Electric fence pen... How to stop the corner posts from bending?

Vickijay

Vickijay

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Hello,

I hope you are all enjoying the lovely sunshine.

I have a horse who has been injured and has been on box rest for 6 and a half months. She is now allowed to go out in a little pen in the field. Its is about 1.5 times the size of her stable. It is made with electric fence and tall plastic posts for 3 of the edges, the 4th edge is the real fence.

My corner posts are bending in though. I tried to make it more of a semicircle, but that didn't really help. Im wondering about using tent pegs to support the corner posts with cord. Is this a good idea? Or is there a better solution? It needs to be easy to move as I have to move it daily around the fence line for new grass.

Any pen building tips?!

Thanks :)
 
Vickijay said:
Hello,

I hope you are all enjoying the lovely sunshine.

I have a horse who has been injured and has been on box rest for 6 and a half months. She is now allowed to go out in a little pen in the field. Its is about 1.5 times the size of her stable. It is made with electric fence and tall plastic posts for 3 of the edges, the 4th edge is the real fence.

My corner posts are bending in though. I tried to make it more of a semicircle, but that didn't really help. Im wondering about using tent pegs to support the corner posts with cord. Is this a good idea? Or is there a better solution? It needs to be easy to move as I have to move it daily around the fence line for new grass.

Any pen building tips?!

Thanks :)
Click to expand...

Get another fence post and a bit of baling twine. Tie the twine around the corner post towards the top. Make a loop in the other end, poke the spike of the second post through it and pull it out until it is supporting the corner post, then stick it in the ground. Like a guy rope on a tent.
 
If you have any snapped fence posts put one a couple of feet back from your corner posts and baler band from the top of your corner fence post tied onto the second post low down to stop it bending like a guy rope on a tent.
 
Or invest in a couple of these, they are really good. I use a mallet to bash them into the ground well. They come with 4 plastic connectors that slot over the metal hooks to put the fencing through. They are designed to be used with rope, fed through, but I got my OH to make an angled cut in each one so that I can slot tape into them.

http://shop.electricfencing.co.uk/index.php?m=shop&c=view&id=42:53:65:1091:134
 
So the twine goes from the top of the bending post to the bottom of spare post? :)

<clearly I am useless at all things camping!!>
 
I use a thin round wooden post in each corner and put them in with a wooden mell .
After rain you can wiggle them out easily if you need to .
 
Vickijay said:
Wow they look industrial!! Would they still not pull in a bit while the ground is soft?
Click to expand...

They aren't really industrial, but more substantial than normal posts. You've got two prongs to the side of the metal post right? Well the third one is positioned facing into your paddock, so it helps the post to stay upright. In the gales I did have one get blown clean out of the ground, but that was exceptional wet ground and wind wasn't it?!
 
Tinypony said:
They aren't really industrial, but more substantial than normal posts. You've got two prongs to the side of the metal post right? Well the third one is positioned facing into your paddock, so it helps the post to stay upright. In the gales I did have one get blown clean out of the ground, but that was exceptional wet ground and wind wasn't it?!
Click to expand...

Yeah exactly. I might give the using a spare electric post as a tent peg idea a go and if it still doesn't work then Ill get some of these. The most important thing is that she stays in it so if we need multi pronged posts, we shall have them!!
 
I tie three fence posts together at the top with a bit of baler twine and then pull the bottoms out so that at the base of the tripod the posts are 18in apart. This makes a really strong structure that can be used as a corner or a gate post.
 
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