How to Remove T-post from Ground

Removing a t-post is easy if you have selected the right tools. We can use any tool or method based on lever physics for T-post removal, such as a T-post-puller, farm or car jack pulling with a tractor bucket.

To remove T-post without a puller you can use a manual post driver, pull with your hands or make a homemade T-post puller.

In this post, we’ve discussed 6 different methods to remove T-posts. Read the complete guide.

How to remove the T-post from the ground?

Use any of these methods to remove t-posts:

1. Fix a post pounder/driver to a t-post hook and pull the post with the whole body weight.
2. Tie a chain with the tractor’s bucket and t-post & lift the bucket upward.
3. Take a t-post puller. Fix the t-post’s stud/hook in the post puller’s C shape lock. Press the handle down, lift it and press downward again. Repeat until T-post gets out of the ground.
4. Slide the t-post puller plate over t post and fix it at the bottom hook. Fix the farm jack’s jaw under the second hole on the plate. Lift the handle, press it down & repeat.
5. Fasten a pipe wrench around the t-post. Lift it with a car jack & t-post will be removed.
6. Make a homemade t-post puller by tying a sturdy metal/wood rod at the bottom of the t-post with a rope. Place the rod over a wood log for leverage and press it down.

Follow the step-by-step guide:

Method 1: Remove T-posts with a post pounder(driver):

This method is useful for soft to medium hard ground and removing a few t-post. You must be physically strong to remove T-posts with a post driver.

Tools Required:

• A manual post driver

Steps:

1. In front of the T-post hooks, put the post driver upside down.
2. Adjust your right foot at the base to prevent the post driver from slipping.
3. Push the t-post and fix the post-driver’s hollow side under a t-post hook.
4. With your left hand, hold the T-post from the top.
5. With your right hand, hold the opposite side of contact between the pounder and t-post.
6. With jerks, pull the T-post toward yourself.
7. The ground will loosen, and T-posts will come out.

Watch the complete video at the bottom.

Method 2: Use a T-post puller

A t-post puller is most commonly used to remove t-posts. It has a C shape lock(face) that catches the T-post. Then we press the handle with our body weight, and the T-post is pulled from the ground.

Steps:

1. Lift the post puller’s handle, and place the C shape lock/head around the T-post.
2. Press the handle downward with your body weight.
3. After the handle is down, lift the handle and lock the T-post again.
4. Press the handle downward with your whole body weight.
5. Repeat the step a few times, and T-posts will come out of the ground.

Tip:

• T-post pullers with a long handle will reduce the required force.
• If the ground is quite hard & t-post removal is impossible, push the t-post back and forth to loosen the ground and then use the t-post puller.
• Some t-post pullers also have a chain hook that can be attached to the t-post puller plate.
• A post-lifter is similar to a t-post puller but in less height and requires less force.

Method 3: Make a homemade DIY t-post puller:

Tools Required:

• A rod.
• A rope.
• Wood/concrete/metal block.

Steps:

1. Tie a rope at one end of the rod.
2. Closely tie the rope at the bottom of the T-post.
3. Take a concrete or wood block as a pivot point(fulcrum) and place it near T-post.
4. Place the rod over the wood/concrete block(pivot) and press the rod downward with whole body weight.

Note: This DIY post-puller will require extreme force if the ground is dry.

Method 4: Remove T-posts with Tractor

This technique won’t require manual force; hence is helpful to remove a large number of t-post.

Required Tools:

• Tractor having bucket
• A chain with a hook at the end.
• T-post puller plate(optional)

What is a T-post puller plate?

A T-post puller plate has two holes. The triangular hole fit’s over the T-post. The hammer shape hole hooks the chain. You can also use this plate along a farm jack for removing T-posts.

Steps:

1. First, tie a heavy chain around the bucket of the tractor/excavator.
2. Then place the triangular hole of the T-post puller plate over the T-post and fix it on a hook (studs).
3. Fix the chain’s hook in the hammer-shaped hole of the plate.
4. Tightly wrap/tie the chain around the t-post if you don’t have a puller plate, and lift the tractor.

Method 5: Remove T-posts with a Car Jack & Pipe Wrench

You can use a car jack/farm jack and a wrench to remove T-posts:

Tools Required:

• Car Jack/Farm Jack
• Wrench
• Chain (If a wrench is unavailable)

Steps:

1. One foot above the ground, tighten the wrench jaws around the t-post under a hook.
2. Under the wrench handle, fix the lifting arm of a car jack.
3. At last, press the car jack’s handle down, pull it up, and then press down again.
4. As the jack’s lifting arm moves upward, it pushes the wrench upwards, and the t-post will be pulled out of the ground.
5. In another way, tightly tie the t-post to the lifter of the car jack using a chain.

Method 6: Remove T-posts with a Farm jack

A farm jack is also widely used along a t-post puller plate to remove t-posts. This tool requires very less power & time as compared to a T-post puller.

Tools Required:

• Farm Jack
• T-post puller plate

Steps:

1. Slide the T-post puller plate over the T-post through the triangular hole.
2. Lock the plate at the bottom teeth of the T-post.
3. Fix the farm jack’s claw(hook) under the hammer shape hole of the t-post puller plate.
4. Lift the handle & press it down. Repeat the steps until the T-post starts lifting & gets out of the ground.

Method 7: Remove T-posts by hand

Steps:

1. Push the t-postback and forth to loosen the hard-packed soil layers.
2. Then water the ground near the T-post. After a few hours, the ground will get soft.
3. Wear gloves & pull the t-post.

Note: This method will require much time until the water absorbs into the ground.

Conclusion:

Personally, I’ve tried all these tricks, and they work well. A post driver is the least costly tool for t-post removal but requires a lot of power, especially on hard ground.

However, if you are a professional farmer, you must have a t-post puller or a farm jack; otherwise, you can make your own DIY t-post puller.

If you don’t have a tool and don’t want to buy one, arrange a wrench & a car jack.

A tractor can save your time & energy, especially when you’ve to remove lots of t-posts.