Has anyone made their own electric corral instead of buying the kits? Is it more economical, or do all the little parts drive the overall price up? What did you (if anyone) use to roll the elec tape back up when taking the corral down?  What type of charger di you use to power the fence?  I want an elec corral, but since I have so many wants here lately (new trailer, etc,etc.....plus being the only horsey person in the family) I would'nt feel so bad if I started putting one together piece by piece. 

Leslie

I made one when I lived in Tx.  The local feed store carried the white step in posts for $1.45 each and I bought a roll of the 1/2 inch white poly tape and connectors at the local Mc Coys hardware store.  I used a extension cord holder to roll the tape up on to keep it neat.    I used a battery powered charger, the Yellow Jacket charger  http://www.valleyvet.com/ct_detail.html?pgguid=30e07340-7b6a-11d5-a192-00b0d0204ae5.  When we camped I put a water jug with a slow leak in it by the grounding rod (steel tent stake, about 6"long) to make sure we had a good ground.

I found that regular alkaline batteries worked better than the recharagable ones.  They lasted longer.  My horses were used to a hotwire and only tested it once. 

Thanks Terri,

Did it last a pretty good while for you?.. I've not yet tested my mare (not having a elec corral), but knowing her, it won't take but once!.. I've also thought of getting that orange "slotted" plastic fence like they use at construction sites or for snow control (from what I remember! ).. put it on my step-in posts and run a "top rail" of elec tape around the top..  If it looks solid, then it must be, right?

I kept the "portable" tape in my trailer, but I used the rest of the roll and the charger to divide my pasture.  No electricity out there.  It lasted 3 years.  It may have lasted longer but it dissapeared with a tornado.

Damn those tornados!! No manners at all!!  Always taking stuff that doesn't belong to them! LOL!

I bought a kit years ago.  As parts have died, I have just replaced them a piece at a time.  Having done so, I would just buy the parts now and build my own.

We frequently haul an electric fence into the mountains when we pack in.  I've haulled two 1/4 mile rolls of Poly string, 40 fiberglass push in post and a 4 "D" cell battery charger. Setup up the entire 1/2 mile of fence around a large meadow and turned 19 horses out into.  When I buy my own parts, I can make the fence AS big or AS small as I want.

Good idea! 

Well, I've gotten 10 posts. so far... I forgot to get one for a gate.. No one here in town has the poly tape, to say nothing of end tensioners or splicers, etc.... There is a place on the other side of town that may.. I'll call before i make the trip.. How close together should I put these for saftey and stability? I figured 1 for each corner, 2 middle posts for each long side and 1 middle post for end.  i can't wait to get the rest of the stuff and try it out at home (barn)!..I'll have to order a battery operated fence charger.. All of the ones I see here are electric.. I know a bunch or mail order palces that carry them I just wasn't sure what brand most people used.

Okay. Justso I understand. You just want a temporary elec fence for when you camp?

To make a bag, take an old pair of jeans. Cut off the legs. Open up one seam on each leg. Sew half of one leg to the other leg (to get it at least 54" long. Sew a hem for the top drawstring. Sew the length closed. Sew across the bottom Voila - a post carrying bag.

Use a coffee can to coil up your poly tape - wrap it around the outside. Stick the open end of the coffee can on a post and un ravel it.

Buy a 8' long grounding rod. Buy the $80 Zarebra battery fencer. It mounts ON the grounding rode. All you do is attach the poly tape to the fencer and turn it on. It has high and low. When you get to camp, pound the grounding rod into the ground at least 4'. Pour water on it if it's dry.

PRACTICE using the corral at home first. You may only need 1 strand of poly tape. I use 2 strands. keeps the horse from sticking their head so far under they lift up the tape.

I use a picket line. MUCH easier. put a ring on the line, let the horse walk up and down the picket line. Easier than a corral.

Quote: To make a bag, take an old pair of jeans. Cut off the legs. Open up one seam on each leg. Sew half of one leg to the other leg (to get it at least 54" long. Sew a hem for the top drawstring. Sew the length closed. Sew across the bottom Voila - a post carrying bag.

Gabz,

That is brilliant for the post carrying bag I'v been keeping my eye out for something. I'll make one this weekend. Also, Wal Mart sells these great mesh bags for around $5, usually located in the camping section. They work great for all of your electric necessities, besides the posts, and they are also great for your splint boots, easy boots, etc.

