Static Run Fencing Design Feedback

[rcwright721]

We have a 10’x12’ Raken house close to our residence that I would like to build a 200 sqft fence around to give more space for chickens outside of the Raken house. The plan is to use 4’ 2x4 woven wire fencing with a strand of electrified high tensile 6” above the WW.

Thoughts on if this height is sufficient? We could go up to a 5’ fence with the electric wire on top but I wasn’t sure if it was worth all the extra cost.

We have coyotes, raccoons, possums, foxes, hawks, owls etc… but so far have not had any problems with them. This spot is 50’ from the house so I’m assuming that has helped.

 

[thecatumbrella]

Is the hot wire only at the 4'6" mark, or is the fencing itself electrified? Do you plan on adding bird netting to deter aerial predators?

Also, there's keeping predators out and there's keeping birds IN. What breeds do you have? Some might be more escape savvy than others.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I use 4 feet high electric netting so the height is not the issue. I don't like your set-up though, not enough hot wires.

Chickens can easily fly over a 4 or 5 feet high fence if they want to. The trick is them not wanting to. Typically a chicken will not fly over a fence and land on the other side. Some learn that they can but usually they do not. If the top of the fence (or fence post) looks like a good place to land they might fly up there to perch, then they can hop down on either side. So try to not make the top look like a good landing spot.

Another potential problem is when a chicken gets trapped against the fence in a fight and is losing it might go vertical to get away. Often they land on the wrong side of the fence and do not know how to get back in. To reduce this risk try to not have any sharp corners where they can easily get trapped. Flatten the corners some. Also try to avoid narrow strips where they cannot walk past each other without getting too close. That can set them off. So try to design it with flatter corners and about as wide as long for a 200 sq ft run.

A wire mesh run like this will not keep flying predators out. Some of us have issues with that, many do not. But a good mesh fence will keep ground-based predators out. Most predators are not going to jump over, even if they can. They investigate it first. They run away if they get shocked. Same with climbing predators. Many critters can crawl under a mesh fence, often without digging. You want to shock them too. So I like positioning a hot wire close to the ground and another higher up so a climbing predator will hit it if they start to climb or a jumping critter checks it out. That means at least two hot wires. Many people put a third hot wire at the top.

For a predator to be shocked it needs to close the circuit between a hot wire and the ground. For mesh fences it is normal to make both the soil and the wire mesh the ground side of that current. Install hot wires on insulators to form the other side of that current.

Predators' fur insulates them from the electrical current. But the bottoms of their paws, their tongue, mouth, nose, and bare parts of their head will conduct electricity. That's why you position the hot wires where you do, to assure they contact them.

One problem with using electricity is that if grass or weeds grow up into it or if trash blows up against it and stacks high enough and it gets wet, it can short out the current, rendering it useless. So you have to regularly maintain the area to keep it clear. With mine, I had to rake debris away after a washing rain.

Good luck with it.