Why electrify your horse fencing?
We all want to keep our horses safe. That means we want them to stay where we want them to be. For that to happen they need to respect your fences by remembering the consequences of straying too close. For that to happen keep your fences HOT. It doesn’t matter what type of horses you have they will test your fence regularly. Make sure every time they do they have a memorable and unpleasant experience. If they do they will stay safe, exactly where you want them to be and your fence will stay in perfect condition for many years.
Working out quantities and requirements
There are a number of things to consider when installing electrics on a new fence or replacing electrics on an existing fence.
Electric tape or rope
Knowing the dimensions of the paddocks to be fenced is an important start as this will determine how much electric tape or rope you require. Once you have the dimensions of the paddock simply multiply the total dimensions of the paddock by the number of lines of tape or rope you want to install.
For example a paddock 40 metres x 40 metres square will require 160 metres of tape/rope. If you require 3 lines of tape/rope you will need 480 metres (3 x 160) of your chosen product for that paddock.
Insulators
There are two types of insulators that are required for both tape and rope. Line insulators and end/corner insulators. Simply count the number of posts that are not corners or ends. Once you know the number of line posts lets say there are 100 multiply 100 times the number of tape or rope lines you have planned to install. Using the example of 100 line posts times 3 lines of tape/rope you will need 300 line insulators.
Next count the number of corner posts and end posts (usually the end posts are where the gates are situated) lets say there is only one gate and 4 corners in our sample paddock. This will give you 6 posts x 3 lines of tape/rope which will require 18 end/corner insulators.
If you are replacing tape/rope on an existing electric fence you may be able to reuse some insulators which will effect your order quantities.
Energiser and connections
Your choice of energiser to power your fence is very important. Our best advice is to select an energiser that is larger than what you need. Australia’s hot climate and dry soils challenge the effectiveness of even the best energisers. It’s also our experience that people often add more electric fencing over time, the more you add the harder the energiser has to work and the less effective it becomes. For the initial once off cost of upgrading to a larger energiser you will reap long term rewards.
The other factor that influences how ‘hot’ your fence will be is the connections you use to deliver power from the energiser to your fences. The quality of the insulated underground cable that runs from the energiser to your fence is important as is the distance from the energiser to the fence. Use good connectors to attach the underground cable to your tape/rope. The better the connectivity/conductivity of the connections the less voltage loss you will suffer and the hotter the fence will be.
A good quality earth stake is also important. An investment in a long copper earth stake/s will deliver good returns. Yes you can bang half a star picket in the ground but over time it will rust and become much less effective.
Maintenance
Electric fencing is not set and forget. Branches fall on it, grass grows up under it, rabbits can chew on insulation of cables……..the list goes on. Regular inspection and maintenance will keep your fence hot and effective. Look after it and it will look after your livestock for many years to come.
