How To Maintain Your Farm Fencing In Good Condition

A good fence is an investment. Designing your fence correctly before you start & using the right materials will help to maximise the value of your investment over the life of the fence. Intact, functional fencing is critical to keeping your animals safe and your neighbours happy. Electric fences are especially vulnerable, as worn or broken wires can endanger your animals or render your farm fencing almost useless. Here we have mentioned a few tips to maintain your farm fencing in good condition.

Get Tension Right

Wire fencing is manufactured with a crimp along the line wires to help in the tensioning process. You should tension your farm fencing so that the crimp is about 50% of its original size to make sure the fence is tight, while retaining the overall elasticity of the wire. This will improve the performance of your fence in case of animal impact.

Dig Deep

Take the time to make sure your main straining posts are firm as failing to do so will mean you won’t have enough tension along your fence line. Typically they should be dug or driven 1.2m into the ground.

Straining Posts

When installing the straining posts for your fence, ensure the struts are long and positioned low. This will create better resistance to hold the post firm and reduce the chances of it falling down in the future.

Avoid Over-Specified Fencing

To save money on your fencing installation, avoid using an over-specified fence. For example, when you want to fence animals out instead of containing them, a fence with a larger mesh may be sufficient.

Tying-Off

To make tying-off around your straining posts easier, strip out the last few vertical wires of the fence. This will give you far more room to work.

Guide Your Posts

Run a single strand of plain wire between your straining posts. This will provide you with a straight line to guide the position of your intermediate posts and will also highlight any undulations in the ground. It’s a cost effective way to raise the fence’s overall height, too.

Downward Pressure From Cattle

To protect your fence from downward pressure from cattle, add two strands of high-tensile barbed wire or one electrified plain wire above the fence.

Securing The Posts

Don’t drive staples tight against the wire when it comes to securing your fence to the posts. This damages the galvanising on the wire and can reduce the fence’s life.

High-Tensile Fencing

Always choose high-tensile fencing. Capable of being strained much tighter than mild steel, it’s easier to erect and is less likely to sag after animal impact. What’s more, it requires fewer posts, so it’s more cost effective.

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