Will a 5 strand electric fence keep out foxes?

[hayley3]

T posts can be bent by either heating or being very very strong/heavy but heat would be the way to bend them once in the ground. Use 8' posts. After hammering them in and bending top you would have about a 5' fence. Labor intensive and difficult...YES!
Other options would be to attach any material you have to the top of the post via bolts, wire, or brackets to which the wire can then be attached. This is easier, more affordable but won't be as uniform and requires some creative ingenuity. PVC pipes come to mind, rebar, etc. With PVC you use 45 degree bend tapped over top of T post then a reducer and thread in smaller diameter to hold the offset lines. But as big of a perimeter fence as you're looking at, all that PVC could get pricey.
Just spitballing ideas that are popping in to the ol noodle

I'm not very strong, hence wanting to use t-posts and electric wire. I can probably pound in two t-posts a day *laughs* so it will take me a while to complete. And whatever I go with, will be cheaper than hiring someone to put in the fence.

 

[Howard E]

I use 4 strands.......spacing same as the 4 bottom clips on poly step in E fence posts. Spacing is about 5", 10", 15" and 20" off the deck.

While many varmints can easily jump over it, and chickens can fly over it, they almost never do. Varmints will NOT try to jump over it........they will crawl under or through it.......and get themselves zapped in the process. Helps if the fence is really, really hot. A really hot fence gets to the point of induction......where the juice will jump across a narrow gap.....and spark like a spark plug. You can see the spark and hear it snap. A fence cranked up that high is going to shock through fur and feathers.

So at least 1 joule fencer (mine are 3 joules rated for 30 miles of fence).

Then if you want to hurry things along, bait it so they sniff or lick the bait. They won't be back.

 

[Howard E]

PS: My leather work boots carry the rating "EH", which means they are intended to be worn in areas with an electrical shock hazard. Last summer I touched the hot fence, which I didn't know was on, and still felt a pretty good tingle......through those boots. That level of voltage.

And while the full meal deal hurts really, really bad........it is a low amp shock, which means severe pain, but not really dangerous. So kids gets zapped too......but generally only once. Even so, I still turn the fences off when small children are around.

 

[hayley3]

I would love to use step in posts, would make things so much easier for me.
What size posts do you use Howard? How tall I mean? (Maybe they are all 48 inches.) LOL

 

[Mtnboomer]

I would love to use step in posts, would make things so much easier for me.
What size posts do you use Howard? How tall I mean?

No step-in posts here. Clay is hard as a rock!

 

[ColoradoPip]

Howard, you're advice is excellent! I've read that animals can sense the electricity (smell, sound, not sure it's been proven how) and they tend to avoid it once they know what it is. Maybe that's what they don't jump it? Hmm

Even so, I still turn the fences off when small children are around.

Aww, where's the fun in that I will never forget the day I learned...(a) watch where you run on the farm and (b) electric wire has elasticity against a 100lb kid running, kind of like a rubberband, and in the instant it takes you to realize you've been slowed down, the shock hits you as you are swept off your feet and put on your back!!

 

[cmom]

Yeah that's kinda what I was thinking...you have the chicken wire behind it...I felt i needed some kind of barrier even if it wasn't that strong to go along with the wires. It seems to confuse the fox and coyote...

I have welded wire fences dividing the pens. The outer perimeter fence is chicken wire. I have never had any predator go through the chicken wire but they have to get by the electric wire first. We have had a lot of coyotes. Lately I haven't been seeing them but a lot of new people are buying land in our area and building. Not sure if all of that activity is affecting the predators or not. One neighbor had some coyote dens on his property and gave some coyote hunters permission to hunt on his land and I did hear some shooting over that way. He stopped over the other day and said he hadn't been seeing any coyotes either and when he is here, he has been seeing them on a daily basis. He only comes on the weekends so he wasn't sure if the fellows took him up on his offer or not, but all of a sudden hardly a coyote. Here nothing preys on coyotes but they will prey on what ever they can catch including fox, bobcats, cats, dogs. rabbits, rodents, etc. It's been about 2 months and I only caught a coyote on camera a couple of times when in the past I would see them nightly on at least one of my cameras.

 

[cmom]

My fence charger is 1.2 joule and it makes my heart skip a few beats. Since you have poultry netting you must have a fence charger.

 

[cmom]

I have a pole pounder I use and it's not easy but I have put up all of my fencing myself. I'm no spring chicken but I get it done.

 

[hayley3]

I have a pole pounder but the last ones I did, I got up on a ladder and used a sledge hammer. I'm no spring chicken either and it was hard work. I will need a lot at my new place whatever I use...I haven't calculated how many yet.