# Installing Electric Fence--Questions



## Southern

*I am thinking about replacing all my fences with electric fence. And I have some questions.

How many strands is adequate? I have calm older horses only *We use one strand, for five very young hot horses, it does just fine.*
Is it better to use plastic fence posts or metal with insulators or wood with insulators? Plastic would be way more economical. *We use metal fence posts, about one inch in diameter, with yellow plastic insulators. 
* When you thread the fence through the insulators (or plastic posts) do you have to stretch it like barbed wire? * I don't think so. we never used barb wire, so I don't know.*
How does one buy a fence charger? Is solar the best? Electric? or batter powered?
*Ours plugs right into an extension cord, connected to out house.
* What do I need to know before I buy one. They range in price for like 60 bucks to over 300 bucks. *We bought ours for 100, but you can get cheaper ones for 70. 
* Anything else I should know before I tackle this project? **
Hope I helped !
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## RATHER BE RIDING

How many strands would depend on what could happen if your horses got out. If you are near a busy road, I would run 4 to 5 strands. If you are someplace where your horses are relatively safe if they were to get out, one strand may be enough. We have electric and the horses really respect it, but we are near a busy road so we have 4 strands of 1/4" electric rope which has a higher breaking strength. 

As far as posts, I would not recommend plastic, especially if you are talking about the step-in kind. We have them for temporary fencing and they bend and get brittle over time. Also, again a safety issue for keeping horses in the field. If the horses are messing around and accidentally run into the plastic posts, they will simply bend or pop out of the ground and your horses will be loose. 

We have metal t-posts, with insulators, a they are much easier to get in the ground then digging a hole for the wood posts, unless you have a post driver. We put caps on the tops of the metal posts to avoid injuries. We do have wood posts on the corners and next to the gate. The wood posts are set with concrete. 

Rope or tape does need to be pulled tight and can pretty much be done by hand. It does not take a lot to move it, but it will stretch and sag over time and need to be re-tightened occasionally. 

I have never used a solar charger, so I can not speak to that. Ours is electric and works great unless there are a lot of weeds touching the fence. Price will depend a lot on the size of the field you are fencing. The 5 mile chargers are going to be cheaper, but you need to add up how much fencing you have, especially, if you are using more then one strand, and get a charger that can handle the job.


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## Jumper4ever

I am thinking about replacing all my fences with electric fence. And I have some questions.

*How many strands is adequate? I have calm older horses only*
I have three horses ranging from 12.2 to 15.3 hands and we use two strands and we have never had any problems

*Is it better to use plastic fence posts or metal with insulators or wood with insulators? Plastic would be way more economical.*
we use metal t posts and i love them. 

*When you thread the fence through the insulators (or plastic posts) do you have to stretch it like barbed wire? *
A handy hint. Dont stretch the tape but twirl it so that when the wind blows theres a twist in the tape and the wind doesnt get caught on it and ruin your fence. 

*How does one buy a fence charger? Is solar the best? Electric? Or batter powered? What do I need to know before I buy one. They range in price for like 60 bucks to over 300 bucks.* We have a solar powered charger i have no idea how much it was but we rarely turn on our fence. Whenever a new horse is introduced the fence goes on for about two or three days and then we turn it back off. 
*
Anything else I should know before I tackle this project?*
i hope i'm not too late with this response
Read more: http://www.horseforum.com/farm/installing-electric-fence-questions-85936/#ixzz1Ru9Lg4m3


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## Saddlebag

If your fence is a straight run you can put posts every 20' or so if you use the heavy recommended wire. Your corner posts will need brace posts so each corner will require 3 posts plus 2 braces. This stops the corners from moving inward. 3 strands are recommended, the top and bottom being hot and the middle the ground. An electric charger is more reliable than solar and it should be inside a weatherproof box or building. Your grounding of the system is very important and there are web sites that give good instruction. Horses get wise as to when a fence is working and it is during the Fall that it is more likely to test the fence and there is likely uneaten grass on the other side. That plus the instinct to move from the high country into the low for the winter. (in the horse's mind)


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## Alwaysbehind

_
How many strands is adequate? I have calm older horses only_

If the electric is going to be your only fencing then one strand is not enough. If for no other reason, it will break at some point and then you have no fence at all. 

I looked at it this way, you want your fence to be a visual barrier as much as the electric shock part being the barrier for those times when the charger is not working, etc.

Two strands would work for an older horse. I suggest three (Minimum). 

_
Is it better to use plastic fence posts or metal with insulators or wood with insulators? Plastic would be way more economical._

Best? I would say good quality closely spaced wood posts with insulators. 
Step in plastic posts or metal t-posts will work too. If you use metal t-posts be sure to use post caps. 


_When you thread the fence through the insulators (or plastic posts) do you have to stretch it like barbed wire? _

How the fencing is installed depends on what type of fencing you are using.
Follow the manufacturers recommendations.

Fencing like electric tape needs to be taught but not tightened where fencing like plastic coated high tensile does need to be tightened (so it would not work with step in posts).

_How does one buy a fence charger? Is solar the best? Electric? Or batter powered? What do I need to know before I buy one. They range in price for like 60 bucks to over 300 bucks._

Solar chargers are great if you do not have electricity available. Past that they really lack the ability to give a good shock. They give one shock and if the horse touches again right away there is no real kick to the shock. Your best bet is the type that you plug into an outlet. The size will depend on how much fencing and what type of fencing. 

_Anything else I should know before I tackle this project?

_Grounding. Having your system properly installed makes all the difference in how well it works. Read the installation instructions carefully. Many manufacturers have really nice instructions on just how to make sure your fence is installed correctly. Look on line for those. Sometimes there are even free videos at the store.



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