best price on electric fence supplies?

[Cheryl aka JM]

Where have you found the best prices on electric fence supplies? I've been doing a lot of research looking into the best option to keep my animals from continuing to destroy the fences I've already put up. I discovered I don't need nearly as big a fence charger as I thought~ I only have approx 1 1/2 mile of fence line. I'm thinking of a Parmak Mark 7 or SE-4.....both bigger than I NEED for 5 lines of wire on the fences~ but I'm under the impression bigger is better! And I want the option to expand as needed. The problem is because I'm putting it up on existing fence I already have a LOT of posts up and I'm thinking I need the longer insulators to keep any slack on the wires from brushing up against the existing fence and grounding it out. I went out yesterday and counted posts~ between t-posts, wood posts, and trees that have been used as posts I've got 711 posts~ at 5 insulators per posts.........
Those little bags of 25 insulators for $6 to $10 each is adding up to a LOT more than I imagined!

Where have you found the best prices of insulators, splices, cutoff switches, lightening diverters......all the little nickel and dime stuff that appears to be adding up to a LOT of $$!

Thanks for any help!

[7thswan]

If you already have fence up, you will not need 5 strands of hot wire. Just 1 for the top and 1 for the height needed inside the fence. Depends on what you are fencing. Also you can just put a slice of hose or a type of plastic tube on the wire where it might touch any fencing so that you can string the wire in longer stretches without putting an insulator up.

[oneokie]

Things I have used: PVC pipe, plastic drink bottles, pieces of garden hose.

[tinknal]

I would watch the farm auctions.

[Bearfootfarm]

There shouldnt BE any "slack in the wires"
Unless your fence is PERFECTLY straight, there's a good chance you wont need insulators on every post.

If you have strong corners, the wire can be pulled tight enough to go 50 ft between posts.
You probably wont need insulators on all the posts, especially if the fence line bows out a little

Before you buy that many insulators, get your corners braced up well and pull a wire or two TIGHTLY, and see where they hit the posts

Ive found the best prices on most things at Agri Supply ( http://www.agrisupply.com/default.asp ) if you have one close by , but chargers are cheaper online.
ALWAYS get the biggest one you can afford. I've never heard anyone complain because their fence had too much power

[agmantoo]

I have use the SE 4 charger with great satisfaction. I like the fact that it has fuses for protection. I have had to replace the fuses a few times and each time the unit went back to working. I buy most of my supplies from Kencove but their prices have seemed to jump at a faster rate than the economy.

[highlands]

http://Tractorsupply.com
and
http://Kencove.com
are both good.
http://www.premier1supplies.com/
is often a little more costly but also good

[billooo2]

I would get something more powerful than I think I would need. One farmer (intensive grazing) said that he had tried "everything" on the market.....and Speed Rite was what he found to be most dependable. He said that he had a shelf full of other brands that he would sell real cheap.
Bill........not scientifically valid research data.....just one man's opinion

[o&itw]

Originally Posted by billooo2

I would get something more powerful than I think I would need. One farmer (intensive grazing) said that he had tried "everything" on the market.....and Speed Rite was what he found to be most dependable. He said that he had a shelf full of other brands that he would sell real cheap.
Bill........not scientifically valid research data.....just one man's opinion

I agree, the "mileage rating" is a joke.....think in joules, and if yours is only rated in miles, get a 100 mile version, even if you only have 1/4 mile of wire.

[plowjockey]

Originally Posted by Cheryl aka JM

I discovered I don't need nearly as big a fence charger as I thought~ I only have approx 1 1/2 mile of fence line. I'm thinking of a Parmak Mark 7 or SE-4.....both bigger than I NEED for 5 lines of wire on the fences~ but I'm under the impression bigger is better! And I want the option to expand as needed.

Bigger is always better when it comes to fence chargers. Don't the the "miles" ratings fool you. They are just a basis. You need a good shock ALWAYS, to keep in your animals in and predators out. Weeds, snow, limbs, distance, etc. will take a toll and reduce a fence shock. Wool on sheep can make a huge difference on effectiveness.

