Installing invisible fence for dog

[Craig D Peltier]

Hi, im thinking of buying a invisible fence kit to keep dogs in the yard. Foster and Smith sells some so does Amazon. Might be from Pet Safe.

Anyhow none of them seem to show how you get it across a driveway. All it says is you bury the wire, and some installers rent edgers. Well how about a tar driveway ? Anyone know the answer here?

Thanks

[Charlie Schultz]

I've had a couple installed- in both cases they cut through the driveay (blacktop in one case, concrete in another). Not sure what machine they used.

[Joe Chritz]

If it is narrow enough you can tunnel under with a conduit but it is difficult without a special machine. If you have any seams you can tuck the wire in there or you can make a seam with a concrete saw or similar.

Be sure to train the dog correctly on the fence and try to set it up so there are natural edges the dog can see. It works better to go from say a fence to a fence than out in the open, it gives the dog a visual reference. Really anything for reference works good.

Picture trying to stop at a single point on a big frozen lake with no reference points.

I ran a dog training biz for several years and the fences work very well with some dogs and just OK with others. It is much better if they never learn they can run through the fence.

Joe

[Jim O'Dell]

Do be careful, while these systems can protect your dog from getting out if properly trained as Joe says, they don't keep other animals from coming in your yard to take on your dog. That includes humans! Jim.

[Paul Atkins]

A piece of pvc pipe with a hose filling will work like a hydraulic drill to get under the driveway unless there is an obstruction or alot of gravel base. Makes a bunch of mud too.

[Harry Hagan]

I'm wondering in if tunneling under the pavement would place the wire too deep and compromise the effectiveness of the fence. My vote would be for cutting a 1" groove with a concrete saw and fill with appropriate sealant.

[JohnT Fitzgerald]

I'm wondering in if tunneling under the pavement would place the wire too deep and compromise the effectiveness of the fence. My vote would be for cutting a 1" groove with a concrete saw and fill with appropriate sealant.


that's how they installed ours. cut through (or maybe just into) the blacktop with a diamond blade, insert wire, and use blacktop sealant.

[Jim Tobias]

Craig,
They installed ours by cutting through the asphalt driveway and inserting the wire in the kerf. It is not very noticeable at all. I will say it has worked quite well after a lot of initial training (walking the dogs out individually and training them about the "beep" and making sure they understand the "key word".
They have each gotten too close and been hit but not enough to hurt them, only scare them. After that, the "key word" (in my case "BACK") gets their attention the same way the word "treat" does. They come running!!

Jim

[Ed Hazel]

I used my edger to cut a groove in the turf pushed the wire in.
For my asphalt driveway I cut a groove 1/2 - 3/4 inch deep with my circular saw and and a cheap fiber cement blade, I laid the wire in the groove and covered with black urethane same as they use to install windshields it has outlasted the dog.

[Matt Meiser]

We have had at PetSafe system for close to 7 years now at two different houses. At our old house I installed it. We had an asphalt driveway and to cross it I bought a fiber blade for my circular saw. It cut very easily and left a kerf just wide enough for the wire. I then filled it with asphalt crack sealer as a temporary measure until we had the driveway resealed, at which point they used their hot sealer on it. We moved the next fall so I can't comment on how it held up long term. It was a lot of work to bury the cable around about a 1/2 acre.

We had it installed at this house around about 2 acres and they crossed the gravel drive by burying a piece of PVC conduit a few inches down and running the wire through that. Installing it ourselves the first time was foolish based on what they charged for the second time--I think it was like $3-400 including the wire but that was 5 years ago. We moved the controller with us.

We talked to a number of people who had systems before we got ours and the trend we found is that these work well if you get them when the dog is young, not as well if they are a few years old. Our dog ran through it once when we first got it/him, yelping all the way, and all the way back as I chased him. After that, he obeyed it. Once a few years ago we forgot to check the batteries and he went next door. But he can chase a rabbit, cat, or the neighbor's dog at full tilt across the yard barking all the way and stops shy of the line. If we take the collar off, we can't even get him to come to us. Where we have bonfires is outside his area--he'll sit at the corner and whine, but won't cross even with the collar off.

