Author Topic: What to use for top half of a tall fence? (Read 4797 times)

Creagan · « **on:** June 17, 2013, 11:31:00 am »

Hi
as my first job on our new croft I'm putting up a run for the dogs. Bottom half is rylock. I'm looking for something light (and cheap!) to go on the top half. Doesn't need to have much strength- maybe chicken wire would do. I don't have very good strainers in so it needs to be something that can be strung up without needing a lot of tension.
As I kid I remember seeing hex mesh fences that were like chicken wire but with holes about 6" across... I can't seem to find this stuff any more... does it exist, or is it simply that I was a lot smaller back then, and the holes seemed really big?

Scotsdumpy · « **Reply #1 on:** June 17, 2013, 11:54:36 am »

Hi
we have also looked for that large hex.sheep netting only to be told you can get it new but it is very expensive most farm auctions(roups) have rolls but again can go for silly money!

Creagan · « **Reply #2 on:** June 17, 2013, 12:22:43 pm »

Glad to know I'm not the only one!
I can get 2" chicken wire, a 50m roll is about £30, it's not that much cheaper than rylock and there's far less weight of steel in it so it feels like very poor value.
The wife says I'm not allowed to just string up old fishing net, but it would do, and it would be cheap!

Fleecewife · « **Reply #3 on:** June 17, 2013, 02:41:43 pm »

What about the green plastic squared net people use to grow their beans up? I don't know how much it costs but places like 'Knowles Nets' and LBS Horticulture (trade side) probably sell it in bulk rolls. They also sell knitted mesh for use on fruit cages but that could well costs more than chicken wire (I hate chicken wire - it takes your finger nails off

)
If possible it's best to put in some good braced strainers for a secure run.

We used to use the big hexmesh for turkeys about 50 years ago - they would stick their heads out of one hole and back in the next - turkey for dinner again

Creagan · « **Reply #4 on:** June 17, 2013, 02:48:11 pm »

Hi, thanks for the suggestions. I'm not sure if plastic would be strong enough but I'll have a look. I don't want to end up having to put extra posts in to stop it sagging.
I've not put strainers in because they were going to cost me a small fortune! I need to get myself to a sawmill and stop paying DIY-store prices for this stuff.
I wonder whatever happened to the giant chicken wire... I can't find it anywhere...

stufe35 · « **Reply #5 on:** June 20, 2013, 09:12:00 pm »

How about using 12ft fencing rails along the top of your posts. This provides strength to strain against, they are about 2.70 each treated, so you can cover quite a lent goth sheaply, then sheep netting would do ?

Still playing with tractors · « **Reply #6 on:** July 08, 2013, 12:26:42 pm »

I used 1 inch weldmesh fencing for our dog run. it comes in different sizes but i went for the 2.5m high quite easy to work with but the rolls are very heavy. I made up frames in 4x2 and then cut the weldmesh to size and used staples to fix it, great for chooks as well as its totaly fox proof.

lachlanandmarcus · « **Reply #7 on:** July 08, 2013, 01:30:53 pm »

I've used trellis at our old placethe square stuff not the diagonal, much stronger and lets lots of light through but dogs still see it as a fence.

MAK · « **Reply #8 on:** July 08, 2013, 10:37:59 pm »

Are the dogs dangerous to passers by or are they likeley to run away then ?

What about a few lines of electric wire. Cheap and my guess is that it will be effective - as for pigs, cows etc.

Creagan · « **Reply #9 on:** July 23, 2013, 09:37:50 am »

In the end I went with some chicken wire- 50mm mesh, light gauge galv wire, hung from a tensioned string at the top and completely tied down using light wire to spiral tie it to the top of the rylock. It adds another 900mm height to the fence making it completely dog proof. Now the problem is stopping the little b*ggers from squeezing under the bottom!

Just as an aside, the whole point of this is not because the dogs are dangerous in any way- to either livestock or people- but so that I can avoid getting on the wrong side of my crofting neighbours who will no doubt assume that a loose dog is the end of the world (had a similar experience in the last crofting township I lived in...)