How to Install a Poly Rope Fence

Make sure you use insulators on your fence to keep the wires from grounding out.

A poly rope fence is an electric fencing style that can successfully contain a wide range of livestock species, including cows, goats and sheep. Also called poly wire, poly rope consists of a plastic, poly-based rope material intertwined with multiple thin strands of metal that conduct electricity. Not only is poly rope an inexpensive fencing option, but its bright yellow color makes it more visible to animals than traditional electric wire. According to Philip Hasheider, author of "How to Raise Cattle," poly-based electric fences work best for temporary fencing for livestock, since they don't produce the strong electrical shock that most permanent, perimeter fencing systems require.

Things You'll Need

• Mower
• Spray paint
• Steel T-posts
• Post driver
• Poly rope
• Metal rebar posts
• Hammer
• Clip-on plastic insulators
• Slide-on plastic insulators
• Wire cutters
• Insulated cable
• Fence energizer
• 6-foot galvanized steel ground rods (5/8-inch diameter)
• Copper grounding clamps

Instructions

Poly Rope Fence

1. Mow a 2-foot-wide strip of grass along your fence line to a height of less than two inches to reduce the chances that your poly fence will ground out on vegetation. Mark the locations for your corner posts by spraying the grass with a small squirt of spray paint.

2. Install the corner posts for your poly rope fence. Stab the base of a steel T-post into one of the spray-painted locations on the ground. Lower a post driver over the top of your steel T-post and pound the T-post approximately 12 to 18 inches into the ground. Repeat this installation process for each of your corner posts.

3. Tie a strand of poly rope around the first corner post and run it around the perimeter of your proposed fence line to the other corner posts to provide a guide wire for the line post installation. Use a regular hammer to pound metal rebar posts in a straight line along the guide wire. Pound the rebar line posts to a depth of about 8 to 12 inches and locate them about 10 to 12 feet apart.

4. Install the insulators on your corner posts and line posts. Wrap clip-on plastic insulators around the steel T-posts, pushing the back clip until it clicks into place. Unscrew the back section on the sliding plastic insulators and slide them to the correct heights on your metal rebar line posts. Locate the bottom set of insulators about six inches from the ground; locate the other sets of insulators every six to eight inches along your posts until your fence is the correct height based upon the type of animal that you're trying to contain.

5. Thread your poly rope through the entire bottom set of insulators. Pull the rope taut and tie it off on itself at the first insulator. Repeat this process for each set of insulators that you install.

6. Connect the wires in your poly rope fence together using insulated cable. Measure a strip of insulated cable to reach between the bottom two wires in your fence. Cut the insulated cable and peel back the first two inches of insulation on both ends. Wrap the first end of the cable around the bottom wire and wrap the second end around the second wire. Connect the second wire to the third wire in the same way. Repeat this process for every set of wires.

7. Measure out a section of insulated cable that is long enough to reach between your bottom strand of poly rope and the fence energizer. Peel back the first two inches of insulation at both ends of the cable. Wrap the exposed cable ends around the bottom wire and around the fence terminal on your fence energizer.

Grounding System

1. Pound the 6-foot galvanized steel rods into the ground in 10-foot increments. Leave the top two to three inches of rod exposed above the soil.

2. Connect the steel rods to each other with strips of insulated cable. Peel back the first two inches of insulation on both ends of each cable strip and secure them to the steel rods with copper grounding clamps.

3. Measure out a strip of insulated cable that reaches from the fence energizer to the nearest grounding rod. Strip back the first two inches of insulation, then connect the two exposed cable ends to the grounding rod and the ground terminal on the fence charger.

Tips & Warnings

• Check with your city office before installation to see if you need any permit when constructing your fence.

• Keep your fence energizer turned off and unplugged during installation to avoid accidental electric shock.

References

• "How to Raise Cattle;" Philip Hasheider; 2007
• University of Tennessee: Temporary Fencing for Rotation Grazing