![]() “At the end of the day, the cost of insulators along a kilometre of fence is negligible, the main cost is in your wire and your posts,” Mike said. Porcelain insulators may cost about the twice as much as plastic insulators, but over the time they are cost less because of their durability, Mike says. Porcelain insulators do not break down over time with sunlight, do not melt in fires and are more robust in standing up to feral animal pressure. He advises the use of porcelain over plastic insulators where possible. “If you are going to use plastics, at least use good ones,” Mike says. ![]() Some however are sturdy and use solid locking pins that lock in place and must be physically turned before they can be released. “Eventually that pin will vibrate free, releasing the live wire and causing a short,” Mike explains. The shape of the pin means it is all but impossible to ensure the pin will stay in place no matter how much pressure is used to force it into the holes that are meant to secure it. Some use thin and flimsy pins to secure live wires which would seem unlikely to last out several months let alone the several years that would be expected.Īnother he pointed out uses conical shaped locking pins to secure the wire in place. Presented side by side, the clear differences that exist in strength and durability between the various brands are obvious. He then produced a string of black plastic insulators tied together, representing many of the various makes currently on the market. So polypipe is a no-no.” Not all plastic insulators are equal “If you get enough of it, you can have significant powerloss problems. “Another problem with polypipe is that it has carbon in it. “They twitch it onto a steelie and they either twitch it on too tight and it pierces through and shorts out, or they don’t do it tight enough, and the thing vibrates loose and the live wire shorts out. The first item he produces is short, thin piece of polypipe.Īs a cost saving measure he said people will often cut polypipe into short lengths to use as insulators around steel posts for example. In fact he immediately produced a small container holding various odds and ends which he uses at field days to illustrate some of the more regular problems he encounters. We asked him to tell us about some of the more common mistakes he sees people make with electric fencing, and he was only too happy to oblige. Mike says there is no single environment where electric fencing will not work effectively, provided people avoid common mistakes and don’t take short cuts.īeef Central spent some time with Mike at the FarmFest field days near Toowoomba earlier this month where he was giving practical advice on electric fencing and demonstrations at the Gallagher site. He has built electric fencing to contain everything from elephants to worms (seriously! more on that below), and has has used electric fencing in almost every conceivable application to keep livestock in and pest species out. WITH more than 30 years of electric fencing experience under his belt, NSW fencing demonstrator and cattle producer Mike Thomas has seen just about every fencing mistake there is to see. He has over 30 years experience in the fencing field, originally as a fencing contractor. He also runs an irrigated lucerne and cattle fattening operation “in his spare time”. Mike Thomas is a senior field day demonstrator and trainer with Gallagher, working at all major field days in Australia.
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