cowboydoc
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Fencing Recommendations
- Thread starter MikePA
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Rodneyd
Member
Mike,
I agree with cowboydoc. I put in tensil fencing about 12 years ago. Hardly looked at it since as far as upkeep. I put in 5 strands with the next to top electric. After getting shocked once or twice my 3 horses respected it. Much better than barbed wire in that if you have a show horse and it does get into it, it won't cut up the horse. With that said, the only time I did have a problem, my big old horse got spooked with lightening one night. We think he actually took a close hit. Anyway, unlike cowboydoc's horse, he went through. He snapped a heavyduty t-post, broke the top three strands. He had marks across his chest and took the hide off his one back leg. If that would have been wooden or barbed wire or anything else, I think he would have been history. I think the only reason he snapped the wire is because of his size and he had to be moving. If I were doing it again, I would do the same thing. If you are concerned about the posts, they make a plastic cap that fits on top of the posts that protects the horse or humans.
I agree with cowboydoc. I put in tensil fencing about 12 years ago. Hardly looked at it since as far as upkeep. I put in 5 strands with the next to top electric. After getting shocked once or twice my 3 horses respected it. Much better than barbed wire in that if you have a show horse and it does get into it, it won't cut up the horse. With that said, the only time I did have a problem, my big old horse got spooked with lightening one night. We think he actually took a close hit. Anyway, unlike cowboydoc's horse, he went through. He snapped a heavyduty t-post, broke the top three strands. He had marks across his chest and took the hide off his one back leg. If that would have been wooden or barbed wire or anything else, I think he would have been history. I think the only reason he snapped the wire is because of his size and he had to be moving. If I were doing it again, I would do the same thing. If you are concerned about the posts, they make a plastic cap that fits on top of the posts that protects the horse or humans.
Anonymous Poster
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Mike - I just fenced in approx. 3 acres this summer for my 3 horses. I wanted a fence that was functional but also that looked good. I check on the 4 inch flexible fence that Cowboydoc talked about but it was too expensive for a 3 acre pasture - I am going to use it for an arena. I did alot of research and settled on RAMM's plastic coated high tensile. It is high tensile sturdy but also is very visable and gives a nice appearance. My pasture is approx. 400 ft by 300 ft and I also put in a diagonal to divide the area into two pastures. I put in 4x4x8 posts 14 feet apart with single braces using 6x6x8 at the corners and by the gates. At the braces and on the diagonal the posts are 8 feet apart. The posts are 3 feet in the ground and I used one bag of instant concrete in each corner and gate post. I'm in Ohio and was also concerned about the ground being so hard this summer so I rented a bobcat with an auger for two days for about $250.00. I used six strands with one of them being electric. I don't think you need more than 1 electric strand - the horses seem to get the message. With one friend helping me most of the time and working all day every weekend and just about every evening, it took me about 1 month to get the fence up. The posts were the most work. We had to deal with alot of rocks and the soil was so dry it fell back into the hole and we had to do alot of digging. Go on the internet (I just put in "horse fence") and you will find lots of sites regarding fence. The people at RAMM fence were very helpful and I ended up bying all my fence materials from them (except the posts which I got at Carter Lumber for 4x4x8 - $5.50 each and 6x6x16 - $18.00). The RAMM fencing materials and the 4 inch flexible fence for a 70 x 60 arena ended up costing about $3,400.00.
One creative method for setting the posts that my neighbor uses is tp drill a 4" hole with an auger, then use the FEL to push a 6 or 8 inch post into it. The posts that he and I set between us have remained VERY solid.
We then used high tensile, and the main advice I would give there would be to keep the lines close together and very tight to keep horses hooves from getting stuck.
We then used high tensile, and the main advice I would give there would be to keep the lines close together and very tight to keep horses hooves from getting stuck.
radman
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Personally, if you have a lot of fencing to do, an electric wire works great a keeping horses in line. I use high tensile for all rows except one row of electric wire about 21/2-3' high. This usually stops them from reaching through or over. Once a horse learns about an electric fence they usually won't bother them again. In my vet days, I once treated a horse caught in a prarie fire. The horse was trapped between the fire and a single strand of electric fence wire. Unfortunately, the horse was so conditioned to the electric wire he withstood the fire rather than run through the fence to escape. Poor animal suffered severe burns and had to be destroyed.
