Tapes, Ropes & Poly-Wires for Electric Fences

How can you make your fence escape-proof?

A fence for horses is considered escape-proof if it meets the following criteria:

• The fence forms a visual barrier
• The fence is at least 0.75 times the height of the horses at the withers
• The fence is durable and stable
• The fence carries a minimum voltage of 2,500 volts

An escape-proof fence is essential for the safety of horses and their surroundings. This is because every escape can result in accidents with serious consequences. Therefore, the primary focus of a fence is its functionality, even if some yard owners would prefer a more attractive fence.
The most important point is that the pasture fence is more of a visual barrier than an actual physical barrier for horses. In most cases, horses take the path of least resistance, so jumping over a high and clearly visible fence would cost them too much valuable energy. Therefore, the guideline of at least 0.75 times the withers height of the largest horse must be observed for posts and fence tapes/ropes. For stallions and showjumpers, we recommend setting the guideline even higher.
If you are building a mobile horse paddock and using narrow metal posts or plastic posts, you must create a visual barrier using tapes and ropes between the posts. Thin, colourless poly-wires alone are not sufficient, as they conduct electricity with low resistance but are hardly visible to the horse. There is a very high risk that horses will overlook the fence while galloping around and break through it.
In addition to the visual barrier, electricity should flow and have a minimum voltage of 2,500 volts at all points of the fence, and even 4,000 volts for horses with thick coats. This not only serves to protect the fence itself, for example in the case of permanent wooden fences as protection against chewing, but also prevents the horses from rubbing against the fence or testing whether the path to the other side is unobstructed. High conductivity and low resistance are necessary to ensure that the voltage can flow evenly through the entire fence. Tapes, ropes and poly-wires from Kramer are made from the highest quality materials, which have a resistance of less than 0.3 ohms per metre. This guarantees the best conductivity, provided that tall vegetation is kept to a minimum and the conductor materials are tensioned, for example with a fence tensioner from Kramer.

Finally, for an escape-proof fence, both the posts and the conductor material should be durable. Of course, materials can become brittle due to weathering and high sun exposure. Many of the tapes and poly-wires from Kramer come with a 3 to 5-year guarantee on UV resistance.

In the Kramer Equestrian online shop, you can purchase tapes, ropes and poly-wire suitable to the size of your field or turnout pen. The tapes from Kramer are not only highly visible to horses, but are also suitable for fence lengths up to 18,000m, where they still ensure good conductivity. The same applies to our tapes, ropes and poly-wire for fence lengths up to 10,000m, as well as for fence lengths up to 1,200m.
Want to calculate how many rolls of tape and rope you need to purchase? Then use our fence calculator to make your purchase easier.