Electric Fencing Basics

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The second grounding method takes a bit more understanding and requires multiple wires, but it will leave you with a safer and more reliable system. This Wire Return System employs one or two lines to deliver the pulse, and a third that connects directly to the energizer’s ground terminal and a series of grounding rods. In order to receive a full shock, the animal must touch one hot line and the ground line. This method is more reliable because the earth alone is not required to conduct the current back to the charger. The down side is that you need more ground rods, and this fence will be somewhat more vulnerable to short circuiting.

Short circuits occur when a hot wire inadvertently comes in contact, or partial contact, with a good ground. For example, an old steel post and barbed wire fence can easily be reinforced with a single electric wire. But when the deer jump the fence, there’s a chance they will inadvertently wrap the hot line around a stretch of barbed. When that happens, the pulse will have a direct route to the earth … so if an animal touches the hot wire it will feel a tickle at best. Likewise, if your steel gate shocks you, it is receiving a pulse through some short in the system. Shorts are readily detected with a volt meter designed for testing fences. We have 4,000 volts, which is a good minimum voltage, but we’ve seen sheep actually laugh at that amount before they leapt through the fence. We try to keep it around 6,000 to 8,000 volts. If your charger shows 8,000 volts when not connected to the fence and 6,000 volts when connected, there is likely a short. It might be as simple as wet vegetation in contact with the hot wire … or the hot wire coming into contact with a wooden fencepost. 

Fencing materials

Now that we have a basic understanding of how the electricity moves through conductors we can detail how to build the fence and some of its star players. Electric fencing conductors include high-tensile and low-tensile solid metal wires and conductive composite materials such as poly wire (a twine-like material made with fine metallic wires and polypropylene). High-tensile wires resist breaking much better than any of the other conductors and are best used for permanent paddocks and perimeter fences. High-tensile wires, when used properly, can deliver a consistent charge and withstand significant physical shock load. If your cattle get spooked and hit the high-tensile fence, it will continue to stretch long after low-tensile wire will break and boards will shatter. In addition to the physical barrier, the animal receives a couple brief reminders that the fence is not to be tested under any circumstance. The result is that both fence and herd remain intact.

Poly wire and low-tensile metallic wire are best used for temporary subdivisions and in other places where you will need to create and then tear down the fence in short order. These fences can be charged by clipping their conductors to those of the more permanent perimeter electric fence, or they may be charged with a portable energizer. 

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