Understanding electric fencing for bears

[Howard E]

I wondered how hot the poly tape and poly rope were too.....so I tested it. That is X 1,000

And no, it didn't melt down either.

 

[llombardo]

And where are mom and dad bobcat at?

At work we have a baby coyote-about 12 weeks old. He is chasing cats everywhere.

 

[Sunshine Flock]

And where are mom and dad bobcat at?

At work we have a baby coyote-about 12 weeks old. He is chasing cats everywhere.

We have two bobcat regulars that are probably the parents. One's a male. I know because I saw furry bob balls with my binoculars.

Howard, thanks for that photo. I'm still trying to understand joules and volts and all that. So is that 13,500 volts? Is that what x1,000 means?

 

[Sunshine Flock]

If you want a strong hot wire system, but also easy to install, which would you choose: poly wire, aluminum or galvanized steel?

This is pricey, and they don't indicate numbers. I don't understand how this differs from their other poly products.

http://www.zarebasystems.com/zareba-heavy-duty-sure-shock-polywire-656-feet-hdr656wa-z

 

[123RedBeard]

I don't know how many feet you need ... but this claims 48X the shock, compared to the 20X you listed ... https://am.gallagher.com/us/product/2536/turbo-braid-7-2f64-22

25 different insulators ... https://am.gallagher.com/us/products/1224/insulators

Corners are gonna need to be braced, if you want tight, non-floppy wires ...

Larger diameter wire is not only stronger, but since the electricity travels down the outside of the wire, it will carry more electricity, and not be reduced over long lengths of wire ...

 

[Kusanar]

I've decided to do a hot-cold system and some grounding rods. In this climate it'd be nuts not to do that, although people I've talked to look at me weird when I ask how they're grounding their hot wire. They don't seem to know there's another option.

As for connectors, the ones I bought for wood posts hold the wire too close to the fencing. I'm concerned about arcing and wire that's not taut and getting pushed inward. I know I need to test it regularly, but the small space between the fence and hot wire would have me constantly walking the perimeter and worrying the whole thing will fail.

Zareba makes 5" insulators, but when you bring the hot wire over to a gate, it has to angle close to the post because of how low the screw-in hooks sit. They don't extend out much. And the 5" ones seem more vulnerable to breakage, although I know even the best insulator can break.

I'm also concerned about all the extra holes in my redwood posts from running five hot wires. The corners would require two insulators for each wire. I've already seen some splitting and don't want to make it worse.

So, I've decided to surround the entire dang chicken yard and coop with a T stake fence just for the hot wire. If I'm going to use plastic extenders and risk splitting good wood, I may as well just pound in some T stakes and place them a foot or two out from the main fencing. That way I won't have to worry about any of this stuff. It won't look bad because I spray T stakes a matte black, and with flat black connectors (easy to use) and no baggy wires on the corner posts, there's no need for heavy duty screw-in anchors for gates.

It'll be a quick and easy setup, and I like the idea of keeping predators away from the main fencing.

We have some T stakes already and the driver. With an adorable baby bobcat bouncing around the property, I do worry she'll be able to climb under the hot wire. With the hot-cold system, she would need to touch a hot and a cold wire at the same time to get zapped, so I guess some wires closer together down low would be a good idea.

As for the wire to use, the polyrope would be an easy, tidy solution. But I'm not convinced it can deliver the power needed to scare off bears, and for the long haul it costs more to maintain, whereas galvanized steel should last indefinitely. But I do know lots of Fish & Wildlife types and researchers and campers use portable fencing all the time, and it's made from that same stuff, so it out work. I'll have to give this more thought.

Overall a hot wire-only fence seems like a good option for me.

I have used the poly tape with horses and honestly... I hate it.... it doesn't seem to transfer the voltage as well as the regular wire, and it breaks much easier. I have had to repair the tape so many times I can't even count, and every time you repair it, you tie a knot in it, each knot seems to lessen the amount that it carries because the wires aren't always right against each other.... I have had to repair the normal wire a few times but not many. I am getting ready to do some cross fencing on my pasture with electric and will be doing 3 strands, will have top and bottom regular wire but may make the middle one tape for the visibility part but the chances of them pushing on the middle strand are slim.

If you just want to train the bears and make them aware of where exactly the hot wire is, just get a few rolls of surveying tape and tie 1 foot sections to the wire every few feet. It will rot and fall off the fence on it's own in a few months or you can remove it once the bears realize where the line is, that's what we always did when putting up a new barbed wire fence so the horses wouldn't run into or through it before they realized it was there.

 

[Folly's place]

I'm going to add that premier1supplies.com is an excellent source for advice and fencing stuff. They have online information, catalogs, and people on the phone who can help.
Tape and rope varies in quality; I like mine, and I like that it's visible from afar.
Mary

 

[Sunshine Flock]

The Gallagher screw eye looks strong. And I'll call Premier and talk to them tomorrow about this.

I've found it's hit or miss talking to Zareba. Someone this morning wouldn't discuss with me options for external electric setups, since they don't advise electrifying the outside of a fence, if you can believe that. Every word out of her mouth was, "We don't recommend that. We don't advise that."

So I hung up and called back and got someone else who gave me loads of good information. There are different ways to do things, but if I end up wiring the fencing and coop and not doing the T stakes, he said I don't need gate handles. Just use insulated screw eyes to secure the ends of each line. The wire will stay hot when you open and close the gate, but it's actually a more ideal setup, versus a continuous hot wire that runs out the charger and loops around the perimeter back to the box as one long line. He said this method with no handles tends to result in a stronger zap.

 

[Howard E]

Yes, that was 13,500 volts. Most of the product I buy are made by Parmak in KC, and are sold under the brand name of Baygard. They are sold at a local farm and home storre. The tape, wire, step in posts are Baygard.

Fencer is Parmak 3 joule 12 volt fencer rated for 30 miles. Think of joules like watts in a light bulb. The bigger the number, the brighter the light. I don't skimp on the fencer. I want to jolt their teeth out. I don't spank em with a little ruler or even a yardstick......I club em with a 2 x 4. I want them to think it was a near death experience. That level of jolt.

The gate setup you describe sounds good. Do take a picture of it when you get it going. To visual learners like me, a picture is worth a thousand words.

 

[aart]

Fencer is Parmak 3 joule 12 volt fencer rated for 30 miles. Think of joules like watts in a light bulb. The bigger the number, the brighter the light.

Does the 'mileage' affect the charge...dissipating over distance due to resistance?