Privacy fencing

Since its too damn hot to actually start the project, i have time to overthink it!!

I have a 6 foot privacy fence down my property line on two sides. Its been up since before we bought the house, and needs replacing. Its rough. 

Looking at my various options, im going back with dog eared 1x6x6 vertucal privacy fencing, 2x4 horizontal stringers, and a 3 inch air gap to make string tri.ming and round up easier along the base of it. 

What im really overthinking is the posts. 

I want to do them once for the next 30 years (ill be 72 then, and probably wont give a flying berkeley)

4x4? 4x6? Concrete? Concrete anchors? 

What do i want, and why?

Either round galvanized pipe set in concrete or go fancy and build brick chunks to set the wood panels between. Both are permanent and easy to replace just fence panels.

In Chicago our guys do a Rocky concrete mix.  These are 5"x5" cedar posts that lived 18 years.  

I say go with bigger posts. 

I've  done other posts with pea gravel and a lot of tamping down to make the post solid. 
 

Extra crispy fence there sir.

HomeDepot.com: 4 in. x 4 in. x 30 in. In-Ground HDPE Fence Post Decay Protection

Use these pvc post protectors incased in concrete. Make sure the post has drainage through the concrete at the bottom of the hole. Say with a short piece of 2" pvc to hold up the post but let concrete get under it to hold it up.

I suppose you could run lag screws into the side of the post and sleave to grab into the concrete when it is poured.

Or, just place some rocks in the bottom of the hole, place the post and sleave on the rocks and pour the concrete.

Or just follow their recommendation.

In reply to VolvoHeretic :

Dammit 

Also, don't get fooled into thinking that using these clips to attach the horizontal rails to the posts makes a better fence because there isn't much tying everything together. Edit: once the wood starts drying out and twists into it's preferred shape.

I had thought about something like those clips! I had planned on something out of angle iron, as i didn't know there was a product available.....

Those pose sleeves and concrete look like the solution i need. 

Thanks everyone!

I recently had a fence built how you described.  I don't know what they did at the ground but my understanding is pretty much everything is a 20 year solution at best.

The thing I regret is using pressure treated wood instead of cedar for the fence boards.  The boards seem to be one of the first parts of most fences to fail/warp/etc.  The cost delta to go to cedar would have been not significant compared to the overall price of the project.