May 2, 2026 • 5 min read
Steel Posts vs Wood Posts: The 20-Year Math
Steel posts add about 12% to your fence cost and roughly double its life. Here's the arithmetic.
Why wood posts fail first
Fences almost never fail at the pickets. They fail where the post meets soil and moisture. In North Texas clay that expands and contracts, treated pine posts typically rot or loosen at grade in 8–12 years.
The cost comparison
On a 200 ft fence, steel posts add roughly $900. Replacing a wood-post fence at year 11 instead of year 22 costs you an entire fence.
How we install them
2 3/8" galvanized steel posts, 30" embedment, concrete footing crowned to shed water, with cedar rails attached by bracket.