Remove Stubborn Stakes
To remove metal stakes from the ground, use a pipe wrench to spin them a few times.
Whacking metal stakes back and forth with a hammer is one way to loosen them up so that they’re easier to pull out of the ground. Here’s another option that works, especially when the stakes are pinned in place by something you don’t necessarily want to beat up, like the feet on these wall braces. In these cases, I use a pipe wrench to spin the stakes, breaking the hold the soil has on them. After a few rotations they’ll pop right out.
— Aron Jones; Grand Manan Island, N.B., Canada
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