Buy the largest charger you can AFFORD. The charger is the absolute most important part of the fence. It is not the component to skimp on.

Also you should be able to get by nicely with only the bottom, middle and top wires hot.

Good luck.

[Cheryl aka JM]

the two I am considering are:
Mark 7, low impediance, 6 Joule, 30 mile
and
SE-4, low impediance, 9.1 Joule, 50 mile

I'm leaning more toward the SE-4 because it is more powerful, Agmantoo recomended it, it has the fuses that can be changed, and it is not very much more $$ than the Mark 7.

I'm also considering if I can maybe get away with 3 lines rather than 5~One low for crawlers (dogs and pigs), one high for reach overs (horses going for the grass is greener on the other side), and one in the middle for fence rubbers/scratchers(Goats rubbing and scratching themselves on the fence). With the idea that I may not have to have an insulator on every single one of the posts. I'm thinking maybe if I add up how many insulators I *think* I need to do the 5 line, then buy half of those, the charger, wire all that good stuff and then see how far I get on a 3 line run. Once I get that much done I should have a better idea of really how many more I would need, and be able to see if the 3 line run would actually work.

So~
Now I just need to add all that up and see if there is any chance I can afford that or not! Thanks for the help everyone!

[plowjockey]

How bad is your permanent fence? Do you really need 5 wires the entire distance? Are the animals going over, under, or thorugh the fence?

You might do ok by running a single wire in some areas, or more wires where the original fence is worse.

[Cheryl aka JM]

The original fence isn't bad at all.......YET.......but they are steadily working on destroying it!

The lower two pastures are field fenced. The horses are leaning over it and pushing the it down. Some spots are getting pretty saggy already and the fence is only a year old. The goats rub up against it scratching themselves and I can see where they do it often the fence stretching out of shape and the posts getting pushed over. I can see on the neighbors fence where his is almost useless (his cows stroll right over it anytime they see my animals have better food than them) and I don't want to let mine get that way.

The upper pasture is 5 strands barbed wire. Still nice~ but I'd like to be able to keep the goats and dogs up there sometimes and I can because they can just go through the barbed wire if it suits them. And if I spend all the money to field fence it........I'll have the same problem with the leaning and the rubbing that I'm having with the lower pastures so I'm thinking of skipping the field fence and going electric up there to start with.

[Hank]

The Home Depot in my area has a lot of their fence chargers on clearance. Saw some good prices. Don't know if that is co. wide or not, but could be worth checking out.

Hank
http://www.doublemfarmandchuckwagon.webs.com

[Wanda]

Do not forget proper grounding!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Do it by the book and do not cut corners. The grounding is just as important as the charger. The best charger in the world can not overcome a poor ground.

[Bearfootfarm]

If you put in a few ground rods near the charger, and then some connections from your T posts to the permanent fence around the perimeter, it will be a big help in delivering a strong shock.

[foxtrapper]

Originally Posted by Cheryl aka JM

Where have you found the best prices on electric fence supplies?

Big difference between cheap supplies and quality supplies. Those yellow Dare insulators for example. They are cheap to buy. That's good, because you're going to buy a lot of them. They will start breaking in a few months.

Go with the more expensive black ones from Premiere or Southern States, and they don't break. Far cheaper in the long run.

Same with those chargers from Tractor Supply. Cheaper than many, and they need replacement every few years. A problem you don't have with a Parmak.

[7thswan]

Originally Posted by Bearfootfarm

If you put in a few ground rods near the charger, and the some connections from your T posts to the permanent fence around the perimeter, it will be a big help in delivering a strong shock.

Yes, this is the problem I had with my fence last month. The ground rod had rusted away. You know it had to be the Last thing we checked.

[Beeman]

I use my local farmer's co-op. People have told me to stay away from Parmak unless it's got the old style swinging needle gauge. Be sure to use corner insulators so you can pull the wire tight. Use 3 ground rods as per the fencers directions.

[sammyd]

I've found that if I keep my animals fed they don't mess with the fences.
3 strands of hot should hold about anything other than goats.