If you take the collar off, don't try carrying it across the line holding it so that you are touching the studs. Trust me! My daughter will agree too!

[Lee Schierer]

I installed my own fence about 1-1/2 years ago and our Brittany puppy learned to respect the fence in about 2 weeks. Now he will not even go near the fence without being on a leash to go through the "secret gate" to go out in the back field. I installed an Innotek Ultra Smart system. Ultra Smart (http://www.innotek.net/store/product_info.php?cPath=14&products_id=75&osCsid=g03fodh62imghgnq521eanqjq5) It has a water proof rechargable collar with multiple levels of correction and adjustable barrier width. The wire needs to be installed only an 1" or so deep. If it is too deep it will reduce the effectiveness. I installed my wire around a 1 acre parcel in about 6-7 hours with a hand edger tool. I crossed my concrete driveway at a stress joint. Black top could be sliced with a fiber or diamond cutting wheel in your skill saw by making a groove 1/4" deep, laying in the wire and sealing the crack with black top sealer, no big deal. I have had one break in the wire (poorly stripped wire splice, I nicked the wire) in a year and an half of operation through two winters. Right now we have 24" of snow on the ground and the fence still works.

I liked the Innotek fence and collar better than the Pet Safe version (both are now made by the same company). You will need to train your dog and the Innotek training DVD is great and the training works. As others have indicated it will not keep other dogs out, but will contain your dog if it is properly trained.

I have one dog and two collars so I can always have one ready. The Ultra smart tells you when the charge is getting low. My daughter bought the same system and her dog stays in our yard when they visit and mine stays in her yard with no problems. My Brittany loves to chase birds and cats, but will stop inside the fence even when in hot pursuit every time.

[Robert Parrish]

Craig, you can tunnel under cement using a 1/2 inch pvc irrigation pipe connected to your water hose. When you get through, run the wire than pull the pvc pipe out the other side. It worked for me.

[Lee Schierer]

Craig, you can tunnel under cement using a 1/2 inch pvc irrigation pipe connected to your water hose. When you get through, run the wire than pull the pvc pipe out the other side. It worked for me.

I've done this, but it creates a sizeable void, possibly not a good thing under an asphalt driveway. Signal strength may be an issue. Burying the wire more than a couple (1-2) of inches limits the reception by the collar.

[Robert Parrish]

Lee, I guess you would only have a sizable void if you lived in clay area. But a small 1/2" pipe in a sandy area works fine.

[Craig D Peltier]

Thanks for all the info. My driveway is cement with peastone size aggregrate.Maybe 10 foot span.
One thing that suprised me is burying th wire only an inch sounds like it could pop out in soft ground going over it. Ground stays pretty soggy here. Is this the specs?
I hear people renting gas edgers I would assume there going down several inches.

[Paul Ryan]

Craig,

For about $100 extra you can buy a wireless fence and not have to worry about any of the tunneling and wire laying. I have a 4 1/2 year old lab that has used this fence for about a year. I live in the country and last year a week before turkey day he chased a truck and lost. 50 stitches and $1200 later I bought the fence. He had been on an electric hunting collar for the previous 3 years of his life, so I didn't even have to train him. I put the white flags out and let him loose. He figured out what was going on in about a day. Now he wont even leave the containment area with out the collar on. This system you have to but batteries for the collar they are about $7-10 for 2 and last about 3-4 months. It really works well. You can adjust the containment area from about a 10 ft radius to about 100 ft. I have 2 acres of land here about 1 acre is ravine and woods. I have 1 wireless controler that alows him to roam most of the entire non wooded area. If you have a real large yard you can but 1 system and another controler to have a containment area that is twice as big. Go to pet safe web site and check out the wireless system. I paid $260 for the system and it was worth every penny.

[Lee Schierer]

Thanks for all the info. My driveway is cement with peastone size aggregrate.Maybe 10 foot span.
One thing that suprised me is burying th wire only an inch sounds like it could pop out in soft ground going over it. Ground stays pretty soggy here. Is this the specs?
I hear people renting gas edgers I would assume there going down several inches.

