# Testing a Electric Bear Fence.



## EastSideBuzz (Apr 12, 2009)

Does anyone know what the settings should be to test an electric fence with this HF tester.?


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## Duncan151 (Aug 3, 2013)

From what I know from reading about electric fencing is that you should not test it with a multimeter, or you risk burning out the meter.


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## Tim KS (May 9, 2014)

Touch a grounded rod to the fence to see if jumps a spark.....or just touch it yourself and see if it keeps you out.  

The trouble with electric fences is that need a good ground to work good. A bear has lots of insulating hair that may keep them from getting the full charge.....unless you can get them to put their nose on it...


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## EastSideBuzz (Apr 12, 2009)

It is HF they come free with purchase. Just want to know what setting will show me the correct charges It is a throw away tester.


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## Rader Sidetrack (Nov 30, 2011)

There is no setting on the HF meter that will help you test an electric fence. You can buy a dedicated fence tester if you want.

I scrounged an old spark plug and mating ignition wire. I added a wire hook to one end of the ignition wire to hook to a ground. Touch the threaded base of the spark plug to the hot wire.

Set the plug gap to whatever you want. In bright sunlight the spark itself may be hard to see, but you should still be able to _hear _it. Keep your fingers clear!


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## Ledge (Dec 15, 2010)

I just grab mine with my right hand. It lets me know if it is working fairly quickly. I also have a 3 foot piece of 12 gauge insulated wire out of some romex that I stripped about an inch off each end. Stick one end in the earth, and slowly bring the other end of the hot wire. If you see a spark jump, its producing voltage,.


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## Rader Sidetrack (Nov 30, 2011)

> I just grab mine with my right hand.

OK, I can't resist asking ... what happens if you use your _*left *_hand? :lookout:


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## Ledge (Dec 15, 2010)

They told me in college not to do electrical stuff with my left hand, because the current would have a better chance of flowing through my heart and killing me. Not sure if it is 100% true or not, but why risk it! 0


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## Rader Sidetrack (Nov 30, 2011)

Perhaps you weren't paying close attention when they went over the part about not grabbing _live _wires?


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## rwurster (Oct 30, 2010)

They sell fence testers... They're pretty cheap but not as much fun as peeing on it :lpf:


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## EastSideBuzz (Apr 12, 2009)

OK. OK. I usually just put my leg against it and feel it. I wanted to know the amount it was producing. So I guess the meter is not the right way. I have 2 hots and one ground wire run and then it is grounded to the ground. I then put peanut butter on the fence to get them to lick it. Once they feal the fence they avoid the area when they have learned. problem is not teaching 1. It is teaching the 8 that live in the area. Just when you think you have taught one another one that you have not comes by. I will be getting some bear tags come August. They make great sausage. :banana:


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## rwurster (Oct 30, 2010)

I bait my fences too, it really helps. Only thing I don't like about bear meat is it's a bit greasy. I can deal with greasy  

:wiener: And they do make into good sausages :wiener:


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## Phoebee (Jan 29, 2014)

That little red meter has a maximum setting of 1000 V DC and 750 VAC RMS. No fence charger that I have seen the specs on puts out less than a 2500 V pulse, and the good ones are 7000 V and up. Plus, that meter has a "integration time" of around 1/3 second and the pulse the fence charger produces should be around 0.0003 seconds.

To get a hard number on what it is putting out, there are several options for fence testers sold where you get your fence charger stuff. Some have a series of lights, but the high-end ones are digital meters.

The only real way to see how effective one is on a bear is to hold a bear up against the fence and see how it reacts. Unfortunately, you might not live to write down the results.


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## dadandsonsbees (Jan 25, 2012)

A bear just got into my hives Saturday night. I am using my welder as an electric fence charger.
I ain't touching the wires on it! If the bear touches this I will have bear already defured and cooked.


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## Ledge (Dec 15, 2010)

That sounds like a liability waiting to happen.


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## Rader Sidetrack (Nov 30, 2011)

Electric welders are high current, but low voltage at the business end. It would be difficult to get _shocked _by a welder unless there is some serious malfunction in the line voltage side of the welder.

Consider the smilies in Dad's post. I took it to be a bit of sarcasm.


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## dadandsonsbees (Jan 25, 2012)

Who ME being sarcastic. NOT ME.


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## KPeacock (Jan 29, 2013)

it's not as hard to get shockled by a welder as you might think. When welding in the rain or on wet ground, it's not uncommon to get a little tickle now and again. with a wiring set up to promote a zappy good time, i wouldn't want to play. I'm sure its less than ideal, but sounds to me like a good way of making do with what you have untikl you can get what you want.


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## Andrew Dewey (Aug 23, 2005)

I use a Speedrite Digital Voltmeter. As I recall it cost me about $40 - those lights on the cheap units were driving me nuts.

I got 7.3KW on a fence I setup yesterday with a solar energizer. It is nice to know the voltage - some people place great weight on Joules - I want to know the KW.


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## Phoebee (Jan 29, 2014)

To nitpick, that would be 7 kV, not 7 kW. 