Overall, pipe works great but too expensive for large areas. Wood is too high maintenance and as cowboy doc said, loves to be chewed on (cribbing) by some horses.
Overall, pipe works great but too expensive for large areas. Wood is too high maintenance and as cowboy doc said, loves to be chewed on (cribbing) by some horses.
tag9889
Member
Last summer fenced 8 acres + paddock, PT posts & 2X6's for paddock with hot scare wire over all boards (I have a cribber and chewer!) Pasture is 2 strands wire + 1 top strand rope for visibility, all wires electrified. Used springs for tensioning wire and rope. Tree fell in 1st 30" storm in March, dropped fence, nothing broke. Got the tree off after the next 30" storm melted some and it popped back upright.
Used 6" round PT posts, on corners and fiberglass rod posts in between. The rope withstands snow and wind better than tape plus lifespan is longer (depending on what you buy. Hi tensile was not recommended for horses (cheese cutter effect)
Check out Premier fencing - they sell sheep, cattle, horse, deer, etc. Good instructions & recommendations in catalog. Web site http://www.premier1supplies.com/ Good info for decision making. The chargers are not cheap. Have had cheap charger and you have to do a lot more line clearing to keep the shock. Good grounding is essential no matter what charger. Premier explains this, and how soil conditions affect (snow, wet, dry) grounding.
I also checked out Ramm fence, but Premier has better how to do information.
You could spend a lot of money on fence.
Used 6" round PT posts, on corners and fiberglass rod posts in between. The rope withstands snow and wind better than tape plus lifespan is longer (depending on what you buy. Hi tensile was not recommended for horses (cheese cutter effect)
Check out Premier fencing - they sell sheep, cattle, horse, deer, etc. Good instructions & recommendations in catalog. Web site http://www.premier1supplies.com/ Good info for decision making. The chargers are not cheap. Have had cheap charger and you have to do a lot more line clearing to keep the shock. Good grounding is essential no matter what charger. Premier explains this, and how soil conditions affect (snow, wet, dry) grounding.
I also checked out Ramm fence, but Premier has better how to do information.
You could spend a lot of money on fence.
cowboydoc
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Mike,
Just to let you know the cost on high tensile. I figured up last night what it costs me to do every 8' and it was about $4. This is based on putting wooden posts every 39 foot with two steel posts in between, the cost of the insulators to insulate two strands, corner posts, nails, and six strands of 12.5 gauge wire.
Just to let you know the cost on high tensile. I figured up last night what it costs me to do every 8' and it was about $4. This is based on putting wooden posts every 39 foot with two steel posts in between, the cost of the insulators to insulate two strands, corner posts, nails, and six strands of 12.5 gauge wire.
cowboydoc - 50 cents/foot is a pretty good price.
For wood fences, do you prefer nailing the rails or using screws?
Also, is it a special spray paint people use to mark where the posts go?
I was also thinking about keeping the fence in about 10' from the property lines so I can mow the grass on the outside with my tractor. Each side butts up to either a road or a woods.
For wood fences, do you prefer nailing the rails or using screws?
Also, is it a special spray paint people use to mark where the posts go?
I was also thinking about keeping the fence in about 10' from the property lines so I can mow the grass on the outside with my tractor. Each side butts up to either a road or a woods.
gerard
Veteran Member
Mike, I agree with Cowboy doc about having to retension the tape fences once in awhile (We have two acres done with the tape, 4 strands but should have gone with 3) but it's a lot safer for the horse. If you have older horses the wire may not be a problem but if you have horses with a "little energy" they can cut themselves pretty badly on wire fencing. If I had to do it over again I'd go with the plastic encapsulated high tension fence like "centaur". Best of both worlds. Horse safe, won't cut and stays tensioned and tight but also costs more than the electric tape and t posts. I'd never go with wood. Between chewing, leaning and just plain weathering you're fixing the fence all the time + it's expensive!