Yes, the specs say to bury the wire 1-2". In fact Innotek sells "staples" to hold the wire to the ground so just the grass grows over it. With their stales you run the wire and pin it to the ground every few feet with a staple and let the grass grow up over it.

Your concrete drive shold have either expansion joints or stress relief joints or cuts about every 10 feet. Use one of them to cross the driveway with the wire. Clean out the joint line, string the wire across it tightly and glue it in place every 6" with silicone adhesive. It won't move and it works just fine.

As was pointed out in another post there is also a wireless system that will build a circle of protection around the transmitter. You can pair them up to cover larger areas. However, round doesn't fit well on most lots and the house can block the signal.

[Sonny Edmonds]

Craig,
They installed ours by cutting through the asphalt driveway and inserting the wire in the kerf. It is not very noticeable at all. I will say it has worked quite well after a lot of initial training (walking the dogs out individually and training them about the "beep" and making sure they understand the "key word".
They have each gotten too close and been hit but not enough to hurt them, only scare them. After that, the "key word" (in my case "BACK") gets their attention the same way the word "treat" does. They come running!!

Jim

LOL!
Jim,
You reminded me of the time we were eating our dinner and our little speedy was watching intently for a hand out.
Mama sez, "Don't give them any."
I looked at Speedy next to me and said, I'll give you a T-R-E-A-T (spelling the word) after dinner.
His eyes got big as saucers, and then he got all kinds of excited. A total spaz attack.
I said, "Dang! He can spell!"
I wound up giving all 3 of them a treat before we could go on with dinner after that.
Laught our fannies off! :D

(And he can still spell. The Little rascal!)
http://home.earthlink.net/%7Epie/images/speedyW.jpg

[Dustin Lane]

Keep in mind in some places, such as here in IC, an invisible fence is not considered adequate fencing. They require you to have a physical barrier between your dog and outside your property. I'm guessing the thought behind it is that the shock doesn't always stop all dogs and like mentioned before it doesn't stop others from coming in range of your dog.

When we put ours in we put it down thru one of the stress cuts in the concrete. However one portion in the yard didn't get buried deep enough and the lawn mower ate it. That was the end of our invisible fence.

[John Fricke]

We have the Petsafe wireless dog fence system. It works great. It has an adjustable strength transmitter. You can adjust the field size up to about 90' diameter.

[Gene E Miller]

Greetings & Salutations,

I too have the Petsafe wireless system. I have a Blue Healer that I keep put up in a 10 x 20 covered dog run next to the shop at night but let him out during the day and with the signal box in the shop he can run completely around the shop building and about 50 feet on one side.

When he gets too close to the boundary the collar starts to beep and he will stop but I have to watch the battery as he has wised up and if no beep will visit other parts of the property and even the neighbors.

I have used this for about 4 years now and found it to be very effective and with him out by the shop have no worries of anyone getting too close without me knowing.

Gene

[Rich Lightfoot]

If you decide to go with the traditional wire fence, stapling can make it MUCH easier to install but don't waste your money buying the ones from the fence company. All they are is landscaping anchor pins like you'd use to hold down landscape fabric and you can pick them up at your local borg for a lot less money.

[Jim Shipman]

I installed an invisible fence for our dogs. I wanted the dogs to have about a 1/2 acre of the back yard, some of the side yard but not go past the front of the house. I ran the wire around the area I wanted them to have in the back yard, along the front of the house next to the foundation wall, across the driveway and to the side yard finally connecting with the back yard.
We left the collars on the dogs when they were in the house so we could just open the door and let them out.
Our shepherd went to look out the front window and got whacked fromthe wire running along the front of the house, also would get them downstairs in the family room if they went too close to the front wall.

Had to rethink my installation. Poor dogs didn't know what was happening to them.

[Al Willits]

Wife years back was the service manager for the "Invisible Fence".

They used a gas powered cement circular saw to go though drive ways, you only need enough cut width to get the wire in, the blade was enough, then they'd seal the cut.

They owned their own saw but renting one for what you have would work.

Also they had a less than a 2% failure rate when they installed and trained the dogs, and trainning usually takes about 2 weeks and required generaly the flags that mark the border lines be left about 30 days.

DIY installs usually faired at a appox 20-25% failure rate...fwiw

Al