A telescoping flagpole makes installing a flagpole in your yard easy.
Time 1-2 days
ComplexityBeginner
Cost$250 to $300
Introduction
If you want to fly the flag in your yard, you'll need some kind of flagpole. Traditional flagpoles are still available, but the pole I put up in my own yard is a 20-foot telescoping pole—a home-owner-friendly design made from aluminum sections that slide up or down and snap into place, with no hardware or ropes to worry about. It’s installed like a regular flagpole but in a PVC sleeve set in concrete. So taking it out, or even setting it up somewhere else for the day, is easy.
Materials Required
- 1/2 cubic foot of gravel
- Duct tape
- telescoping flag pole
- three 60-lb. bags of concrete gravel mix
- two 1x2x8s (temporary braces)
Project step-by-step (3)
Step 1
Prepare the hole
Dig a round hole 12 inches in diameter and 30 inches deep. Pour about 8 inches of small gravel into the bottom of the hole for drainage under the flagpole.
Insert the stop bolt that comes with the flagpole into the predrilled PVC sleeve. Then, with the stop bolt end of the sleeve down, twist and wiggle the sleeve 2 inches into the gravel at the center of the hole. The sleeve should generally extend no more than 1 inch above grade, which is enough to keep dirt out, but low enough to be unobtrusive and below lawn mower blades.
Step 2
Pour the concrete and plumb the sleeve
Cover the top of the sleeve with duct tape to keep concrete out. Then, mix up the concrete and pour it into the hole around the sleeve. Leave the concrete 2 inches below grade, or fill to grade and trowel the top smooth for an exposed concrete ring.
When the concrete starts to firm up (usually after 15 to 30 minutes), set the flagpole into the sleeve and plumb in all directions with a level. Tape 1x2s to the pole and brace them to the ground to hold the pole plumb until the concrete hardens.
Step 3
Raise the flag
Now, the part you’ve been waiting for. Snap the flag to the top and middle clip (the bottom clip is for a second flag or for flying half-staff), then push each flagpole section all the way up until it locks. That’s all there is to it.
To lower the pole, simply push the locking button in and slide each section down. A locking device for safety and security is available.
