Fences need to be in the best possible condition all year round so as to provide the essential support, security and boundary requirements expected of them. If you live on a farm for instance, it is important that any fencing installations are well maintained to protect farm animals and crops.

For many farmers, keeping livestock safe and secure is a huge priority. If a fence has sustained damage, cracked or lost its solidity, animals could potentially attempt to leave their enclosure and enter more hostile territory, such as a busy road, which can put them in serious danger. Here’s what to do to ensure your gates and fences are as sturdy as ever all year round.

Wire Fencing – Tightening and Splicing

Wire fencing often needs to be mended, spliced or tightened so it’s useful to equip yourself with the tools required to carry out these repair works. Fence stretchers are an excellent choice if you’re looking to tighten your wire fencing installation, although any claw hammer can also do the job pretty well.

Wires may also come loose after a while and this would require a splicing job to repair. Splicing is the process of weaving wires together to form a stronger and more durable fixture. If the wire fence is broken, you may need to get hold of more wire to carry out the splicing job and improve the durability of the fence. The additional wire materials makes it easier to loop around each end of the broken wire.

To make the splicing process as easy as possible, make a loop in one end of the broken wire and send the new wire through this loophole. Use a claw hammer to anchor the loose end and twist the hammer around to tighten. You can then untwist the hammer and leave the wire as tight as you’d like it. To make sure wire fencing is not likely to cause grazes or injuries to your livestock, wrap the other end of the wire around itself.

Scraping Wooden & Metal Gates

Over time, a wooden or metal gate can lose its solidity and eventually start sagging or scraping the floor each time you open and close it. Gate posts need to be as sturdy as possible to prevent a gate fixture from sagging. You will usually have to rely on concrete to reinforce gate posts as any other fixture will almost certainly deteriorate over time. Frost is one of many elemental factors that cause gate posts to lose their strength.

To fix this problem, try putting a small wheel underneath the moving end of the scraping gate. The wheel acts as support and prevents any further sagging, making the open and closing mechanism much smoother. Any kind of wheel would work for this purposes, including wheelbarrow tires which can be bolted to the uprights of a wooden gate post.

Fixing a Gate Latch

Many farm gates utilise latches as a means of securing pens and pastures, with many of these latches working with a handle. There are many types of latches available depending on the shape and size of the gate fixture, although most of these latches will incorporate a metal prong that inserts into a hole in the post opposite.

You will then pull the latch to unfasten and open the gate. When gate posts are well solidified by concrete, they tend to work effectively for many years. However, moving posts or posts that shift over time may no longer be able to reach the latch, making securing a gate a little more problematic.

There’s an easy way to fix this problem and it involves installing two small poles either side of the latch hole on a gate post. This new mechanism catches the metal latch when the gate is closed, creating a new reliable and secure closing system for your gate. This is a really simple alternative to resetting posts or rehanging gates.

It’s important to identify the and determine the location and purpose of your fence before installing or repairing, as you may even require a complete reinstallation of a new type of fence to guarantee protection of your livestock. Choose a material that suits the needs of your livestock, with wire fencing, barriers, metal fences and wooden fences all better suited to specific animals. Plants can be supported with lattice fences or post and rail fences.

Author Bio: Article provided by Mike of QIM, a fence & gate furniture specialist based in South Yorkshire for almost 30 years.