Build A Fence
So you’d like To Build A Fence!
First, you should work out where your fence will go, put in a sight line and grade the area if necessary. When planning to build a fence, think about ground contour, erosion and soil type.
Suppose you are using strainers. Put in a sight wire close to the ground. Then lay your posts out by stepping out or measuring along the fence line. With a straight fence, pressure points along the way are minimised.
Your posts need to be about five and a half metres apart (18 feet), with one dropper between them. If made of wood, droppers need to be about 25mm x 50mm x.8 metres (1 x 2 x 33 inches), and the fence is strained every 100 metres (110 yards). Diagonal stays should be at least 4 metres (13 feet) long and at least 150mm (6 inches) in diameter at the smallest end.
If you need to dig holes into building a fence, a great tool is a post-hole rammer. Like the one pictured above. This packs the earth around your posts to ensure they don’t loosen in time and fall over. You can buy crowbars with a flat circular tamping end which also works quite well. Of course, many use steel posts nowadays; all you need is a post driver.
The block for the foot of the stay should be at least 460 mm (18 inches) in the ground and have a cross piece at the back if less than 350mm (14 inches) across. Mortise or scarf the strainer post to carry the stay. The barbed wire needs to be tied off or stapled to every post. Gate posts should be 1-5-1.8 metres (5 or 6 feet) out of the ground and 90 cm (3 feet) in the ground.
Wire spinning jennies are good value if you are going to do a lot of fencing. They keep the wire coil intact and help distribute the wire without becoming a tangled mess.
Wire Strainer
Good fencing requires effective wire strainers for straining barbed or plain wire and trellising. Please always treat wire and strainers with respect to prevent damage to the wire. Also make sure there is no risk to the handler or any bystanders. I know someone who had their eye removed from wire whipping back. Pull out bogged cars and tree stumps with wire strainers. Enlist the help of friends to help build a fence!