Sorry for yet another fencing thread, I couldn’t find anything quite along this topic.
Has anyone mixed fencing materials? Like say, wood posts, wood top rail, and then electric tape for the bottom rails? Looking at the cost of something like that as opposed to full 4 board fence. I have actually always really liked the look of the no climb with top wood board, but I don’t love the idea of actually having the no climb fence.
Yup! I have a section of paddock (the dry lot) that has wooden posts, a top wood rail, and three strands of electric tape. The wood rail is outside of the top tape section. It looks nice and provides an additional physical barrier if the power goes out. But the two draft boys are actually held in by the tape: no feet or chests on the tape! Drafts Lean on things. But the added security of the wood board.
I also can tie to the wooden board, which is handy. Obviously the electric fence is off if I am doing that.
I am working on one now that has 4x4 posts and 2x4 rails (2) at the front, and the rest will be t-posts and electric tape. I plan to run a couple of lines of electric along the top of the wood rails to keep them nice, but I think it’s going to work out pretty slick. We’ll see when I add horses - specifically the 2-year-old. 
I’d bet you can find someone somewhere that’s combined just about any type of fencing you can think of.
Why don’t you love the idea of having no climb fence? No climb is the bomb, if you can afford it.
When I have a farm again, no matter what type of “solid” fencing I have, every single bit of it will be electrified.
@mmeqcenter the thought of stretching it makes me want to cry. And having to weed whack along the bottom everywhere, ugh.
Agree! My no climb is just a touch too close to the ground and week whacking is a giant pain!
I don’t have no climb fence, but alot of people do, but most of them I know spray the grass right along the edge of the fence with a grass killer product. I don’t have no climb fence but I do the same around my posts, in about a 4 inch area, to avoid having to weed eat right up against it and chew up the post. And I use a soil sterilizer as well, so I only have to spray once a year.
I have decent size pastures though, so my horses are not eating right up against that I worry they eat grass I’ve sprayed, and I usually also wait a rain or two after spraying, before I use that field again.
We have our sacrifice gravel paddock fenced in diamond-v mesh on cedar posts with a 2x6 top board. A small section of the paddock - right off the barn to which the stalls open directly - has two rows of the 2x6 boards at the top, as this area can be separated from the rest of the paddock, forming a corral. This allows us to restrict access to the greater part of the paddock in case of very inclement weather, while still giving the horses some turnout space, and we figured there would therefore be more pressure on this part of the fence.
Once in a while (not often, maybe a time or two annually), we spray a little weedkiller along the bottom of the fenceline. We keep the horses away from the area when we do this, and for some time afterwards. More often (still not that frequently) we use a string trimmer mower on the outside of the paddock fence.
We would do the same fence again. It was relatively expensive, but has been worth it, IMO.
I have a portion of my paddocks that is wood posts, no climb with a top board and in some places a strand of electric tape across the top.
I have lots of fencing that is three board wood (wood posts) with a strand of electric tape at the top and another just above the bottom board (so they do not stick their head thru to graze).
You truly can combine things however you want, to make it best work for your horses and your property.
I have black, round steel posts (the ones for chain link fending) with no climb or woven wire— depending on the field size— with a round black metal top rail. It’s classy, sturdy, and easy to put up and repair. But I hear you on stretching no climb!! Awful!! The right tools help as does good help. We do weed eat under the wire but a quick strip of weed spray makes it look better.
Well, the best photo I have is below. It isn’t the prettiest, not the 3 strand section, and has a gap in it as you can see… And not what we have since created which is a top rail of 1"x6". Actually, it is the oldest area, it sorted of started accidentally, I needed to be able to tie to the fence line…very redneck! Because of that, the boards are on the outside of the fence, so if they pull on the board they pull In on the screws. Ideally, you want them pushing in the screws of a board fence. But, it makes a great visual barrier for the horses and it keeps people off as well.
The front rails are 12’ and the t-posts we did at 15’.
I boarded at a farm that did what you describe, OP. Wood posts, board on top, two strands of electric tape below. It was fine. No complaints.
We rented a farm with older four board fencing. I always thought four board fencing was the gold standard. I had worked on and boarded at plenty of farms with it, so I thought I was well experienced with it. But I had more maintenance and more injuries on that farm than I have had anywhere else.
Now I have coated high tensile wire. The phrase “high tensile wire” makes me cringe, but I’ve been impressed with the coated stuff. It’s safe, it looks nice, it’s pretty easy to deal with, and it’s very economical. Many people put a wood or PVC board on top.
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