DEER FENCE INSTALLATION: PREPARATION
PREPARATION Having a barrier deer control fence installed by professional deer fence installers is costly. Therefore, those who do not have deep pockets, or who have workers willing to take on the job, are well advised to consider merely getting professional guidance while doing the job themselves or having it done by their own people. Professional Advice, Instruction, and Installation For those who do not wish to go it entirely alone, we provide a full range of consultative, teaching, and installation services. Our customer service desk is of course available to provide information about products and informal guidance on installation during the hours from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. EST, Monday through Friday. Beyond that, we work closely with the Deer DeFence Company, an installation firm with long experience in this field. For a small fee, Deer DeFence will provide professional consultation by telephone for customers nationwide. We can also arrange through Deer DeFence and other professionals for on-site visits and/or installation in most of the New England and Middle Atlantic region. In addition, for landscapers and other professionals seeking hands-on instruction in metal hexagrid and other deer fence installation, we can arrange for workshop instruction sessions tailored to your needs. Those interested in any of these services may contact us by telephone (508-888-8305), fax (508-888-0272), or e-mail for advice or an appropriate referral. It’s just common sense that people installing a barrier fence for deer control should come prepared for reasonably rough outside work. (One person can do the job, but two-man teams are best). They should wear work gloves, tough shirts with long sleeves, and (if the weather permits) jackets with long sleeves-preferably ones made of leather. The list of tools needed is reasonably short–a string and some small stakes to mark the deer control fence line; tin snips (preferably scissor-nosed) if one is installing metal fence; a brush king, pruner or other clearing equipment if brush or low branches must be cleared, and also for cutting a two-foot swath all the way to the ground; a post-hole digger, spade, and mattock if post holes are to be dug; a fenceman’s hammer with a corrugated face that won’t bounce off u-nails; and some optional equipment: a hand-held post driver (item 15-05) for installing metal posts; a gripple tensioner (item 16-04) for tightening cables; a puller/cutter (item 17-08) for use with zip-lock ties; a Stanley hog-ringer ( item 17-09) for use with hog-ring staples; a crimping tool (item 16-06) if oval metal sleeves are being used; and cement-related equipment if cement footings are being poured. Start by laying out the deer fence line with a string and small stakes. The finished deer control fence should have 6 feet of brush and vegetation cleared on either side of it; so if the fence must run through brush, bushes, or low trees, it pays to do this clearing before the deer fence is installed. Clear the brush with a brush king, pruner, or other equipment down to a height of a foot or so, and cut to the ground anything heavy within a foot of the deer control fence line, so that a mower can go over it. Then mow the ground within a foot on either side of the fence line, so that a two-foot swath is cleared all the way to the ground. Order of Fence Component Installation Plan to install the main components of your fence in the following order: (1) Set the posts (including corner posts, corner braces, end braces, and earth anchors). (2) Attach the monofilament line that runs along the top of the fencing (needed for all but short runs of polypropylene fencing). If you are installing a metal hexagrid fence, install four runs of monofilament at heights of 5.5, 6, 6.5, and 7 feet. (3) Attach a length of fencing to the monofilament line and supporting posts and trees, section by section, making adjustments for grade changes as needed. Be sure to leave enough fence at the bottom to allow for a six-inch bottom flap. (4) Secure the fence bottom with ground stakes. (5) Install gates and attach warning flags. |
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McGregor Fence Co. 508-888-8305