The Fence Post

A Brief Lesson Before Stapling

Do you know how to use galvanized fence staples? I certainly didn’t. I didn’t realize there was anything to know.

Fence staples or u-nails as they are also called aren’t very complicated; however, there is a minimum amount of knowledge you should have to make sure the staples secure your fence in the way that they're intended to be. Being one whose staple knowledge was insufficient to use them, I consulted an expert who kindly took the time to educate me. Steven Sarson (watch his video about Low Carbon Wire vs High Tensile Wire) of Bekaert has many years of experience in the fencing industry and sent me an email that was very informative and I’ve included it in its entirety below.

Here is Steve's letter:

Josh,

Here are my general ideas on stapling wire to posts:

Smooth wire electric – Loose staple every wire. Keep spaces consistent by using a measuring stick with spaces marked on it. Start from the bottom when stapling. Most animals will go under the fence rather than over.

Barbed Wire – Loose staple every wire. Use a measuring stick. Mark the wire positions. I prefer to start at the top when installing multiple strands of barbed wire so successive wires don’t get hung up.

Woven Wire – Always loose staple the wires. Wire expands and contracts with temperature change and also needs to be free to move under the staple so the brace takes the impact and not the stapled post. Here is the pattern I use: 

• High Tensile field fence (Fixed Knot, Hinge joint) – Loose staple the bottom two wires, every wire after that, and the top wire. In the bottom of a dip and at the crown of a rise, staple every wire to maintain spacing as the wire goes up and down.
• Horse Fence and Low Carbon Field Fence – Typically, I loose staple every wire due to the elongation of LC wire. The staples are needed to hold it up.

These guidelines are by no means meant to be an official standard but are a guide to what I’ve used over the years.

Thanks,

Steven  

Great stuff Steven! Honestly, I would have pounded the staples home if I followed my intuition. That way they would be secure. The loose staple concept was a revelation to me. Follow the same instruction for welded wire fencing materials. Now, here's a short video to reinforce the above information.

To those of you who are professionals, this is probably not news. Does anybody else have tips out there? We’d love to hear them.

A Few Guidelines for Installing your Wire Fence

First: Decisions

1. Determine the kind of fence you will need, based on the requirements of the application - the purposes and needs of your particular situation.
• You can choose from a wide variety of fences and meshes.
• Different heights, size, and spacing of mesh openings, finishes, and gauges of wire fence are available to fit every use.                                                                                                                                                
2. Establish where the corners and ends of the fence are to be located.                                                                     
3. Calculate the amount of fence and posts (end, corner and line posts) needed for the job. Don't forget to add any gates that are required to complete the project.
• Wood or studded T posts can be used to hang the fence.
• Figure line post spacing at 8 to 10 feet apart.

Next: Installation

1. Fence posts
• Make sure end, corner and gate posts are placed deeper in the ground than line posts for more holding power. Corners and ends may need bracing, depending on the type of fence used.
• Be sure to tamp and level wood posts before moving on to the next step.
• T posts can be driven into the ground using a manual post driver with handles. The driver eliminates the potentially dangerous use of an unwieldy sledgehammer.                                                                               
2. Attaching fence to posts                                                                                                                                   
•  Wood posts - galvanized slice-cut staples can be used. These are available in 3/4", 1", 1-1/4", 1-1/2", 1-3/4" and 2" sizes.
• Studded T posts - metal clips are provided with each post to securely hold the fence.                                       
3. Stretching the fence - the appropriate amount of tension depends on which mesh is used. Woven wire fencing, especially high-tension field and deer fences, requires a lot more tension than welded wire fences.