It's nice to have the electric set up because there isn't always a place to picket, which I also prefer. Really, you don't need a whole bunch of extra pieces for your electric fence. You need a battery operated charger (I bought the green one, can't remember the name, from KV Vet or the Yellow Jacket is popular too) enough posts, the tape, a grounding rod and a gate handle or two. Pretty simple really. The orange fencing you talked about works very well but it's extra stuff to have to lug around.

Happy camping! 

I just use the poly string when I go camping.  If need be, I put one at 18" and one at 36"  But usually one strand at 36 is enough.

Now I do highline at night. Mainly because and deer and elk run through the fence.

There is 19 horses in this meadow, 1/2 mile of poly string on 40 fiverglass post.  One Yellowjacket fence charger that runs on 4 "D Cells"

If you look close you can see Some of the white fiberglass rods.  We ran the enclosure down to the water so the horses could dring and up into the trees for some shade.  The horses came fro 4-5 farms and had not met before the ride, so they pushed themselves around a bit as the learned who was the alpha. But nobody went through the fence. But all had seen an electric fence at home before coming.

I've use old jeans for tent poles too.. back in the day when tents HAD poles. Now they just pop up...

I love re-using old shirts and things.  I made some heating pads out of a VERY bright hawaian (? spell check isn't helping here) shirt I bought for 50 cents at a Good will store. Cut some large squares, sew up 3 sides, fill with corn, sew closed. Put the heating pad in the microwave for about 4 minutes. (I put about 1 - 1.5 pounds of corn in the bags).  Those printed T-shirts that are cute, but you don't wanna wear?  Sew them up and make a pillow - for you or your dog.

As Terri says, practice at home first.

Another vote for the green charger from KV Vet.  It only needs 2 D batteries unlike some others that require 4.  But remove the batteries when not using it to save them. 

I bought the step in posts and poly tape from Jeffers.com and am still using some of the same posts 13 years later, though I have added more occassionally.  I'm also using the same roll of tape and keep it on an orange extension cord holder (about $6 from Home Depot).  I use a copper pipe (also from HDepot) as the ground pole and yes you do need to pour some water by it if it's dry to get a good ground.

Thank you all for your suggestions!... I've picked up posts and will get some tape next time I go to the tack store..I go to H Depot pretty much 3X a week, so it's not problem to pick up a elec cord spool.. I'm having fun putting it all together...

Yes, I will try the corral out at home before using it.. My mare can be a bit silly, so I want to be sure she doesn't freak and run thru the fence...With her goofy self, she'll probably stay in the middle of the enclosure (after being shocked once) to be sure the fence doesn't "jump out and bite her"!!.. I plan to overkill on the containment system and have a hi-line set as well as the elec corral... maybe a hi-tie too.......(I like stuff, can you tell?)  I'd better start trying for the lotto!!!

Leslie

I am in the process of putting together a corral kit.  I have the 1/2" tape, spool to keep it on and some step in posts.  Question......... Yellow Jacket charger or the Green one, Trail? ( shaped like a large egg)    How do you set up the gate?  Do you use tent ties on the corner posts?  Thanks....... Lindsay

Hi - when I used the temp corrals, I just made the distance between posts for the gate about 3' instead of the typical 8' between posts.  I did not have any problems with the posts sagging, but then I did not pull the fence tape super tight either.  It was secure and did not sag, but was not really tight either.  I also used the yellow jacket charger which uses 4 batteries.  I still take it with me to endurance rides, but almost always use my aluminum portable corral instead.  I can add space with for daytime grazing with the electric fence if I want to.  A friend borrowed the fence charger at the last ride, to add height to the steel portable corral for 2 stallions.  Once touch of that fence and they did not do it again!  I had no idea those charges were so powerful, but you could hear it snap when one of them tested it! 

I love the idea of using an old pair of jeans for the fence post bag.  And the can for the electric tape... that is always a mess when I wind it up.  And, I never thought of it until reading it on this forum, but setting a one gallon jug full of water with a tiny hole to drip down along your ground pole will help keep that ground intact.  Great ideas from everybody!

I have one of the electric fence "spring" gates.  http://www.kencove.com/fence/Spring+Gates_detail_GSSL.php 

 I cut it down to the size I wanted.  Works great and has a handle on it.  I got it from a local feed store.  I also put the charger on the "connect" side of the gate so when I unhook the gate the gate isn't hot and shorting out the rest of the fence if it touches the ground.

Teri,  Good idea about putting the charger on the conect side of the gate.  Can you use this type of handle with the electric tape?  Can it be cut down to a 4 foot size?