Building the New Pens

I think that if you ask any good rancher what the most important skills to have on a farm, fencing would be on the top of the list.  And I agree.  We have built a LOT of fences for our farm.  But this last fence system seems to be the creme de la creme of fences for our family.

We are trying to use things that we already have, as we really don't have the money for new supplies.  One of the most important things for creating a strong fence is the corner post.  We have used a variety of objects for this purpose - pivot legs, round posts, four by fours, even steel pipe.  This time, we used railroad ties.  J dug down about two and a half feet, volleyed the incredibly heavy tie into the hole and then packed it in tight.  He alternated between dirt and water, packing in the layers.  He finished it off with a bag of concrete.  These corner posts aren't going ANYWHERE.

In order to make sure that the corner posts are aligned, we used a string line - something you use to sight a straight line, a square - used to make sure that we are coming off of the corners at a 90 degree angle, a tape measure - to make sure that all of the sides are the same length, and a level - to ensure that the corner posts are plumb.  This isn't a fast process, but it sure is worth the extra time when you end up with a spectacular pen that everyone - including the pigs - admires.

After three days, we have all but one corner post in the ground and have hung two gates.  We cannot put in the final post until we move the chicken coop, as it lines up right in the middle of the coop.  But because we are creating two pens, side by side, we can at least finish one of the pens without the final post.

Hanging gates is another job that takes time to do right.  We start with the gate opening.  We learned awhile ago that when you buy a four foot gate, you need a four foot opening.  They have already planned the additional space for you so if you add six inches for swing, you will have too large an opening in the end.

We used a scrap of four by four to set the gate on so that we could plan for a small gap under the gate when it.  We learned last year that you cannot make the gap small enough to keep piglets in, so we are really just shooting for a gap that won't allow bigger animals out.  With the gate standing on the four by four, we mark the bottom bolt on the post.  This time we broke a bit drilling the first hole, so J pulled out his super-duty drill bits and we drilled it again.  Using the circle end of a crescent wrench, we twisted the first bolt into the post.

Next, we slid the gate over the nub on the bolt (don't know what you call it...it's the hinge part).  We then measured for the top bolt.  Another thing we've learned over time, is that you are best off sliding the hinge on the gate itself down, putting the bolt in so that the nub faces down, and sliding the hinge up onto it.  This way, the pigs can't just walk over to the gate and lift it off of the hinges.  You can guess how we learned this lesson.

Now J is a perfectionist, so we also made sure that the gap we had between the gate and the post was the same at the top and the bottom.  While this isn't exactly necessary, it sure makes for a nice swinging gate.  In addition, because we made sure that our posts were straight, with the gate lining up perfectly on the post, you can "set" the gate in any position and it will stay there.  Pretty slick.

We will be stretching the field fence in the next day or so.  J can't find the fencing nails so we had to head into town to get some.  Once we've got those, we'll be able to finish the first pen.  Should be nice not to have free-range piglets anymore.