Electric Rope Fencing and T-Post Sleeve Help Needed

[Bosspaige]

I am fencing in a little over an acre and am hoping I can get some recommendations on fencing. I have to put in T-Posts because of the rocks (I live in CT). I think I am going to do T-Post sleeves and electric rope fencing. At my old farm I had the 1 1/2" tape and in the winter with the snow and the wind, it would often sag. Can anyone give me recommendations on their favorite T-Post full sleeves, and electric rope? It seems like Electrobraid is far more expensive then other braided ropes…Is it really that much better?

Any opinions on white or black?

I was looking at these covers because it would save me screwing 4 insulators per post times 75 posts. Does anyone have any experience with these?

https://www.centaurdirect.com/t-sleevecovers25pack54inchtall.aspx

Or there are the standard square ones which will require insulators

https://www.statelinetack.com/item/safe-fence-vinyl-sleeve-for-steel-t-post/BXJ20/

Thanks for your help!!

[moving_to_dc]

I have the Centaur sleeves with Premier1 polywire and HorseGaurd tape. Using a Dremel, I cut slits in the wire spacing grid to feed the tape thru. I like the way the sleeves look, but the “Safety Clips” to hold the polywire are a bit of a PITA. The slits I cut for the tape work fine, but if one ever breaks, I am screwed and won’t be able to hold the tape neatly on the post. I am sure I could cob it together with zip ties, but I like things to look NICE. I bought the Centaur sleeves on clearance at a local feed store, otherwise I would NOT have paid that much for them!

I have a friend who is a plumber, and he laughed at me when I told him I would be buying T-post sleeves. He actually called his commercial plumbing supplier, and had an invoice written up for me to prove the cost difference. The round sleeves are nothing more than PVC pipe, cut to length and marked up in price to market to naïve horse owners. A 10’ section of the same PVC was about $2 and gave me two 5’ sleeves. I had to buy insulators and end caps, but I still saved a BUNCH (~$500) to put sleeves on a 1-acre pasture.

The GOOD thing about the insulators that you have to screw in, is that you can EASILY replace one when it breaks, and they WILL break. Built-in insulators cannot be easily or cleanly replaced.

[gahorseygal]

Just get timeless posts. Saves having to get a tpost and a cover. We love ours and they install just like a tpost. https://timelessfencesystem.com/

[Qhtrlrdr]

@gahorseygal

Just get timeless posts.

. I was going to make the exact same suggestion. I have no experience with them but they look really nice.

[gahorseygal]

I could not find many people with personal experience but we took a chance and bought them. We are about to buy more to fence another pasture. Their customer service is wonderful.

The only con I have is that in wet weather, our horses have leaned through the fence (coated wire, not electrified) and have almost pulled two out of the ground. I’ve used a mallet to hit them back down. That section of fence needed to be tightened, and we could avoid completely if we electrified two strands. But we have two small children and are not comfortable electrifying it. So I just know to keep an eye on that area when it rains. Side note - we have had an extremely unusual wet winter. We have had zero issues in another area where they lean through that does not get as wet. So I would not say this is a common issue.

[Guilherme]

@gahorseygal

Just get timeless posts. Saves having to get a tpost and a cover. We love ours and they install just like a tpost. https://timelessfencesystem.com/

These are interesting. But, some questions.

The 1.75", 6.5’ posts go for $9.08 (plus shipping, I would guess). That’s just short of 3x the cost of a good t-post and three insulators. You’ll still need a “cap.” What are the pros that would justify this cost premium?

There was not a picture of the an entire post that I could find on the website. I suspect we’ve all seen the bottom of a standard t-post. What does the bottom of this one look like?

These are plastic coated, yes? If so what happens when you drive them? Does the plastic take the “gaff” of a post driver or is it damaged?

Looks like installation would be passing the rope through the hols in the posts. A fence that is really tight when subjected to movement from wind or other source won’t move much. But if it “works” a bit loose then wind will be able to move the rope and it will “wear” against the edge of the hole. Is there any protection for this on the edge of the hole (a washer, insert, etc.)?

How does the plastic handle the stress of the post being pulled by “puller,” chain and FEL, etc.?

If the coating is broken for any reason what does the maker recommend for repair?

I can see some real operational advantages for these but the are pricey and there has to be some significant “delta” in advantages to justify the costs.

G.

[Bosspaige]

Thank you gahorseygal. I had not seen these. I had many of the same questions as Guilherme. If you have some time, can you let us know your thoughts? Thanks so much!!

[Qhtrlrdr]

Made from Recycled Materials: Timeless Fence Posts are an eco-friendly and cost-effective alternative to traditional steel t-posts and wood posts widely used in farming, ranching, landscaping, gardening and animal control.
Self Insulating: Ideal for installing electric wire - no insulators needed. High-Tensile wire and electric braid can be threaded directly through the post for an extremely strong, virtually maintenance-free fence.
Easy to Install: Farmers and ranchers across the U.S.A. and around the world have found that Timeless Fence is easy to install. Posts are pre-drilled every three inches eliminate the need for insulators to greatly reduce cost and time of installation.
Strong Yet Flexible: Timeless Fence posts absorb impact and bounce back, making it all but impossible to break under normal use. NEVER Rusts or Rots: Replace wood and steel posts once with the Timeless Fence System and use your extra time on productive tasks - not fence repair.
Lasting Beauty: You’ll be proud to see this good looking fence along your property. The satin-like finish on these posts maintains its new look for many years.
Guaranteed: Timeless Fencing posts come with a lifetime limited warranty against defects in materials and workmanship and a 20 year guarantee on white UV coating. The actual life expectancy of this product is greater than five times the guaranteed life.
Versatility: Many farmers who raise cattle choose barbed wire simply because “old fashioned” electric fencing on steel posts is easily shorted out. Made from non-conducting PVC plastic, (with no breakable insulators needed) Timeless Fence makes frustrating charging problems a thing of the past.

