Hardware & Sign Posts

Work backward from the sign. For a standard 12" x 18" or 18" x 24" aluminum sign at normal viewing height, a 92" post set roughly 24" to 30" into the ground puts the sign face at a readable height with enough post buried to stay rigid. Use a 64" U-channel post for lower-mounted signs or where the post is being surface mounted rather than buried. For larger signs or exposed, windy locations, step up to a 2" square post, which is stiffer and resists twisting. If you are mounting on pavement and cannot dig, use a concrete base or a surface mount bracket instead of a longer post.

In dirt: drive the post directly with a square post driver, or use a ground anchor sleeve that accepts a 2" square post — the anchor goes in the ground and the post drops into it, which makes future post replacement a two-minute job. Set the post 24" to 30" deep. In concrete or asphalt: do not core the surface if you can avoid it. Use a galvanized surface mount bracket, which lag-bolts a 6" x 6" base plate to the slab and accepts a standard 2" square post in its sleeve. Where you cannot fasten to the surface at all: use a freestanding weighted base, either a 250 lb concrete base with U-channel post or a rollaway post on a 32 lb cast iron base.

Use fence brackets made for it. Our chain link fence bracket sets include two brackets and two 5/16" x 2-3/4" screws and fit most standard 2" galvanized fencing, clamping the sign to the fence fabric and rail without distorting either. This is the standard approach for no-trespassing, property identification, and athletic field signage where a fence line is already in place and setting a post is unnecessary. Avoid zip ties and wire: they fail within a season and the sign ends up face-down in the grass.

Three measures cover most of it. Use tamper-proof mounting hardware, which requires a specialty bit rather than a standard socket or screwdriver, so a sign cannot be removed with tools from a pocket. Mount higher than casual reach where the sign type allows it. And use a surface mount bracket or ground anchor rather than a directly buried post, so if a post does get damaged or taken you replace the post rather than re-excavating the installation. For signs in repeatedly targeted locations, it is usually cheaper to keep a spare sign face in stock than to keep escalating the mounting.

Use a sign post puller rather than a truck and a chain — the puller works on both square and U-channel posts, applies force straight up along the post axis, and pulls the post without shearing it off at grade or tearing up the surrounding surface. A post sheared at ground level leaves a steel stub that becomes a trip and mower hazard and has to be dug out later. If you are removing and replacing posts on any regular basis, a puller and a square post driver together turn a two-person excavation into a one-person job.