needed.

[@tunnelvisionhoops]

Happy to hear the videos have been helpful!

[@darbylinkler74]

Your videos are great, thank you. Why do you not use concrete to anchor your posts? Obviously just pounding them into the ground is quicker, and cheaper. But many people recommend concrete. What do you think, concrete or no concrete?

[@tunnelvisionhoops]

Thanks for the kind words! To answer your question, our customers do use concrete, but only sometimes. Each customer has the option to decide whether they anchor with concrete or not, and here is more detail about why some customers opt not to use concrete: 1. Some grant programs prohibit the use of concreted footers - for this reason the customer will anchor without concrete to ensure they receive funding. 2. Using concrete changes the building designation from a "temporary" to a "permanent" structure - there may be very stringent permit requirements once this designation changes, as municipalities may make customers submit engineer stamped drawings, get an occupancy permit, or other hoops to jump through. Depending on the municipality these additional steps could make the structure installation cost prohibitive. 3. Installing with concrete requires additional work in the form of using an auger to bore holes, and adding concrete to the installation process. 4. There is additional cost in the materials required to anchor with concrete, as well as the labor cost required to do so (takes more time). 5. Some decide to anchor only the four corners as a way of providing substantial additional anchoring without concreting all of the anchors. Because some customers find this compromise to be the best of both worlds they will not anchor the rest of their ground posts in concrete. 6. Pounding the anchors into place is the most popular form of anchoring these types of structures, and it has been the most popular method for decades. Because pounding the ground posts into place has been the most popular anchoring method without major drawbacks, it has remained to be the most popular method for anchoring. 7. Anchoring without concrete is an easier anchoring method for more types of terrain. Extremely rocky ground may make augering holes and removing debris time and cost prohibitive. The above are just a few of the reasons a customer may decide to anchor their structures without concrete. Hope this helps answer your question!

[@bounjamin]

Hey, any tips for driving ground anchors into extremely rocky soils?

[@tunnelvisionhoops]

Hi there! It kind of depends on what type of rocky soil you're dealing with. If the soil is rocky just at the top, like a layer of gravel, you can move that aside where you will drive the post and it should go in well. If you are talking about the unpredictability of in-ground rocks, there isn't a whole lot that can be done except for digging out rocks that stop progress of the post from being anchored. I have had some structures go in without any rocks being hit, and I've had others where it felt like almost every single ground post hits a rock. Sometimes they are simple to remove, and other times they are a headache - unfortunately it comes down to luck. Usually if I hit a rock that stops progress on a ground post, I will move on until all ground posts are in. This way I can see how many need adjusted, and it often times is just a few. I also do this because if just one or two need fixed, depending on how deep the rock is, it may make more sense to alter the length of the ground post instead of digging out the rock... again, this needs to be determined on a case by case basis, because you want to make sure you have a well anchored structure (that is number one). There are ways to ensure there are no rocks, if you are going to anchor ground posts in concrete, however that is likely an even more labor intensive process since it involves trenching in advance of anchoring. If you purchased one of our DIY Kits, and want to talk through the various ways I've removed rocks, cut ground posts, and more, please don't hesitate to call into our tech support line any time!

[@AamirSaeedTajalli]

Hello, at time line 4.02 you mentioned and showed a tool to help in inserting the pipe in ground. Could you please mention the name or web site for it? Thanks.

[@tunnelvisionhoops]

The equipment shown at 4:01 is called an Air Fence Post Driver. It requires a heavy duty air compressor to get the required pressure for getting the tubes in. For this particular project two items were rented from Sunbelt Rentals, an Air Fence Post Driver AND a tow behind Diesel Air Compressor. I will see if I can find a link to one and put it in the description.

[@ShannonGatta]

How deep do you reccomend setting your post?

[@tunnelvisionhoops]

It depends on a lot of factors, but our standard 6 ft sidewall DIY structures provide enough ground post anchor for them to be pounded into the earth 38 in. If you wanted them deeper, you could always auger out holes and use concrete to make the anchor depth even greater.

