Garden fence advise - are fence post spikes any good?

IME (limited, admittedly) not that much quicker than digging out the old lump of postcrete and going again with a fresh bag and fresh post

My front garden fence has blown over in last nights storm. All the posts have snapped at ground level, I’m guessing they’ve rotted through?

Yep, pretty normal.

Repair with concrete spurs:

[url= https://live.staticflickr.com/321/19891871261_b8f0c2be48.jp g" target="_blank">https://live.staticflickr.com/321/19891871261_b8f0c2be48.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/wiM3iB ]Concrete Spur[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/brf/ ]Ben Freeman[/url], on Flickr

[url= https://live.staticflickr.com/1667/25371096405_676b940b2d.jp g" target="_blank">https://live.staticflickr.com/1667/25371096405_676b940b2d.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/EDXv3D ]Repairing Fence Post #2[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/brf/ ]Ben Freeman[/url], on Flickr

[url= https://live.staticflickr.com/1565/25371095715_e4efa768bf.jp g" target="_blank">https://live.staticflickr.com/1565/25371095715_e4efa768bf.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/EDXuQK ]Repairing Fence Post #4[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/brf/ ]Ben Freeman[/url], on Flickr

As a quick temporary fix to a small fence, I think they would do a good job. Less so if the fence is solid and catches the wind. We have a small picket fence which uses them, replacing rotten posts has been dead easy.

And yes, as above, use concrete spurs for the permanent fix.

IME if it's a long straight fence with no angles, it'll last a while, then it'll get wobbly and fall over. If it's got a couple of 90 degree bends in it, it'll last (almost) forever.
BiL put up about 250m of it round the edge of his garden when his oldest started walking (it's a bit of a drop) she's driving now and the fence is still up and solid, but there aren't more than about 5 posts in a straight line anywhere...

Having done a lot of fencing over the years (large garden with north-south fencing), I think the spike things will be a false economy. It's not much more effort to postcrete in a concrete post from the outset.

I'm useless and even I've managed a fence post repair with concrete posts.
Still up after many coastal storms.

Or, cheaper and quicker , find some angle iron , say 2” by 2” that isn’t too thick, cut into about 2ft lengths, bash about 1ft of 2 bits down 2 of the corner of the posts still in the ground/concrete and screw the posts to the 1ft that is sticking up. 

to be fair I’ve not done this on a down fence (so suspect you’ll need to wedge the fence upright, have holding helpers etc so the posts are in the right place ), but used it lots when posts go at the bottom and you end up with all the posts reinforced in this way. 

If the remains of the post is solid, you can screw a lifting eye to the remains and lever it out with a digging bar.
Hammer a new post in place, maybe a bit of extra post Crete and job jobbed.

I used those post spikes to put up a 2m high 20m long straight fence for my parents.  15 years later its still sound.  they would be my go to

Edit:  I think they come in different lengths.  the ones I used went at least 18" into the ground maybe 2ft

Drive in fence spikes are fine. In theory longer lived than concrete in as the base of the post is allowed to dry. Also lower CO2 footprint than dig and concrete. You need shorter (cheaper) post too. If the posts do rot you can swap in a new one into the base.
Worth buying the plastic block that you drop into the base and bash with the sledge hammer. Also keep checking for straight when putting them in. Check with a level every couple of hits as they can wander.

I set metal sockets in postcrete and fixed wooden posts into the sockets. Keeps the wood off the ground and easier to replace if they snap.

Spikes are a nightmare. As said earlier a false economy.

i tried one to fix a small section that came down. First problem was solid ground when the spike was only 3/4 way in. Second problem was when the spike was slightly out of alignment. Looked poop.

Currently using post buddy to hold up the odd post thats rotten at ground level. They work really well. But if the whole lots down then really best to start again. If you’re gonna dig holes for concrete posts just redo it all.

As jamesoz suggests for a quick job. If concrete posts will fit in the hole then win-win (but don't hammer these, they'll be damaged)

As jamesoz suggests for a quick job. If concrete posts will fit in the hole then win-

Pretty sure I got this from this forum.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=TlthpwrveDw

I forgot to add I replaced all the posts this way, some were so rotten i had get inventive with drills and the digging bar to get them out.

I’d already used post buddies/angle iron/ string as every post was snapped.

If I had dug out the old bases I’d have to dispose of a lot of rubble.

I needed a few bags of postcrete to prevent the new posts being at dirt level.

With this method I could do a couple of posts after work each night, keeping a fence in place.

The fence is solid and wobble free.

The really rotten ones slowed me down a bit

Genius. I’m gonna be needing that soon.

So being thick, if old wooden posts and new concrete posts are same size then presumably its a case of trying to enlarge the hole slightly and enough for post and postcrete in. Rather than digging up potential huge lumps of concrete?  I’ve an old tractor hay bale spike which weighs a ton but fantastic at breaking up concrete.

or better to just go like for like posts.

Spikes are a nightmare. As said earlier a false economy.

Not IME.  Quick. cheap, easy and ;long lasting

if old wooden posts and new concrete posts are same size then presumably its a case of trying to enlarge the hole slightly and enough for post and postcrete in

Dunno, I’d have thought concrete posts having no give would jam and making the holes bigger would end badly.

I went like for like.

Spikes may be fine but if the ground you are putting them in is stony then they'll be an utter [insert foul language of choice] to get in straight (or at all if you have balled fist size bits of flint everywhere like we do) and keep stable.  

Dig a hole and stick a concrete post or spur in it.  

Getting concrete lumps out of the ground is pretty easy with a digging bar.

Putting postcrete in the hole and then concreting in a metal post holder, with post attached and a fence level is also pretty easy.  I'd say easier than faffing about with fixes.  If you're near South Wales I'll come over and give you a hand, I could do with the workout.

I used a fence spike as part of a treehouse - to hold up one of six 100mm hardwood posts on a ~20sqm hardwood construction.
I did that because it was on a steep slope in a difficult to access location and it seemed much easier and neater... which it was.
It worked without issue for over five years until termites ate out the post. I've just replaced it with a new post and a screw version of the spike (that's all I could find).

Easy to make space for them with a big bar.

Fencingtrackworld - any comments on how to use postcrete - do you follow the instructions and add water to a powder-filled hole? Or pre-mix it?

do you follow the instructions and add water to a powder-filled hole?

Yep, seems to work fine that way.

Spikes are a nightmare. As said earlier a false economy.

Not IME. Quick. cheap, easy and ;long lasting

Both statements are true. Depends on the ground, the fence and the installation.
A straight, 6 foot high, panel fence in either poor (soft) or poor (stoney) ground with spikes will be a pain to put up and/or come down quickly.
A 4 foot high fence, with a few angles and bends in it, in nice solid, but not rocky ground will last for years.

Spike - do not under any circumstances buy/use the black solid polypropylene block places like Toolstation sell to drive them in. You'll spend 5 mins smashing it in and then two days trying to get the plastic block out, which is basically impossible without destroying it. Oh, and you'll never get the post straight either.