LANIGAN, Sask. – Got power? Make the most of it.
Electric fences need adequate grounding to produce the most shock for the money and the fencer or energizer needs to be sized properly for the job.
Will Rex of Gallagher Power Fencing Systems told cattle producers attending the Western Beef Development Centre field day near Lanigan, Sask., that installing an electric fence properly and checking it regularly will ensure the best results.
“You can get by with a lower cost energizer when you do it right,” Rex said. “It doesn’t matter what brand you choose, a $100 energizer can only be compared to other $100 energizers. A $400 energizer compares only to other $400 units. In this business there are no short cuts to keeping your stock behind the wire.”
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Rex said the first step is to ensure the system is well grounded.
“You cut the ability of your unit to do its job if you don’t ground it properly in the first place,” he said.
Rex recommended using a folded steel ground rod design over the standard 5/8-inch galvanized rods that are normally found in livestock applications.
The seven-foot-long folded steel rods will each ground 3.5 joules of fencer capacity or stored energy.
A 5/8-inch rod of the same length will only handle one joule of energy.
He said the 5/8-inch rods should be replaced every four years, while the folded steel versions will last seven years.
Producers should not overestimate the capacity of a fencer.
An 18-joule energizer will power a multi-wire fence in high vegetation for about 10 kilometres. In average vegetation, the same fencer will maintain its jolt over 18 km. In areas with low plant material, the same unit would power a fence for as many as 70 km.
Rex said energizers will look after their own plant removal safely by drying off the grasses and weeds that are in contact with them, provided the fence is sized and installed properly.
Rex recommends producers purchase voltage meters designed for high voltage electric fences.
“You can use your standard electrician’s tester for checking to see if there is power, but only once. After it finds the charge, if it is like mine was, it will make a great paperweight,” he said.
