We just about have our fence complete. Once this is done, some day next week, I will be electrifing it. It is a 4 foot field fence on wood posts with an electric wire on top and on each side of the bottom, couple inches from the ground. This should keep dogs from climbing over or digging under.

Total length of the electric wire is aproximately 7000 feet. I want a fence controller that will burn through weeds that happen to come up. But such controller is going to put out 11k volts.

What is too much for a dog? I know it's the amps that really kill but 11k volts sounds like an awful lot.

Thanks for any input.

Hi Ron,

We also have an electric fence...with the wire on the outside of the fence to deter deer. It isn't for our dog. Our fence is 7000 volts but the amps are miniscule so it can't kill our dog, the deer, or kids. My fiancee is an electrical contractor and he installed the fence and tested it on himself. It hurts and it will surprise anything or anyone who brushes up against it but that's all it does. My dog brushed up against it by accident one day in the front yard and he yelped but he recovered immediately after.

You are indeed correct that high amps will kill you (or the dog).

Another thing: My fiancee made sure the electrical current was a pulse, and not constant. Does that make sense? We have tall grass and with a pulsing current there is no risk of fire.

He could probably explain this better but I hope this helps.

Thanks Sarah. I will also be using a unit that pulses. I think I will be using a meter to test mine. Don't care to test it on myself.

i'm not certain, but i'm pretty sure a constant-current electric fence is illegal in most places, they're almost always the pulse variety.

ron: if you're in good health you could touch it to test it, it's just a good idea (like anything that might be "hot") to touch it with the *backs* of your fingers. the reason is that electrical current has a tendency to make muscles contract. the muscles that cause you to make a fist are in most people stronger than the muscles that flatten your hand out. touching with the inside of your fingers might make you inadvertantly grab the wire. unlikely to be a *huge* issue with an e-fence, but it's just good practice anyway. you will find the experience unpleasant regardless, but yeah.

11k volts isn't that much really either, compared to other things. it's about what you'd find floating around the back of the picture tube on a good size TV - and it's between 10% and 50% of what your average stun gun puts out, but keep in mind that a stun gun is a much much faster pulse, and that's why it has a different effect.

one last thing, rest assured that in my experience even the dumbest dogs and cats only touch it a couple times before they get the message. if you ever have some drunken idiot peeing on your fence, he'll sober up pretty quick too.

hrm, this post turned out longer than i thought it would, so i'll stop here.