Hi-tensile fence

[shakeytails in KY]

I'm considering using hi-tensile as a perimeter fence for the large back pastures for my mares, mainly because of cost. I've read the Kencove literature and it doesn't seem terribly difficult. Any real-life experiences? Also, I'd like to space wood posts about 40 ft apart and use battens between for visibility. I can buy plastic battens, but they're over $2 ea. I thought maybe I could drill holes(or just make a groove and use clips) in PVC pipe for battens. Any tips/caveats, etc??

[pumpkinlady]

Hi-tensile fence is great. I have seen bulls bounce off of it. My husband installed ours himself and said it wasn't hard. Pirce is usually reasonable too.

One word of caution: This is not the best type of fence for horses. They can get tangled in it very easy and have a hard time getting released. Our neighbor's horse has gotten tangled in ours and did considerable damage to it's one leg.

I know that horses can get cut on barb wire but I strongly recommend that you research the use of hi-tensile for horses.

Good luck...Laurie

[Ole Man Legrand]

We have hi tensile for our horses (9) and love it. It is very importantr to put the hi tensile springs in the line. The wire should float on the line post. WE used 5 strands 3 hot and 2 for ground. Just use line post every 30 feet. WE use a 9 joule charger from Jeffers. You will need a spining jenny for running the wire, and a crimp tool and sleeves for installation.

[agmantoo]

I have installed well over 100,000 feet of high tensile wire by myself. It is not difficult but I highly advise buying the correct tools. As for using it for horses you need to train the horses to the electric fence. Any poorly installed and/or poorly electrified fence is asking for disaster. The fence needs to be installed according to the guidelines in the Kencove literature and the electric charger needs to be sized as to cause enough shock to the contained animal to where it will implant the consequences on the animals mind. Once the animal is aware of the fence it will not test it again. On the other hand, if the experience of the animal contacting the fence is only a nuisance, the animal will develop the habit of escaping and you will have a continued problem. You will want to do maintenance to the fence the keep foilage from growing onto the wire. Do not use roundup as it will rust you fence. I prefer crossbow and there is no animal withdrawal nor rust and it does not kill grasses so there will be no erosion from bare ground. I have been disappointed with the plastic insulators due to breakage, mostly from deer. I now use only porcelein insulators and I use a lag bolt to faster them to wood posts and I bolt them to metal posts. I recently bought a new type of tensioner called a gripper. This method seems far superior to the old design. It is a device that was initially designed for vineyards. I do not use the springs referenced above as the wire itself will behave as a spring. After a bit of use you will know how tight to stretch the wire. One of the main benefits of the high tension fence it that it is forgiving when a tree falls on it or some cell phone using decides to drive thru it. It also keeps most trespassers off the property. Stray humans and hunting dogs seldom venture onto my place anymore where it used to be a common aggravation. Go for it!

High tensile fence is nasty for horses. I know some people get away with it--then again--there's a lot of barb wire out there too. We had 5 strand barb wire--and one less horse a few yrs ago due to a severe injury. So--what to put up? Answer: High tensile WOVEN wire. Won't cut your horse up like a cheese cutter and can still put line posts 50-75 (even 100) feet apart. Two of us put up a mile of woven wire last fall in a (long) three day weekend. Looks great, easy to maintain--will last at least 30 years with very little upkeep. I've sewn up some horses that tried to go through high tensile wire--not pretty! A yearling colt ran full speed into our new fence a few days ago--just bounced off--not a scratch. And the fence looked brand new. Do a google search for high tensile woven wire--ours was purchased through K Fence, but Premier makes a really attractive green woven wire--our friends have miles of it, had it for ten years--no upkeep whatsoever. Cannot speak highly enough about it--and it's great for sheep--helps keep out coyotes too!
Best of luck, Horse vet

[Jackpine Savage]

For my dairy farm I used hi-tensile, 3 wire perimeter fence, single wire paddock dividers. We went 50' in between posts. I'm not sure but I don't think PVC is UV stabilized, it might break down pretty fast. For our paddock dividers we used 3/4" electrical conduit, it was UV stabilized and has held up well. It's grey though so it wouldn't be as visible.

I used springs, ratchets for tightening, and Gallagher pinlock insulators.

Another option for visibility is to run poly tape for the top wire.

[shakeytails in KY]

I understand and appreciate the concern for safety with horses. I am using hi-tensile woven wire with 12' post spacing and a hot top rope strand where I have youngsters and where I expect the gang to congregate. BUT, at $120/roll it gets expensive quickly!! The pasture I need to fence is about 20 acres, and my mares are generally well behaved and respectful of fence, so I don't believe I'll have a problem with fencing the back and sides with hi-tensile. I'll probably use 6 strands for visibility.

Jackpine- I can get the grey electrical pipe, it's the same price as the white for plumbing. The electric conduit probably is more UV stable. How did you secure the wire to the pipe?

Agmantoo-Thanks- especially for the Round-up warning! Does crossbow work well on honeysuckle and those !@#$% multiflora roses?

[Jackpine Savage]

I drilled a hole through the conduit just large enough to pass through a 5" piece of hi-tensile. Bend both ends of the hi-tensile so it forms a "U". Place the the conduit against the wire and bend both ends of the U around the wire.