Let's discuss deer fencing...

[SanDucerro]

WHY??? why spend all the $$$$$ and do all the work when one electric wire that you can push bown with a plastic bucket on and step over will work? We ran a wire like that up yhe side of the road and the deer would not even run that way when the dogs were chaseing them, they went around the fence. I don't understand.

I'll assume yours is a generic question and not specific to any one case. However in mine, I also need to keep coons and rabbits at bay. Heck - truth be told I have more of a coon and rabbit issue than I do a deer problem - and don't even get me started on the groundhogs! Deer pressure in my area is fairly light - we probably have 5 or 6 a night moving across the acreage in the winter (not sure where the darn things go in the summer). So yes - I could likely keep the deer at bay with electric, but the coons and rabbits will just waltz right in under the wire and have a feast!

 

[SanDucerro]

Here is mine. 8-foot game fencing that encloses about .85 acres. Put it all up by myself. I think that some of the larger deer could jump it if sufficiently motivated but has been up for four years and I haven't seen any sign that a deer has been inside the fence.

OK - I'm leaning heavily toward "self-installing" the 8' fence now (especially after reading the "72 Year Old Builds a Barn" thread). :laughing:

My main concern is stretching the wire though. What are my choices in this process? I obviously have a tractor - with a FEL - but I'd need to purchase anything else that's required. If I do this, I'd like to use 5" to 6" round CCA posts - 12 footers - with 4 foot in the ground. We have a two man auger, but I'm pretty sure I'd kill myself if we did all of this without a PTO Post Hole Digger - so add one of those to the kitty. I can visualize myself putting in the posts, but I'm still "hung up" on the wire and how to stretch it tight enough so it looks good. Is this an issue, or am I over thinking the whole process? Suggestions?

 

[forgeblast]

Deer Fence kencove has some great info.

 

[Ed of all trades]

I'll assume yours is a generic question and not specific to any one case. However in mine, I also need to keep coons and rabbits at bay. Heck - truth be told I have more of a coon and rabbit issue than I do a deer problem - and don't even get me started on the groundhogs! Deer pressure in my area is fairly light - we probably have 5 or 6 a night moving across the acreage in the winter (not sure where the darn things go in the summer). So yes - I could likely keep the deer at bay with electric, but the coons and rabbits will just waltz right in under the wire and have a feast!

No my post was not directed at anyone I was just hearing "deer fence" and seeing all the $$ that it would cost. I know that I can't spend money on anything I don't need to without taking away from something else I want or need so I was asking if a person is just keeping deer out why spend ans sweat when they don't have to.

 

[SanDucerro]

No my post was not directed at anyone I was just hearing "deer fence" and seeing all the $$ that it would cost. I know that I can't spend money on anything I don't need to without taking away from something else I want or need so I was asking if a person is just keeping deer out why spend ans sweat when they don't have to.

Understood... I think "what" is being protected is going to be the issue that determines if one could get by with less rather than more (or higher in this case). Once we've planted our grape vines (scheduled to go "in ground" the third week in February) we're looking at three years to deliver a harvestable crop and a full five years to reach maturity. That's a LONG wait for an ROI. As such, this has to be done right the first time. If it was corn or any other "annual" crop I might be able to gamble a bit, but even in the case of "normal" crops one whould stand to lose a great deal if a harvest gets destroyed by munchers with fur...

 

[SanDucerro]

Deer Fence kencove has some great info.

Well, there's another hour exploring! I had found this site a few months back, but had forgotten about it. Thanks for posting!

After reviewing the videos it looks like this is doable - heck, we literally built the house that's on the farm now and it turned out very nice. So you'd think I could install a fence... right?!

At any rate, I'm looking at the strechers on the KenCove site and trying to determine which size to order. Do you order an 8' foot stretcher for 8' woven wire, or are you suppose to order the 10' to do that size?

 

[Robert_in_NY]

We stretched our fence with a wire puller attached to the loader. We stretched the top and bottom wires and then 4-5 of them in the middle. It was all done by feel. Just pull till it looked and felt right.

 

[SanDucerro]

After additional research (a lot of videos on the web), I've found that a "home built" stretcher works just as well as a "store bought" one. So it looks like two 2x4's at 8' and a couple of bolts will do the trick - that'll save several hundred dollars.

Also did some research on woven wire in fixed knot verses hinged joint. I was originally going to go with hinged joint, but after seeing the video I'm switching to the more expensive fixed knot. It looks like the fixed knot runs about $100 more per roll - and I need 6 rolls - but it appears to be MUCH stronger.

 

[Robert_in_NY]

After additional research (a lot of videos on the web), I've found that a "home built" stretcher works just as well as a "store bought" one. So it looks like two 2x4's at 8' and a couple of bolts will do the trick - that'll save several hundred dollars.

Also did some research on woven wire in fixed knot verses hinged joint. I was originally going to go with hinged joint, but after seeing the video I'm switching to the more expensive fixed knot. It looks like the fixed knot runs about $100 more per roll - and I need 6 rolls - but it appears to be MUCH stronger.

Video Link: http://youtu.be/Ez2ZW1YIjw8

The fixed knot is a lot stronger and is all we use.

 

[two_bit_score]

Well, the quote I just got for 2000' of 8' fixed knot using all pipe was $7.25 per linear foot. That didn't scare me (too much at any rate), but then they wanted $360 a day for lodging and said it would take them 8 or 9 days... and then there was something about additional bracing at $465 each (and there were multiples of that no less). So... On to plan "B"...

A lot of ranches in the hill country do deer fencing. Most use this:
StayTuff Fixed Knot - the best fence for deer farming, deer exclusion, deer management, and deer control


Edit: I see you already found the stay-tuff site. Lot of good info there. Their main location is in New Braunfels. In case you want to drop by and check everything out.

If you are building this anywhere around Yoakum I would think you would find a lot of local fence builders around there. or maybe they are all working on rigs.