Question for this group: I have some lengthy fence Iines that need to be cleared of brush and small trees in order to repair and replace fencing. It’s 2000+ feet. What kind of contractor/servicer am I looking for? I am not even sure what to google. Thanks in advance!
Fencing company, those that build fences?
My fencing company guy does not want to do the clearing, but can do the repairs and replacing…
Check with other fencing companies, see what they offer?
Here fencing companies have or rent machinery as needed to clear and prepare ground for fences, etc.
I used our bulldozer to clear a road on both sides of the fences so we could access them, especially in the canyons.
Some here use an airplane to spray along fence lines to keep brush from growing up in them.
Not sure where you are and what kind of vegetation you are trying to clear from your fence?
Ours is mostly mesquite bushes and trees and cholla cacti.
Tell us more, region, what is growing in these fences?
Boy Scouts?
or landscapers…this is a slow time period for them they may being looking for a short term filler job.
as a note we used a lawn irrigation company to run 1600 feet of water lines during the winter…they had all the equipment and piping all I needed to get were the four hydrants …but it was the slow time of the year for them …they did the work in one day
Midwest, with some invasive multifloral rose, blackberry bushes, vines, and a variety of small deciduous trees. There is old woven wire fencing that needs to be pulled out which is close to much larger trees, and then we will probably do board fencing along the larger treeline. The brush is thick enough that it’s kept the horses off the old fencing, which is nice, but the brush is encroaching too far into the pastures, and the older fence is needs some work or replacement. Right now, you can’t get to it effectively (or to the larger trees) because of the brush and small trees.
Maybe call your electric company and ask them who is their subcontractor that clears lines for them?
That sub may look at what you have, or know who to call where you are?
Here in the South, we have guys who advertise online and at feed stores, farm stores, etc. for bush hogging and land clearing. Many will use a combination of tractors, bush hogs, backhoes, and skid steers with special attachments. A neighbor just had their farm of 176 acres done to the tune of $160 per hour. Not inexpensive, but highly effective!
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You need one of these: https://www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9&v=AJyLR01HIgY
Call around to equipment rental places near you and see if they rent them or something like them. My tenant rented a similar device when he put up about 1500’ of barbed wire fence for his cattle. IIRC it was $450 for a weekend. And that’s all he needed it for.
G.
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People in my area said to bulldoze away the fence & plants, then install new fence.
I used hot wire and had my ponies clear up most of my fencelines & I then went through it with a chainsaw & cutters to clear the rest.
But mine didn’t have sections where the horses could escape.
Have not seen one of those before, way to go, that does it.
Just don’t get wire wrapped in that, oh, my.
I bet it is a chore to get it unwound and fix all that wire broke, ouch!
That Youtube video was amazing!
The sheer variety of implements out there is incredible, isn’t it?
@Bending Line You want a land-clearing contractor to bulldoze the fenceline, pile and burn it to get rid of the woody stuff, then dig a hole to push the old wire in and bury it. They’ll have a skidsteer attachment that can pinch off the tree trunks at the base.
Woods/overgrown areas that look completely impenetrable and impossible to us is child’s play to these guys.
- If you hire someone to pull out the woven wire, or even if you don’t ------digging a hole to bury it, is just what the environment needs. Especially if it starts working its way up to the surface over time and traps an animal ------
We had to hire a junk dealer to go up on the ridge, then somehow get down in the deep gorge and pull out wire, stoves, refrigerators – just anything the previous land owners thought was ok to dump back there, and haul it out. They made two trips with a big trailer plus filling their truck and still didn’t get the really small stuff. We had to fence it off from the horses. Yes, just dig a hole and bury wire when there are scrap metal places that will take it -----
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We bought and rented equipment, plus hired a couple of farm kids who work with DH to help us clear fences that was more than 2,000 feet. We have tractors and a couple of trailers. We piled brush and cut up trees, (NOT TIRES) onto the trailers, hauled that stuff clear to the other side of the farm to where the fire department could get to it, donated a $100 to them, and let them set it on fire for practice. They would have done it for free but ours is an all volunteer department and could use the money.
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I agree to call the equipment rental places, plus look in your local newspaper for people who do this kind of work. You could look on the bulletin board in Tractor Supply or other farm stores, the lumber companies. I would avoid CL.
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Lots of salvage yards won’t take woven wire fence unless it’s cut into small pieces, otherwise it damages their equipment. If you’ve got other scrap metal (as in your situation), the hauler may take the wire too, but chances are the wire’s going to the dump, not to a salvage yard.
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Consider FB marketplace with a request for references. I’ve had good luck (new to area) finding smaller guys willing to do smaller jobs (this, install short run of gutter, etc). 2000 feet isn’t that much.
I agree you need someone with a forestry mulcher attachment. I found a guy skilled at using his and he cleared off an acre of similar scrub in 90 minutes. It was amazing and terrifying. I’d be nervous to rent one unless you have some experience.
We have one. It is a beast of a machine. My, very handy and equipment wise, 18 yo son uses it around our property. It can get a tremendous amount of small brush cleared in a short period of time.
It is a HEAVY attachment for a HEAVY piece of equipment!! You will need at least a 250/2500 to tow it and a heavy duty equipment trailer.
As another posted, stay clear of the fencing. Getting it hung up in their would be a pain to get out!
You may find that an excavating or landscaping company may be who you need to call to get a quote for the job. It is a small job, so the pricing might be high for what you think you should pay. You need to realize they will lose a part of or a whole day dropping off equipment on the front end of the job and the same when they leave.
In the past we have used a guy that works weekends to make extra money. He has a loader with a 4 in 1 bucket. He can push over, move trees and make a small burn pile with the one piece of equipment. He can use it to do simple earth movement as well. If he needs to, he can bring a track hoe to do bigger trees and make a taller more compact burn pile.
With different contractors doing different work and using heavy equipment, we’ve gotten quotes from $80-$120 dollars an hour. The hours were kept by the hours on the equipment. It was noted what the hours read before the job started and what they were at when the job was completed. All of the contractors were able to give us very good ideas on how much time it would take.
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Wow @purlsnponies , very nice.
@jawa That’s a great point about understanding / accepting that the price may seem high for a small job. Their cost to mobilize / demob equipment is high, and there’s also opportunity cost – the whole time they’re doing your job, that means they’re not available to do a larger more profitable one.
We’ve cultivated a few good contractors that we can now rely on, by being flexible about timing, so they can just squeeze us in between jobs; paying in cash the day they do the work; and putting up good Google reviews for them.
We had a lengthy section of fence in a similar state of disrepair. We hired a contractor to build a brand new fence several feet away from the bad fence. When that was done, he came back with a small dozer and removed the old fence. Then we contracted with a lawn care company to weedeat the new fence and keep it looking good. It’s been two years and it still looks great.
