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Whether you want to keep farm animals out of your garden or you want a simple boundary line for a swimming pool or between ranches, a woven wire fence is a good solution. While it is relatively easy to build this on your own, you may have a few challenges along the way. And you may be wondering how to stretch woven wire fence effectively so that it’s sturdy.
Stretching hundreds of feet of wire fence could seem like a daunting task, especially when taken up as a DIY project. Here is a step-by-step guide on how to build your own fence by stretching the wire from start to finish, complete with tips on finishing touches. Read on to learn more.
How to stretch woven wire fence
Things you need
The first step is to check whether you have all the tools required for building your own wire fence. If you have a partner in crime, it gets easier to do this. But just in case, even if you are doing this all by yourself, having the right tools could save some time. On that note, following are the tools you need to roll out and stretch woven wire fences.
1. You will also need a come-along and a stretcher bar to pull the fence.
2. You will need the right number of fence posts, as these are pretty much the backbone of the entire fencing system by supporting the wire fence. Placing the right number of posts and spacing them out well is key to achieving an effective outcome.
3. You will need the right amount of woven wire to get the job done. The correct length of the roll really depends on the area you wish to cover, however, here is a rough estimate.
For one acre of farmland, you would approximately need a 1000-feet roll to make a good wire fence. You can use some online fence calculators to have a fair idea of the type of fence you need, the length, the number of posts and so on.
4. A wire-twisting tool could also be very useful to twist the wire around itself when you are tying it to the posts. If not, a simple screwdriver should do the trick.
5. 2 wooden boards (1”X4”) of about 6-7 feet, 3 bolts and a wrench.
6. T-Post clips, approximately 5 clips per post.
Once you have these essential tools, you can begin rolling out and laying your wire fence.
Step 1. Rolling out your wire fence
The first step is to roll out your wire. Some people use the unroller that comes as a tractor attachment to get this done. If it is thousands of feet, you may need this, otherwise, for shorter fences, you can simply use a steel post to unroll the fence from. This will give you some leverage as you roll it out.
Lastly, for just a few feet of wire, it’s easy to just tie one end of the fence to a post and take the bundle along with you, unrolling it as you walk from one post to another and cutting the wires as needed. The length of the wire, and the weight of the bundle determine your option, and you may choose accordingly.
Step 2. Tying the wire to the first T-post
As you unroll a few feet of the wire, you are ready to tie it to the first T-post. Along the width of the wired fence, cut out the knot in each row so that you get a long piece of wire enough to wrap around the post. Usually, cutting about two-three knots should do the trick.
Now tie each piece of wire around the post and twist the loose end of the wire into itself. A wire twister will come in handy here. Once you are through with all the rows you have one end of the fence tied to the post. Now continue unrolling and tie the fence to each post in this manner.
Step 3. Stretching the wire
Once you have the fence rolled out across the posts, you need to stretch the fence to remove any slack out of the wire and make it as stiff and sturdy as possible, or else the purpose of fencing would be defeated.
If the fence gives way or is loose, it won’t be good at keeping away cattle or other animals. So if you are wondering how to stretch woven wire fence in an effective manner, here is a good method.
First take two pieces of 1”x 4” wooden boards of about 6 feet height. Put them together so they are stuck against each other. Now drill three holes across the length of the boards and put a bolt through each whole and tighten it with a nut. Now you have your own clamp ready. Sandwich the wire fence between these two boards and tighten the bolts. Now the fence is caught nice and tight inside the clamp.
Now stretch the fence a little more. Use a come-along and a stretcher bar to pull the fence and remove any slack from it. Once you have stretched out the wire as much as possible you can tie it to the post so that it’s stiff. Use the same technique across all posts to increase the tension in the wires and make the fence sturdy.
The clamp made from the wooden boards are useful because it will help you stretch the wire in an even manner as it holds the wire tight across its width, so you will be able to avoid any lousy or uneven stretching.
Step 4. Fastening T-post clips
Once you are through with stretching the wire fence, and wrapping the corners around the T-posts and twisting the wire into itself to hold it in place, your final step to finish off the job is fastening T-post clips.
This will help the wire to be attached to a post across the height of the post. You don’t want the wire fence to hang loose or be detached from the T-posts, hence the clips.
Space out the clips right from the bottom-most wire and use one clip per 3-4 rows of wire. So you may need roughly 4-5 clips per post. Simply loop in one end of the clip on either side of the post and twist it over the wire using the wire twister or a screwdriver. So now your wire is held in place and attached to the post with this clip.
Repeat this step for each post and you should have a fairly effective fence! These are some quick DIY tips on how to stretch woven wire fence and how to hold it in place. Try these right away.
FAQs on How to Stretch Woven Wire Fence
How do you stretch a field fence wire?
To stretch a field fence wire, you will need a wooden clamp made out of two wooden boards of 1”x4’. Drill three holes through the wooden pieces attached together and put a bolt in each whole to make your own clamp. Sandwich the fence between the boards, tighten the bolts and this will hold the wire in place as you stretch it and will also help you stretch it out evenly.
How do you pull a tight wire?
If you use a come-along with a stretcher bar, you will be able to pull a wire fence tight and tension the wire.
Takeaway
If you are wondering how to stretch woven wire fence, here is a quick set of tips. Use a clamp made out of two wooden 1”x4” wooden boards. Drill three holes through the two pieces across the length of the boards. Drive a bolt through the hole so that a clamp is ready.
Sandwich the wire fence between the boards and tighten the bolts. Now this clamp will hold the wire in place and help you stretch the fence evenly. Use a come-along and a stretcher bar to pull the fence and remove slack from it and then tie it to your T-posts.
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