Complications Using Hotwire to Repel Predators

[centrarchid]

Keeping the fence requires a little effort. First concern is weeds coming up to ground it out. I beat that with a more powerful fence charger that can burn weeds back. Deer sometime run through fence knocking it down. Next issue is deep snow / freezing rain but that is in infrequent and short duration. Some storms where the lightening seems to hit the ground more than usual causes problems at least twice a year and is usually accompanied by conditions that make it difficult respond quickly for safety reasons. I have also left fence off accidentally.

Newer problem revolves around two children, a five year old boy and a 4 year old girl. The boy got zapped twice yesterday. Both have been zapped previously and found humor when I took hits in their presence. The zapping yesterday was different from their perspective. The younger sister looked from across fence directly into my eyes as she pointed at the fence at her feet and asked in a very accusing manner "daddy why did you put that there?"

My real problem now is her brother knows now how to turn the fence off. Will he turn it back on?

 

[eggbert420]

I'm not a fan of hot wire for predators. When using it in large areas, Its not as great as people make it sound.

 

[getaclue]

Children that age can be taught to leave the fence alone. Set the alarm, or a reminder on your phone, or computer to turn the fence on each evening.

 

[centrarchid]

My patches are small, less than two acres. Then it keeps most out and makes job for dogs easier. When I used to to use it for 80 acre fields it was much more to keep larger stock like cattle, horses and sometimes hogs in but it generally did little to stop predators. Or hunting dogs had little trouble with the fencing. I will say this. deployment of fencing for larger livestock differs markedly from the way you do it for poultry. Even setups we use for sheep and goats is not appropriate for poultry. To stop raccoons, opossums and foxes you must keep the fence close to the ground and in some situations use electrified poultry netting. The poultry setups are more work than used for other animals, that I can attest to. Keeps your body in shape and mind sharp.

 

[centrarchid]

Children that age can be taught to leave the fence alone. Set the alarm, or a reminder on your phone, or computer to turn the fence on each evening.

They will learn it as did I at the same age. What gets them into trouble is they forget it is there or they start playing with it.

 

[The Moonshiner]

I'm not a fan of hot wire for predators. When using it in large areas, Its not as great as people make it sound.

I agree. We used it in small areas (one to two acres) and it didnt seem to stop anything. Watched it zap a dog from down the road and two hours later he was back in the yard chasing chickens.

 

[Trish1974]

First concern is weeds coming up to ground it out. I beat that with a more powerful fence charger that can burn weeds back.

Wow! How many joules is that charger and about how much voltage are you getting along the wire to accomplish that?

 

[The Moonshiner]

Wow! How many joules is that charger and about how much voltage are you getting along the wire to accomplish that?

No kidding.
I cant image having one so juiced up that it would burn weeds and having small kids around it and touching it.
We actually took ours down when our youngest got mobile because it would zap the hell out of us not to mention not helping stop anything.
Not a fan of having kids around them. I didnt mind a little shock therapy every now and again but kids dont need it.

 

[Howard E]

Moonshiner:

If your fence zapped a dog and he came back, your fencer was not nearly powerful enough. A tickle won't do it. A blast will. A little 4th of July popper won't do it. You want a cherry bomb.

At the minimum, I would use at least this: (which is what I use)

http://parmakusa.com/product/magnum-12uo/

The upgraded AC version would be this:

http://parmakusa.com/product/super-energizer-5/

I have an area of about 1 acre square and fence tests at 14,000 volts. It has also been tested by the neighbor's dog and he has not been back. After he got zapped, I have watched him lay down on the other side of the fence, with chickens in full view and he ignores them. My daughter's large dog also got a dose of it and he went back to the house, layed down by the door and refused to go near it again. He didn't even want to be inside the yard it surrounds.

To make a poultry fence easy to maintain, at least for large areas, something like Roundup makes life easier. NO weeds or grass growing close enough to ground it out. I then mow up and down both sides, creating a 10' wide open area with the fence in the middle over bare ground. This helps create a defined corridor animals can recognize. Animals have to learn what that fence is and where it is and they do that by getting zapped......once. Once zapped, they avoid it. I also hang strips of flagging tape to give it a visual recognition to humans. They need to be able to see it too.

My fence is 4 wires (17 gauge aluminum), hung on the four lowest clips on white step in posts. The lowest of about 5 inches or so off the deck, which is bare ground. The highest is only 20 inches or so.....about knee high for me and I simply step over it, so don't bother with gates. Not much can get under it, so those that test it try to crawl through it and get zapped from above and below in the process. Corners are steel T posts, and if it is a large area, those need to be braced with a screw in anchor so you can tension the wires without pulling the corners over. The white step in posts handle the high spots. If you have dips to create a wide gap between ground and wire, gap wide enough a varmint can crawl under, you set a steel T post in the bottom of the dip and use clip on insulators installed upside down so they hold the wire down vs. holding it up as the normally would. With this system, you can effectively enclose some modest terrain....with no gaps in coverage.

As for kids, I have a 4 year old grandson, and he has not touched the fence, nor have I, nor has anyone else I know. If I am concerned (more like if his mother is concerned) about him and the fence, I turn it off. It does not need to be on when kids are around. It needs to be on when they are not, and that includes at all times during the night.

I don't have a guard dog, and do not trap predators and do not kill them, yet I have not yet lost a bird to a predator. The reason is they are protected by very tight sturdy chicken house at night, and their yard is surrounded by a really hot electric fence day and night. This is more or less a safe zone surrounded by a sea of death and that is how I have made it safe.

 

[centrarchid]

Drop the "wow". 1 Joule is sufficient. Weeds not not burned in the classical sense. The approach is a common one in practical usage of electric fencing.

I grew up around this stuff. Most getting back into agriculture do not have a handle in how the fencing works. Damage to kids riding bicycles much greater and more frequent, yet they associate with the activity.