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Build Your Electric Fence from the Ground up

By Bob Kingsbery

Did you know the average farmer spends three days a year solving problems caused by poorly grounded electric fences? I didn’t either until I made that fact up. But here’s something I didn’t make up: Ninety percent of electric fence problems are the result of poor grounding. Taking an hour to install a good ground system will save days of trouble down the road. Why is the ground system so important? For an electric fence to work the voltage must complete a circuit. The fence controllergenerates a high voltage pulse that travels down the fence. When an animal touches the fence the pulse travels through the animalto the soil. From there it heads for the ground rods and then up the ground rod wire back to the fence controller. That is when theanimal feels the shock. A good ground system increases the electricity returning to the controller and makes the fence moreeffective.

Three steps to good grounding:

1. Install three six-foot long galvanized ground rods (1/2 inch in diameter) spaced 10 feet apart. Copper ground rods are OK, but connecting galvanized wire to a copper rod will result in corrosion. Eight-foot long ground rods are often available, but they are hard to install and don’t need to be so long. Steel T-posts or re-bar do not make good ground rods.
2. Use insulated cable or galvanized wire to connect all three ground rods together and to the ground terminal on the fence controller.Attach the wire to the ground rods with a ground rod clamp or galvanized hose clamp. Simply wrapping a wire around the ground rod makes a poor connection.
3. Always install your fence charger and the ground system first. Most people put up the posts and wire first, followed by the fence controller. By the time they install the ground system they are in a hurry to finish. They wrap the ground wire around the closest steel post and call it a ground rod. WRONG!

Note:  Never use water pipes or utility ground rods (installed by the utility company) to ground your fence. Doing so will allow stray voltage to get into your household current or water system. Do not install your ground system within 50 feet of a utility ground rod to prevent lightning from damaging the energizer. If rocks make installing ground rods impossible, dig a trench as deep as possible and bury a galvanized pipe (20′+ long).

For more information read the installation manual that comes with each American Farm Works Fence Charger or call us @1-800-962-2880.

How to select a BULL-DOZER Fence Charger

American Farm Works New Digital BULL-DOZER Fence Chargers Feature…

• Digital circuitry for more durability and lower energy use.
• One-piece Replacement module-10 minutes in-store repair.
• Same power and quality as foreign models costing twice as much.
• Optimum pulse shape for more effective animal control.

When Selecting a Bull-Dozer Fence Charger…

• “Miles of fence” is not important-amount of acreage and type of animals are…
• Back yard to 20 acres, horse, cow or dog: Model 4465 or 401 Low Impedance
• 10 acres to 40 acres, horse, cow or dog: Model 4444, 401 or 402 Low Impedance
• 1+ acres with sheep, goats, deer or predators: Model 401,402 or 4400 Low Impedance
• 40+ acres with cattle, horses, sheep or predators: Model 4400 or WASP Low Impedance
• Solar Fences: up to 5 acres: Model 4000 6-volt, 20+ acres: SUN SCORPION 12-volt
• Temporary or Strip Grazing fence: YELLOW JACKET flashlight battery Model

What is the difference between Fence Chargers?
All chargers put out about the same voltage: 8,000 to 12,000 volts. Amperage and pulse shape determines effectiveness. The difference is like horsepower: Most cars will go 60-80 miles per hour until they come to a steep hill. The car with less horsepower slows down. The car with more horsepower maintains its speed. The same is true for fence chargers: the more powerful the fencer, the more load (grass & weeds, etc.) it can handle. For example, a fence load that would pull a Model # 4465 from 11,000 volts to 2,000 volts would pull our Model 401 low impedance fence from 8,000 volts to 5,000. Our Model 4400 would go from 8,000 to 7,000 volts.

In addition to more horsepower, low impedance fence chargers also have a stronger pulse that animals remember longer and avoid the fence. Low impedance fence chargers are completely safe for people and animals.

What are the secrets to effective electric fencing?

• Good ground system – 90% of problems are poor grounding. Always install three ground rods (6ft. long-10ft. apart). Dry areas might need more than three rods or a ground wire in the fence.
• Adequate fencer charger for the fence – always recommend more powerful fencer to allow for more fence, poor construction, etc.
• Use proper materials designed for electric fencing – Insulators, insulated cable, ground rods, connectors, etc.
• Check the fence daily with a Voltmeter or Five-Light Tester.

Copyright 1998 by Bob Kinsbery