Barbed Wire or High Tensile

Help Support CattleToday:

TGCJ7

Member
Joined
May 16, 2009
Messages
17
Reaction score
0
Location
SW Ohio
What woud be better for a temporary fence? Which is easier to re-use?

I've got 700ft. that I will take down next spring and move down the property line to make the pasture larger.
The ground has two gentle gullys on it, probably 6ft. deep over 100ft. spans.

If it were permanent, I would use field fence like the rest of the pasutre, but since I'm moving it I wanted to go as cheap as possible. For this project I did the math and barbed wire, and high tensile will cost about the same.

If I do go with barbed wire (which I originally planned on) should I buy heavier ga. stuff? Will any of it be able to be re-used?
 
Which to use is a matter of personal preference. We've used both and had good results, but we generally electric fence trained prior to turning them out. I don't know what gauge our barbed wire was, but it seemed like it was a little more difficult for the untrained heifers to break. Whatever you decide to use, I would suggest you electric fence train them in their pen before you turn them out - it just saves a lot of time, trouble, and after dark round-ups. ;-) :lol:
 
HT will take some real posts at the ends. I did the same thing when I built my fence, but I just made the cross fence permanent HT. It's only 3 wires, but it's hot, so nothing goes through it.
 
If you put electricity on the fence there is no way that the barbwire and high tensile fence work out to the same cost. I can build a high tensile electric fence for a quarter the price. Why take it out, why not leave it as a cross fence and manage your grazing a little more.
 
TGCJ7":1d520ti3 said:
Will any of it be able to be re-used?

Yes, you can re-use all of it, regardless of whether you go with barbed wire or high tensil. We've put up and taken down electric fences for years and re-used the wire from year to year. Eventually it will reach the point that it can't be re-used due to rusting, too many splices, or you just find something that works better.
 
The fence wouldnt have electric hooked up right now.
It will cost me the same, I'll have to buy a few tools for the High Tensile and I've already got a few of the things I need for the barbed wire.
Corner posts are already in and are solid, they arent going anywhere.

If I go with barbed wire, is the more expensive stuff worth the money, or should I just buy the cheap stuff?
 
TGCJ7":394v4n7u said:
If I go with barbed wire, is the more expensive stuff worth the money, or should I just buy the cheap stuff?

As with everything else, you get what you pay for. The more expensive stuff will stand up to the ravages of time and the elements better, last longer, take more to break, require less maintenance, and be cheaper over the long run.
 
Temporary?

45 wire cattle panels at $15.60 is $702

90 T posts on 8 foot centers is $346.50

$1050 should do it plus tie wire.

You can use them over and over.
 
TGCJ7":fidsra13 said:
The fence wouldnt have electric hooked up right now.
It will cost me the same, I'll have to buy a few tools for the High Tensile and I've already got a few of the things I need for the barbed wire.
Corner posts are already in and are solid, they arent going anywhere.

If I go with barbed wire, is the more expensive stuff worth the money, or should I just buy the cheap stuff?

I think you've answered your own question. If you're not planning on hooking a charger (fencer) to the fence then it will not work so you can't use it to control the animals.

There's not a lot of difference in the price of barbed wire and it is reusable if you role it back up carefully when you are ready to move it.

I have just switched from wire to poly line on my electric fences and I really like it better. You don't have all that weight to contend with so stretching the "wire" and beefing up corner posts is not necessary. And it really saves on the replacement of the disconnects which I always seemed to have trouble with. Just my two cents worth. Have a good one. :)
 
lavacarancher":by18rvbh said:
If you're not planning on hooking a charger (fencer) to the fence then it will not work so you can't use it to control the animals.

Not necessarily. If these animals are electric fence trained, they know fully well what the deal is and will respect the fence whether electricity is running through it or not. Our girls would usually respect the fence even when there was no fence at all for one reason or another. Remember, electric fence is a psychological barrier, not a physical barrier. We always had a bitch of a time coaxing the girls through the gate, even when the electricity was turned off.
 

Latest posts

Top