How to Fix a Broken Electric Fence

Electric fences are economical and effective, but they do require some maintenance. There are two lights on a fence charger--one represents the outgoing current and lets you know the charger is on and working, and the other signifies the charge coming back to the charger. If the second light is not coming on or is very weak, you will need to spend some time checking and fixing your fence.

Things You'll Need

  • Hammer
  • Nails
  • Barbed fencing staples
  • High-tensile wire
  • Tube insulators
  • Insulators
  • Crimping sleeve
  • Crimping tool
  • Weed trimmer
  • Weed killer
Show More

Instructions

    • 1

      Check the wires to be sure they are still intact. It is common for deer or livestock to run through a wire and pull it down. If you find a wire broken or pulled loose from the posts, you will have to mend it. If you must connect live wires back to the post, nail an insulator to the post and connect the wire to the insulator, or slide a tubular insulator over the wire and staple the wire to the fence (not too tightly or the wire will not slide through to tighten). If you need to create a splice, slide both pieces of wire through a crimping sleeve and crimp it tightly with a crimping tool, otherwise known as fencing pliers.

    • 2

      Keep brush away from your wire by using a weed trimmer or spraying weed killer along the fence line. This will keep your fence from malfunctioning.

    • 3

      Examine the grounding rod and make sure the ground wire is well-connected to the charger to the ground rod. Not properly grounding the charger will prevent it from working correctly.

    • 4

      Tighten any loose wires. The fence should have wire strainer (tightener) in it already. Some require a special tool to turn it, some need pliers and others can be turned by hand to tighten the wire.

    • 5

      Clean the solar panel of the charger--if it is solar-powered--and make sure it faces into the sunlight (south if you are in the Northern Hemisphere). It is rare, but possible, that many consecutive cloudy days have left the charger unable to regain charge. Turn it off until it charges completely.

    • 6

      Use an electric fence tester to test the amount of voltage coming through the fence. If you have done the above steps and are not getting a decent charge, you may need to replace the fence charger.