[@jdub1.8t92]

I recognize that voice it’s homey from Weed School 🤘🤘🤘

[@NewAgeRanger]

What is that pipe driver equipment called to anchor the posts? That is a time saver?

[@tunnelvisionhoops]

The specific driver equipment in this video is referred to as an "Air-Fence Post Driver" and it requires a tow behind "Diesel powered Air Compressor" and a couple of "Air Compressor Tubes" to connect it all together...you can likely find these or similar equipment at almost any tool / equipment rental place, but we rented the equipment shown in the video from Sun Belt Rentals. Best of luck!

[@sadokbenk]

What do you do if you hit rock when you've already driven a post over 50% of the way?

[@tunnelvisionhoops]

Good question. Unfortunately, usually the first attempt to fix this I just remove the ground post anchor, dig down, remove the rock, and try again, and then pack soil back down around the post to make sure its firmly in the earth. If you continue to hit something there, or it is not a moveable rock, I have cut the ground post to reduce its length and then sometimes added supplemental concrete to that specific hole to counter the shorter ground post length. Best of luck, and I hope you didn't hit too many more rocks!!

[@deerphoria4314]

If you cement the posts, how deep should they go into the ground?

[@tunnelvisionhoops]

Would depend on where you live and which type of structure you purchased - every manufacturer has different ground post sizes which have different recommended anchoring depths. I would consult the manufacturer that produced your structure. If you are self fabricating / you made your ground posts on your own, I would reference your local building department to see if they have a recommended depth for anchoring footers.

[@charabotte1]

Hi, is this way of anchoring your tunnel enough to prevent it from being blown down by the wind ?I mean if it has rollup walls, the only thing holding it down is the posts.

[@tunnelvisionhoops]

That's a good question. While I would always encourage people to anchor in concrete you would be surprised how many people anchor just as shown in this video without ever experiencing a single issue. It is ultimately up to the customer, and approximately 80% of all our customers anchor just as shown in the video. Of those that do this, I would say a decent portion do end up putting concrete around the corner posts though (by digging holes and concreting the posts in a hole). I would estimate that only 20% of our customers end up using an auger to bore holes and then use concrete for each post. If you end up concreting your anchors in place the steps for figuring out the spacing and depth for your anchors would be the exact same as shown in this video (most of the time). As in, you would have already dug out the holes for each post before running your strings, and you would concrete your posts as opposed to pounding the posts in. Customers most often use a couple bags of QuickCrete or similar product when anchoring in this manner. While we work to provide examples of installation techniques I would suggest you follow any and all building requirements for the municipality you're building in.

[@BVisser7]

So your posts are even down each side because of the holes and the string line. Are the two sides leveled together?

[@tunnelvisionhoops]

Hey there, we shot you a response on Facebook as well, but I will put it here for others to reference if need be. Here are the steps: 1) Level the front most ground posts on the left and right 2) Level the rear most ground posts on the left and right 3) Run a string past the rear posts and front posts 4) Use that string as a guide for all internal ground posts This ensures the left and right are level to each other AND that the ground posts follow the grade of the earth through the length of the structure. Thanks for watching!

[@BVisser7]

@@tunnelvisionhoops y’all rock! Thanks for all your help and awesome products!

[@aa91316]

What are you using on top of the post when driving it in by hand? Is it just a flat rock?

[@tunnelvisionhoops]

It is actually a large bolt (very large) that can slide into the top of the ground post. The threaded part of the bolt is a smaller diameter than the ground post, and the head of the bolt is larger than the top of the ground post. If you want a price on one shoot us a message at [e-mail] and let us know what size post you are anchoring - you could also possibly source one through a fastener company near you if there are any. Using one of these bolts reduces the "mushrooming" affect of slamming on the top of a post without one.

[@KalvinistKyle]

Are those 8ft poles?

[@tunnelvisionhoops]

They are 70" long each; they can be 100" long if requested. Thanks for watching!

[@mark_osborne]

Holy crap no wonder you're so skinny !

[@tunnelvisionhoops]

Ha! Well, I suppose that is one reason!