Do you have a Parmak 12? I think they put out that and higher, and can be run solar. My guestimate on their solar panel wattage level is about 15 W. 7 kW would be close to the max power output of my big propane generator. 

Yup, voltage is needed to zap past bear fur, and if you've got enough voltage you can probably skip that fence baiting step. Most solar fence chargers haven't got the juice to do this, and I doubt you'll find one that will deter a bear, regardless of the power source, for under $200.


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## mgstei1 (Jan 11, 2014)

Good insulated screw driver and a nearby ground will produce an arc on each pulse. Or a flourescent shop tube lamp with 1 end in ground and touching the fence charge wire. It will glow on each pulse.


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## mdax (Apr 29, 2013)

I went with a powerfields Nomad

Maker’s Specifications:

Power source: 12 volt battery, with or without solar panel
Coverage: Up to 60 acres
Peak stored energy: 1.7 joules
Peak output energy: 1.3 joules
Peak open circuit voltage: 11.5 kilovolts
Peak voltage with a 500 ohm load: 4.5 kilovolts

Just about to hook her back up after having to pull out the components for a flood. My tester shows it's performing well; I haven't accidentally brushed against it....yet.


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## Rader Sidetrack (Nov 30, 2011)

Interesting, the Nomad comes with a 'ground stand'. :scratch: http://www.powerfields.com/products/detail.php?product_id=29&pCat=&cat=218

May I suggests that you also employ an additional form of grounding. The traditional separate rod pounded into the dirt is one option. If you use steel fence posts, run a ground wire connected directly to all the posts and improve the grounding and shock value.


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## Cleo C. Hogan Jr (Feb 27, 2010)

All in FUN....If we are nitpicking and sarcastic, I will share my first thought, when I read the subject of this post, " Testing A Electric Bear Fence"......My first thought was, Where do you find electric bears???

O.K. I know. Way off subject. All in fun. 

cchoganjr


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## Phoebee (Jan 29, 2014)

Find a bear, connect to electric fence, and PRESTO, electric bear!

They move a lot faster than ordinary bears.


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## mdax (Apr 29, 2013)

Rader Sidetrack said:


> Interesting, the Nomad comes with a 'ground stand'.


I totally agree. I've never seen the stand as anything other than a way to hold it off the ground, I have a grounding rod placed in the middle of the bee yard.


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## PaBill (Apr 4, 2014)

I have heard of people laying bacon on the wires and when the bear goes for a nibble.. surprise. :banana:


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## dtompsett (Feb 2, 2010)

For a quick test... assuming the grass isn't brown, crispy, and dry... grab a long piece of grass, hold one end and place the other on the electrified wire. As you slide it closer to the wire the tingling in your fingers will increase. 

For a proper test, a neon electric fence indicator gauge (as others have mentioned). They're $20 here in Canada.

If you feel it's necessary to bait the fence; make some strips of tinfoil (2x4"), scoop some peanut butter onto the end, fold it over the fence wire... you're left with a tasty 2x2 patch hanging off the wire. Couple years back I had a bear go through a fence that wasn't working properly. Once I fixed the fence the bear continued to walk through and damage hives. Baiting the fence did the trick, and this year the bears paced laps around that fence but never went through it. 

Assuming you're out in the country, a .270 also makes an effective bear deterrent... with the bonus of filling your freezer. I had to resort to that this year when I had one living 100 yards away from the house in the bush, stalking around the house at night, damaging equipment stored out of the fence, and wrecking some hives outside of the fence (mating nuc I couldn't move at the time). Early season bear is very low in fat too. This was my first bear meat... yum!


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## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

>what happens if you use your left hand?

It hurts more when it travels through your heart...


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## shannonswyatt (May 7, 2012)

When I was a kid my uncle had me hold the end of a pole up so he could weld it. The ground was dew covered and I got the snot knocked out of me by that welder when he started welding.


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## Phoebee (Jan 29, 2014)

Welders can shock, but the voltage is usually no higher than about 70 V open circuit. Not enough to shock a bear thru its fur. Perfect for zapping the snot out of little kids with a firm grip om a piece of metal.


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## Rader Sidetrack (Nov 30, 2011)

One of the functions of a the control box of an electric welder is to create an _isolated _circuit for the welding current. As such, in a _properly functioning_ welder, a person would not get shocked by the _primary _circuit (the AC voltage from the plug) unless it was defective. The secondary circuit (between the electrodes) should only be able to shock you if you touch _both _the electrode and 'welding ground' _at the same time_.

From Lincoln Electric, a popular welder manufacturer ...


> Secondary Electric Shock
> 
> Q: What must occur for you to get a secondary voltage electric shock?
> A: A secondary voltage electric shock occurs when you touch a part of the welding or electrode circuit - perhaps a bare spot on the electrode cable at the same time another part of your body is touching the metal upon which you're welding (work). To receive a shock, your body must touch both sides of the welding circuit, electrode and work (or welding ground) at the same time when the welding output is on.
> ...



My earlier statement of ...
"It would be difficult to get _shocked _by a welder unless there is some serious malfunction in the line voltage side of the welder."
... did _not_:shhhh:account for all the possibilities. 


_Gloves_, everyone? 
.


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