# Spacing between T-posts? Also, T-post height?



## smrobs

I normally go with 5'5" t-posts, just so that I can make sure and have plenty of height above ground.

As for how close together you need them, that really depends on what type of fencing you're doing. For wire, you can have them a bit farther apart than you would need to have them for say, tape. I'm averaging about 20 feet between posts (7 strides) for my electric tape and that works well. However, when we had a single strand of electric wire, our posts were averaging about twice that distance.


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## Wallaby

Good to know about the posts! So if I can only find 5ft or 6ft posts, you'd go with 6 ft ones? I have a picture inside my mind, just my mind doesn't know how tall the posts in that picture are. LOL!

I'm thinking to use non-electrified electric tape... 

I'm going to measure it all out this afternoon (I'm making "stalls", with a small outside area, for the shed in my pasture to make it easier to separate the girls at feeding time and to have a way of containing both at the same time, without tying, if the need ever arose) but I'm thinking that I'll probably only need 6-7 posts since, if I'm eyeballing correctly, the long side of each stall will only be about 12-14ft.

I'll measure, draw a "to scale" picture and return. :lol:


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## Joe4d

I didnt even know they made 5.5 foot T posts. All I have ever used is 6.5, put about 1.5 into the ground. But 8 foot ones are handy of you have soft ground. DIstance depends on what type of fence. For tight wire mesh mine are 10 foot, for High tension cable about 20.


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## Wallaby

Thanks Joe!

After measuring everything, I think I'm gonna go with 6ft posts (or 5.5, if I can find them). There are little rings installed into the walls of the shed I'm going to be attaching all this to, and the highest ring is 4ft off the ground - so I'm thinking my highest strip of fencing'll be 4ft off the ground as well (that will come to just below Lacey's withers and about 3 inches above Lady, the foster,'s withers).


Here's the to-scale drawing I drew, in case anyone happens to see some dramatic/"that's not gonna work in any world" problem.

The one things I am mildly concerned about it the fence section in front of the shed. There's a very steep incline right there so it seems like setting the posts right below it isn't a good idea ("please horses, forget there's an incline and try to jump off it, impaling your self on the t-posts I conveniently placed there for that purpose") but at the same time, placing t-posts above the incline seems like a difficult task (the incline is 3-4ft tall, rising over about 3ft)... Maybe it'll be easier than it seems and it would be MUCH safer. I'm thinking of placing a post right below the incline, as well as above, since the incline would make the bottom of the fence really high if I didn't...

Also, the places where the fence seems to flow into the shed -the middle divider and on the far right of the right stall- are where there are giant staple/metal hook things that I plan on attaching the tape to. At least in the middle, that'll make it so I can easily remove that section and have it be one big shindig.
That extra corner, on the far right of the right stall, is there before that's a great tying spot. I wish it didn't have to be there but I felt like tying a horse up right next to the fence is probably asking for trouble... In the other stall, the right front corner of the tack room has a beam suitable for tying to.
The middle divider is my preferred tying spot but that'll be up against the fence again... :/ Lacey'd be fine with that but the foster...she's still young and dumb.

It's looking like I'll need 8 posts? Is 18ft and 16ft still with in acceptable ranges for electric tape?

What do you guys think?











Also, I'm thinking that each side will be 4 strands of tape... since that seems sturdier than 3 and not excessive like 5 might be...


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## Joe4d

for just that white tape ? Id want it closer, You cant really put much tension on it. I also wouldnt even consider electric tape, especially on non level ground. It will look like doo doo, since the elevation is angled one side of the tape will always be tighter than the other so it will have a floppy side. Instead of tape get the 1/4" diameter electric rope, easier to work with , looks much better. Also there is no reason You have to attach to the building you can sink a post right next to them at whatever height you want. Also are you gonna be putting wire at the very top of the post ? I guess they have those t post toppers that double as an insulator, 48" is a decent height for a fence, You may wanna go higher because of the slope. You are also gonna need to brace those corners. A 5 foot tpost only a foot in the ground wont allow for much tension.


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## paintedpastures

Are T-posts fencing common? I never seem to see that kind of fencing ever used around here:-? when I first heard people talking about capping T posts on some horse forums, I never knew what they where talking about..:lol:


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## gunslinger

A good fence is horse high, bull strong, and pig tight.

My tee post are spaced at 10 feet, and a wooden post set every 50 feet. My fence is woven wire, and I've got electric 5" out and 16" above the ground, as well as along the top. The electric is just to keep them off of it.....


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## Saddlebag

Good luck with non-electrified tape because one day the horse will be at the neighbors. When the pasture is plentiful not a problem but about early August the old instinct to move from the high country kicks in and they get wonderlust. You non electrified ribbon won't hold them. Horses know when electricity is running thro it, they can sense it from 30' away.


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## Wallaby

Thanks Joe! I appriciate the suggestions, they gave me a lot to think about. I think I'm gonna re-calculate my original idea so it'll be more permanent+sturdy. Thanks.

Paintedpastures, yeah, they're pretty much the only kind of fencing around here. The rest of my pasture is post and high tensile wire but that's "fancy people" niiiiiice stuff. :rofl: "Normal people" fence is t-posts and tape, at least right here in my area. I 100% prefer the nicer stuff though, it looks nicer and it's sturdier.

Thanks gunslinger for your thoughts! 

Hah, thank you Saddlebag for your thoughts. Since my mare is blind, she *can't* behind electric fence. Blind horses=/=electric. Since they have no sight, if they accidentally blunder into an electric fence, the end result could be catastrophic. 
And this little set up^^ is 100% within my post+high tensile wire fence so even if they did get out, it wouldn't really be an issue. Annoying, but not a danger to anyone or themselves.
But really, my mare has had no issues staying inside a 12x12 box made up of lunge lines for 2+ days. It wasn't ideal but it was sort of an emergency situation and she needed to be contained somehow. Her pasture fencing had been taken down for renovations. 
Anyway, I completely agree that most horses would not stay behind the things my mare stays behind (probably the foster included, lol) but my mare is a lil weirdo. :wink:


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