Dog Fence wire

[Ramper]

We continually have issues with our underground dog fence wire. Do you have any suggestions for the type of wire that we should use? We would be willing to pay a premium if the wire was more resistant to breaks.

 

[Jimmy_B]

We continually have issues with our underground dog fence wire. Do you have any suggestions for the type of wire that we should use? We would be willing to pay a premium if the wire was more resistant to breaks.

I have had this problem too. If I had it to do all over again I would look at placing the wire inside plastic tubing like sprinkler line.

 

[chickenhauler]

I used 14 gauge solid thhn 2 years ago, and the only break I have had to deal with, I caused by digging through it with the backhoe - Duh. I fenced about 4-5 acres in, and through a rocky patch full of saplings, I just laid it on top of the ground.

 

[Jack Olsen]

I have one section where (out of laziness), I put in stranded wire. I was surprised that, with my system at least, it worked. It's much more flexible than the solid stuff.

To find the breaks, there's a trick you can do with a hand-held transistor radio on the AM band.

 

[Ramper]

I have done that trick numerous times. I think it is the "nicks" that are causing the issues. I am going to get some wire and "good enough" fix it and then redo the entire system in the spring

 

[planecrazy]

I used #14 THHN stranded wire to do 2 acres. It lasted over 10 years and may still be good but we don't own the property anymore. Pay particulate attention to your splices. Make sure they are waterproof. I coated the bare wire in di-electric grease, crimped them using high quality **** slices and a good quality crimper. I then put three layers of heat shrink tubing over the splice. Never had a problem. Works good, lasts a long time.

 

[jonese]

I've got about 15 acres fenced in, darn waste because the dogs stay in about 5 acres of it. Its interesting planecrazy talks about making sure the splices are waterproof because when they came out to find and fix a break they spotted a place I had spliced previously with a really good sealed connector. They cut it out and twisted it and the other break together with a dang wirenut. No weatherproofing of any kind. Then they left me with the bill for like $5/wirenut. Only reason I had them come out at all was because indidnt know how to find the break myself but next time I'll try this AM radio trick.

 

[rlitman]

Underground, I prefer solid to stranded. The stranded has space between the wires that water can wick into. With solid THHN wire, you can just use a "DB" rated wire nut underground for this. They're the big blue ones filled with a non hardening silicone grease. They're not meant to be re-used, because once used, the grease is squeezed around, but for this application, you could pump them full of dielectric grease before re-use I guess.

 

[queenbee]

i have 2 acres done and did 6 for my moms and have had no problems. Try contacting invisable fence they use a wire that is specially coated it looks like tv cable. When you have a break or have to just spice two pieces together go get a pump splice kit for wells, there made to be under water.

 

[bkvanbek]

I need to fence in 10 acres and cross a pond. I will lay the wire on the ground and in the pond. Will running the wire in the water be a problem? Is 14ga solid to stiff to lay down?

 

[c.schulz]

14 gauge sounds large from what my manufacturer called out. There system uses 22 and no larger than 18 I think. Have you guys had trouble with signal on the larger wire? I need to rerun my 2.5 acres in the next few months after a new pipeline is finished being run at the back of the property.

Chris

 

[rburke65]

I would think you would be better off with the large wire as there would be less resistance.

 

[bkvanbek]

The 14-1 is available locally and is less expensive than other smaller wire. Will running the wire in the water be a problem? Is 14ga solid to stiff to lay down?

 

[Voi]

I have about an acre "fenced" in on a steep, rocky, and heavily wooded lot. It would have been nearly impossible to bury it so I ran the stock wire in garden hose and nestled it down into grass where it disappears nicely. In the few parts of our yard that are manicured we buried the hose.

I looked at plastic irrigation pipe and didn't find anything I thought would be flexible or durable enough. The company actually recommended garden hose.

At the time I didn't realize that I could buy a water based lube made for fishing wire through conduit so I used Johnson's Paste Wax. It was a heck of a lot of work but well worth it.

For the junctions I used PVC T fittings and attached threaded ends for the hose to attach to. Just used basic wire nuts and wrapped them in a lot of electrical tape. I planned out the locations of the junctions so they wouldn't be highly visible.