A post hole auger is hired in three forms: a one man handheld unit at roughly $40 to $70 a day, a two man engine driven auger at $60 to $100, and a hydraulic auger head on a skid steer or tractor at $150 to $250 a day plus the machine. The soil and the number of holes decide which one you want.
Count the holes before you choose
Up to about a dozen holes in decent soil, a two man auger is enough and it fits in a car. Thirty or more holes, hard ground, or anything over 12 in across, and a hydraulic head on a loader pays for itself in a morning. The one man handheld unit suits light soil and small diameters only.
Bit size and depth are booked separately
Augers hire with a bit, and the bit is chosen from the post: 6 in and 8 in cover most fencing, 9 in and 12 in take heavier timbers and gate posts, and deck footings often need more. Extensions add depth beyond about three feet. Say the post size and the frost depth when you book.
The soil decides whether it works at all
A screw auger cuts soil and clay well, jams in roots and stops dead in rock and cobble. Where the ground is stony, ask for a rock bit and expect slow going, or price a hydraulic breaker instead. Digging one test hole with a spade before hire day is fifteen minutes very well spent.
Call before you dig, every time
Buried gas, power, water and telecoms lines sit at post depth in gardens and along boundaries. The national 811 service marks public utilities free of charge given a few working days of notice, and private lines out to a garage or a pond are yours to find. An auger does not stop for a cable.
Questions people ask about post hole auger rental
How deep should a fence post hole be?
A common rule is to bury a third of the post's total length, and to go below the local frost line where the ground freezes. That puts most residential fence posts between two and three feet, and gate posts deeper, which is where an auger extension earns its line on the ticket.
Can one person use a two man auger?
It is not designed for it, and the torque reaction is what injures people when a bit catches. Some yards hire a single operator unit with a torque tube for exactly this reason. If you are working alone, ask for that machine rather than borrowing the two man one.
Will an auger go through tree roots?
Small roots yes, slowly. Anything the thickness of a wrist stops the bit and twists the machine. Clear the root with a spade and a pruning saw and then restart the hole, because forcing an auger through roots is how bits get bent and wrists get broken.
Is a skid steer auger worth it for a small job?
Rarely, once the loader hire and the delivery are added on. It becomes the cheaper option somewhere around thirty holes, in hard ground, or where the holes are large. For a short garden fence, the two man auger in the back of a car is the honest answer.