The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Smallholding => Techniques and skills => Topic started by: sunnyday on April 22, 2013, 10:05:28 am
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Hello,
Please can I ask for some advice about this... I'm trying to arrange fences between fields and a very narrow public road. Low level of motor traffic, and some pedestrians, cyclists, and horse riders. Don't want anyone's clothing to be damaged, or worse someone to get hurt, or a horse injured, by barbed wire.
The fields have sheep and cattle in. Will it work to fix stock fencing nearest the road and a second line of posts half a metre inside the field with a single strand of barbed wire to keep the cattle off the stock fence? Or any other suggestions please?
Also - does anyone have experience of a contactor's price for installing something similar?
Thanks for any comments.
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The inner barbed wire would be a good idea although it isn't illegal to have it on the actual fence, and only needs to be removed if the highways authority deem it to be a nuisance, would be worth checking your local highways authority view on this.
I would do the same as you tho and have the barb offset.
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I would not bother with inner rung of fencing just go with 4 x 4 inch mesh fence with wooden uprights, corner/ direction supports and a single barbed wire strand running along the top.
If you want to tape some cotton wool to the road side edge that would be your choice, but fencing isn't cheap and I believe you are just making work for yourself. Next would be cutting off the thorns from bramble bushes. Please don't take as me being rude, it's your money you can do as you want but I run stock fencing topped with barbed wire along bridle paths because as soon as people find a puddle they try to turn the track into the width of the M4 motorway and I'm not that rich to afford double fencing.
Contractors will vary depending on areas and amount of work available so can't comment
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hi
where are you it makes a huge difference on pricing, your looking at 5-10 pounds a metre depending on access and how many corners etc are required plus gates are extra.
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I hate barbed wire so we don't use it at all. Our neighbour's cattle were leaning over the fences and into our hedges and even pulling up some of the new planting. He put taller posts in and added an extra row of well tensioned high tensile plain wire along the top. This has done the trick better than barbed wire would, without tearing the animals' skin. They stand there and look longingly at our foliage but can't reach over to it. Just how tall the fence would need to be depends on the breed of cattle :cow:
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bloomer - we're in north west England. When it gets further on I'll be able to ask for quotes, but I'm trying to find the best way to construct the fence at present - I can find the price of materials separately so anyone's experience of prices for the work alone would be a help.
Because it's next to the public road (which is very narrow) I'd like to avoid barbed wire that someone might come into contact with - I don't want my neighbours, or anyone passing through, to feel they are at risk.
Fleecewife - if a plain wire along the top would stop cattle from pushing over the fence that seems like a good solution.
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what have other people on the same road done?
as even on narrow paths here the standard seams to be stock fencing with a top strand of barbed wire.
a second row of posts will add a lot to the cost.
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Might not need a second line of posts, you can get offset tops for posts for electric line and some of those are pigtail types which would probably hold a barb line if needed (or plain wire).
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Many thanks for those suggestions everyone. I'll put them to the others concerned and see how we get on.
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Dont forget that barbed wire is there to stop people getting over your fences too and wrecking the things.
I wouldnt worry about it in a legal sense - a fence around a field with barbed on is not negligence on your part - its upto people to watch out for the fence, which for a start if they encounter would be negligence on their part if its installed properly on a boundary.
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Weall get a little paranoid about the dangers of being sued - but just look at some of the public footpaths available - coastal paths - wooded walks - there is not a hope in hell that anyone could sue you for cutting themselves on barbed wire - unless you strung it accros a road and garotted people with it.
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Hi
I've done some fencing by the side of public footpath, councils often suggest that barbed wire isn't used to avoid injury etc but sometime land owners prefer to use it specially for cattle.
I did do one fence which I strung a line of barbed wire along the stock side and a rail along the footpath side, it made for extra cost which isn't ideal but gave the landowner peace of mind.
The choice is your on a final decision barbed wire is an effective barrier for cattle but in my experience specifically with highland cattle it matters little they will still stick their heads through regardless.
Oh and for the record I don't like using barded wire where possible and landowners agree I do try to avoid its use. Either with extra plain wire or a rail.
Hope this helps even a little.
Thanks
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Hi, we have fields next to an A road and they are all sheep netting and single string barb, with no hassles. Better to keep the animals in than worry about what someone might think, its a safety thing. Happy fencing!
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our barbed wire fences last longer than our plain wire fences as the cattle and ponies lean on the plain wire to get the grass on the other side of the fence.
we had our fences ruined by people stealing xmas trees, by trampling the fence and dragged trees over it.
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If using for cattle I read that you should use two barbs, as they will still stick their head under one but don't like getting a double dose. Not sure how true that is tho.
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In my experience, (which includes highland cattle!) - you really do need 2 rows of barbed wire no more than 9ins apart, so the cattle actually can't get their heads between.
We have stock netting topped by 2 rows of barbed around a field next to the highway. The council tried to tell me it was a hazard if a cyclist fell against it. I pointed out it would be more of a hazard if the cattle got out and caused a traffic accident. Further more, as there's a deep pond in the field would they take responsibility if a child climbed over the wooden fence that they wanted, and drowned in the pond? I heard no more and the barbed wire remains.