[neversaynever]

@Guilherme Timeless fence is manufactured in Greenville, TN just north of Knoxville. If you call them, they would probably be glad to answer any questions. Some of the co-ops (Maryville) carry them.

We put it some timeless fence with electric polywire. Went in easily with a post pounder. We did drill some pilot holes first as recommended. For changes in elevation, corners and gates, they have bracing systems or you can use wood posts for extra support. The end that goes in the ground is pointed similar to a t-post. It is less expensive then t-posts with sleeves and you don’t need insulators. We’ve had it up over a year and have had no problems.

https://timelessfencesystem.com/

[Guilherme]

@neversaynever

@Guilherme Timeless fence is manufactured in Greenville, TN just north of Knoxville. If you call them, they would probably be glad to answer any questions. Some of the co-ops (Maryville) carry them.

We put it some timeless fence with electric polywire. Went in easily with a post pounder. We did drill some pilot holes first as recommended. For changes in elevation, corners and gates, they have bracing systems or you can use wood posts for extra support. The end that goes in the ground is pointed similar to a t-post. It is less expensive then t-posts with sleeves and you don’t need insulators. We’ve had it up over a year and have had no problems.

https://timelessfencesystem.com/

Thank you for the information.

Last time I used plastic fence posts they were made of recycled plastic, needed to be set as wood posts, and were a complete failure after a couple of years. I guess I’m a bit skeptical.

Actually, I’m not that far from Greenville. I might take a ride over and see.

G.

[AlteredHalter]

Electrobraid is more expensive than other rope electric fencing, but totally worth it in my book. It is much smoother than the cheaper ones, so if you do get a horse that runs into it or through it, it’ll barely ruffle their hair. Make sure it is installed TIGHT like they suggest. Electrobraid has some give to it, and is meant to be tensioned. I wouldn’t have anything else at this point. I’ve been using it for more than 10 years–first on rented farms and pastures, and now on my own place.

[clanter]

@gahorseygal

The only con I have is that in wet weather, our horses have leaned through the fence (coated wire, not electrified) and have almost pulled two out of the ground. I’ve used a mallet to hit them back down. That section of fence needed to be tightened, and we could avoid completely if we electrified two strands. But we have two small children and are not comfortable electrifying it. e.

We have one section of braided electric fence… the horses first go to the electric fence charger to listen to it …no click, click…power not on… eat through fence… Click Click stay away

also we noticed the horses use the pony as fence tester, push pony into fence… if not electrocuted then its OK to eat through fence

[longlanefarm]

I have black Electrobraid in my small pasture and brown HorseGuard in my large pasture. I read some horror stories about Electrobraid injuries and it scared me out of buying it again. The black is also VERY hard to see (for me, not sure about for the horses). I LOVE my HorseGuard fence (brown tape) and will use it for any future pasture. Surprisingly, brown tape is way more visible than black rope. FWIW, they claim that horses see “natural colors” (brown, green…) better than black or white or even a bright color like orange. I will say that the Electrobraid has held up very well even with taking it down at our old property and reusing at the new property. We had a few areas cut or chewed through(?) but spliced them together and works just the same. Both fences have not sagged or anything with wind/snow and I am not good about my yearly tightenings. In my opinion, the HorseGuard looks the nicest and is the safest. They’re both easy installs.

[4horses]

Could you get two colors- top strand black, middle strand white? White is easier to see in the dark, black shows up better in snow.

i prefer polytape. If you put in real fence posts in the corners and tighten it appropriately, it shouldn’t go slack.

[gahorseygal]

Qhtrlrdr answered a lot of the questions G brought up. But I will add that we use the timeless posts with regular round wood posts for corners, bracing, and shifts in direction. We also put in a single wood post in a spot where the elevation changed quite a bit.

[BMO]

I’ve enjoyed reading the comments and questions in this thread. I have worked for Timeless Fence since 2011 so of course I am biased. However, I would never recommend using insulators of any kind as its not a matter of if but when an insulator fails and causes problems. Much like anything in life you get what you pay for. The Timeless Posts when compared to the steel t-posts with PVC sleeves are much more economical and provide a similar look but with more versatility. The pre-drilled holes allow you to easily add additional wires later without any modifications to your fence. As for the question with Electrobraid, we work with a company called Horse Fence Direct who is one of the largest Electrobraid dealers in the U.S. Many people do not know that Electrobraid changed the core of the wire in recent years that dropped the breaking strength from close to 2,000 lbs to 600 but the price stayed the same. Horse Fence Direct has a braid they have developed that is cheaper than Electrobraid and stronger. If anyone is interested in getting a sample of the Timeless Fence System you can call Brad at 800-788-4709 or email me at bmoore@plastic-innovation.com. I can show you pictures of various installations and help you determine if this is a good fit for you. Thanks gahorseygal for sharing your feedback with our product.