To what standard of work should be expected from a fencing contractor?

Grassman

Member
Location
Derbyshire
With all the gear, 2 of us, post driver & quickfencer we try and average 200 metres of net + 2x barb a day
post & rail with 4 rails about 150 metres a day
good running we can do more, some jobs you can work all day and only get a few posts in
on big net + 2x barb jobs with 4 staff and two tractors we can knock in up to 800 metres a day and you can wire even more
Realistic outputs.
 

Mf6260

Member
With all the gear, 2 of us, post driver & quickfencer we try and average 200 metres of net + 2x barb a day
post & rail with 4 rails about 150 metres a day
good running we can do more, some jobs you can work all day and only get a few posts in
on big net + 2x barb jobs with 4 staff and two tractors we can knock in up to 800 metres a day and you can wire even more
Realistic outputs.
That sounds about right I'm a one nan band and aim for about half that much a day
 

ARW

Member
Location
Yorkshire
On a decent job I average about 80 but if I get my arsenal in gear and want to be in and out I'll push for a 100 it can be a tough day sometimes
I'm far to lazy compared! I normally always have a work mate, small jobs I do myself but normally save them for a Saturday when the Saturday lad is with us or rope the gf in!
I once wired up 400m alone in a day, I was buggered the next day. I have some good workers and we always have a laugh
 

Mf6260

Member
I'm far to lazy compared! I normally always have a work mate, small jobs I do myself but normally save them for a Saturday when the Saturday lad is with us or rope the gf in!
I once wired up 400m alone in a day, I was buggered the next day. I have some good workers and we always have a laugh
That is good going. I was just thinking today I could do with a lad as I was rolling out barb but It's finding a good one.
 

agrotron

Member
If your doing nice straight runs 150m + you can put up a lot in a day. But very rarely do we get jobs like that, usually 60-100 before a strainer so lots of little pulls which take time.

Been on a job this week and I worked out we need to do 115m to make it worth while. Easy I thought. Day 1 knock in 250m worth of post but run out of materials so had early 3.30 finish. Day 2 only knocked it 80m worth after getting tractor stuck and everything going wrong.
 

Mf6260

Member
It was all a straight line!
Yes staff is hard to come by, it seems there's not many lads that want to do manual labour all day for an ag wage
I don't think I've ever done more than 100 metres in a perfectly straight line done a few 400 m stretches but always have a shed load of turners following broken walls farmers don't want to lose an inch! That's it any lads that are any good do it for themselves.
 

Mf6260

Member
If your doing nice straight runs 150m + you can put up a lot in a day. But very rarely do we get jobs like that, usually 60-100 before a strainer so lots of little pulls which take time.

Been on a job this week and I worked out we need to do 115m to make it worth while. Easy I thought. Day 1 knock in 250m worth of post but run out of materials so had early 3.30 finish. Day 2 only knocked it 80m worth after getting tractor stuck and everything going wrong.
Don't get me started on wasted days glad it's not only me it happens to. It's especially annoying when I little thing stops u. Unloaded my truck cos we went to a wedding at weekend. Got materials and tractor to job knocked in all strainers m turners thought I could at least get half post knocked in
But no left the bottom half of spinning jenny at home couldn't put plain out for a line and I hadn't got my barb unroller either that was a 3:30 finish next day had to pic gf up at 4:30 then git pickup n trailer stuck so late for that and she was not a happy bunny. But on the plus new quickfencer help me catch up a bit
 

agrotron

Member
Don't get me started on wasted days glad it's not only me it happens to. It's especially annoying when I little thing stops u. Unloaded my truck cos we went to a wedding at weekend. Got materials and tractor to job knocked in all strainers m turners thought I could at least get half post knocked in
But no left the bottom half of spinning jenny at home couldn't put plain out for a line and I hadn't got my barb unroller either that was a 3:30 finish next day had to pic gf up at 4:30 then git pickup n trailer stuck so late for that and she was not a happy bunny. But on the plus new quickfencer help me catch up a bit

How do you like the quicke fencer? Do you use 500m rolls of netting or the 100m? How does it manage with internal corners? Do you tie off at both ends or strain past and hard staple?

Sorry for all the question but Never seen one working but can imagine they speed the job up.
 

Mf6260

Member
How do you like the quicke fencer? Do you use 500m rolls of netting or the 100m? How does it manage with internal corners? Do you tie off at both ends or strain past and hard staple?

Sorry for all the question but Never seen one working but can imagine they speed the job up.
Only got it this week used my first 300 metre roll and loved it wouldn't hesitate to use a 500 now it's a bit tricky in corners but I managed I tie off at start end then staple and tie off at the other end (only because that's how the machine works) buy have purchased a duel clamp upgrade so I can tie off without stapling and it should help on corners too it's worth having it just to unroll very impressed with it
 

S J H

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Bedfordshire
ARW has hit the nail on the (excuse the pun) if it was me personally I wouldn't feel right. Every time I drove past those fields I would be thinking how sh:t is that. Like any job surely if your going to do it then do it right, if for no other reason than your own peace of mind. If the buget is so small I would rather walk away from it than put my name to such poor workmanship. Out of interest (never having done any tempary or civil wrk) what sort of price difference would you think there would be on such a job compaired to say erecting the same spec fence permanently for a farmer rather than the civil engineering firm?
Personally if I was pricing similar spec fencing for a customer I would put the price somewhere around £6-00 to £7-00 a metre depending on full spec & length of fencing required. How does this price compair to what people would expect to charge/pay for the same work ?
Look forward to replies.
Thanks Stu.

We've put up 750m of stock net with 1 plain on top yesterday afternoon and today. But that was on good going and fairish runs. Thats with 2 of us and a tracked knocker.
 

ARW

Member
Location
Yorkshire
We've put up 750m of stock net with 1 plain on top yesterday afternoon and today. But that was on good going and fairish runs. Thats with 2 of us and a tracked knocker.
Our record is 400m of stock net with two barb in a day. But it was all in a straight line in 3 pulls, we even finished early! But the the next day you can work hard all day and not even reach 100m. It's gates that can take time, we once did manage to set 12 gates in a day on a big job, but then you could spend all day just setting one!
What's people's average for rabbit fencing dug in? We are on with some today
 

S J H

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Bedfordshire
I know what you mean, it's the average that counts.

We very rarely dig in, just fold over and peg, but we've done 450m in a day before. It was on one boundary line,

Are you ploughing the trench?
 

james ds

Member
Location
leinster
Our record is 400m of stock net with two barb in a day. But it was all in a straight line in 3 pulls, we even finished early! But the the next day you can work hard all day and not even reach 100m. It's gates that can take time, we once did manage to set 12 gates in a day on a big job, but then you could spend all day just setting one!
What's people's average for rabbit fencing dug in? We are on with some today
We are putting up mostly Clipex now and on straight lines two men average 100 mt / hr of sheep net with one strand of thorny and one electric on top. We got a petrol vibrator driver and it has speeded up the job greatly.
 

Mf6260

Member
We are putting up mostly Clipex now and on straight lines two men average 100 mt / hr of sheep net with one strand of thorny and one electric on top. We got a petrol vibrator driver and it has speeded up the job greatly.
That's where those petrol knockers are good I found them next too useless on wooden posts
 

ARW

Member
Location
Yorkshire
I know what you mean, it's the average that counts.

We very rarely dig in, just fold over and peg, but we've done 450m in a day before. It was on one boundary line,

Are you ploughing the trench?
Depends on the customer but we are digging in, happy at 100 metres a day, it's a lot of work digging and back filling
 

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