I fenced 180 acres in SW CO last summer and have already done some more this spring. Here's an idea on material. These are real prices within the last year, but it all goes up every month.
Let's assume a perfectly square 40 acres (1320 ft/side), one H brace in the middle of three sides, the fourth side has two H brace with two 8' gates in between.
Prices: $18 per 8'x6" post, $85 per roll barbed wire, $100 per gate, $5.75 per 6' tee post.
Each corner takes 5 posts, each H brace takes 3. 35 posts = $630
500 tee posts = $2875. Really you should mix in some 4" wood posts.
16 rolls of wire (who does 3 wire?) = $1360. You'll need a little extra.
$200 for the gates.
$200 in misc staples and smooth wire for the corners.
That's $5265 in material. Call it $1/ft material.
Labor? Depends on where you are and what people charge. Are you getting a fence company/crew, are you hiring day labor, etc. Are they using a skid steer or doing it all by hand?
I've been quoted $4/ft in labor (included equipment rental) but I'm in an expensive market. I did it myself instead.
Edit - If you're in San Juan county I could possibly help you out, I have an auger and post pounder on my track loader etc. Any further the drive wouldn't make sense tho.
Thanks a ton, I wish I could take you up on that offer but I am going to be in Catron co a few hrs South. I genuinely appreciate that though!
I'm still in my 30's and the only thing that I was intimidated by was doing the H braces properly for tension sake. Me n my buddies can drive T-posts all day etc.
I considered just getting it properly surveyed and going that route.
[the southern end is already fenced thankfully so it seems rough estimate it's only 3/4 mi or so.](https://i.imgur.com/ZHcM1M9.png) I did a rough perimeter in Google Earth.
I really appreciate the insight though. I bet it's beautiful where you're at. I was also looking around the Trinidad area b/c I love it there too.
My homebase is West Texas so it's just red dirt and the smell of crude out here. Anything with trees is amazing in my book. I got access to skid steers here from multiple friends, but im weighing the cost to haul them 7hrs to the land for a weekend of hard labor vs supporting someone local which I am a big fan of.
You might check if your neighbors would split costs on fence, I don’t know about New Mexico but in Missouri it’s supposed to be a 50/50 fence. Idk how they enforce that law but that’s what I’ve always been told
I know that's a thing, and if I had a long standing relationship with them maybe. Plus New Mexicans talk about Texans(me) like we talk about people from Oklahoma.
The last thing I want to do is be like "Howdy, I'm your new neighbor, wanna give me a grand?"
I'd be "that guy" for the rest of my life there I feel lol
$4256 wire mesh, 17 47” 3 39”
$1900 360 t posts
$138 6 RR ties
$480 40 cedar posts
$380 hole digger rental
$150 misc, nails, flatwire
$6824 material
$12,800 total
I copy pasted this from my spreadsheet from a 51 acre Utah job I’m in the middle of. I’m doing a 47” mesh with 1 strand of barbed wire on top (he had enough extra rolls), I also had to cut through 1000’ of serious wooded stuff.
I’d travel to come build your fence.
Go on daft logic area measure tool. Use it to calculate the linear feet for the fence line you want. Once you know that number you can get a better idea. I’m guessing it should be around 1400? Now you can look up costs of t posts. Probably about $5-8/post. Every ten feet gets you 140 of them so let’s say 150 at $7 is $1000. A spool of barbed wire for that is around $100 might need 4 so $400. The fence staples maybe $25-40? (Guessing). A t post driver is about $30. So all that puts you at about $1500 for all the parts. The job is roughly 2-3 people a days worth a work. Maybe two if they don’t do this regularly. It’s super simple to do so you don’t need very skilled labor. You and a buddy could knock it out easy. To pay someone you could probably find someone to do it for an additional $1000. But if you contact a fence company I bet they quote you $3000+
That's what I was thinking ($5kish or so give or take), but I wanted to ask around here. [You're pretty much spot on measurements wise though.](https://i.imgur.com/ZHcM1M9.png)
The south end is already fenced it seems too thankfully, but I think that's the only side based on my tour of the land before signing.
I really want to thank you for the detailed input, it means a lot.
Ya no problem. Though clearly by being downvoted someone here disagrees. I may have left out some materials that others would put in. Good luck though! I just replaced one side of my fencing last month. It was some hard work but nothing difficult.
Pro fencer here, your labor estimates feel low and like OP has said in other comments the h tension braces are intimidating and simple labor turns into wasted effort really fast with expensive products and hard dirt.
Building a solid fence isn’t ‘simple’, it’s just simple if ya know how already…
Hey sorry man didn’t mean to belittle what you do. I’ll clarify and say I didn’t have to do any H braces and yes those are much more difficult. I had someone who has done many fences and so just the t posts and barbed wire portion is time consuming but easier when there’s no turns or braces involved. What’s your estimate on labor?
43 acres, if it’s not a flat rectangle with any features of any kind to go around you can estimate 15-25 H braces, 300-400 t posts, 20-26 strands of wire and dancers…. $4-6k materials, To build and install it completely $5-7k labor. Two weeks of one guy working all day 6 days a week… how I do it
I put a comment on this post somewhere else that had the cost for 5,400ft of 48” mesh with a barbed wire on top… I’m in Utah. Willing to travel, won’t charge extra just like to see places.
Mesh costs more that barbed wire for sure.
They drive in with a hammer and pull out pretty easy, last over 20 years and only cost around $5 each and most fences are merely a suggestion to livestock so what’s the down side?
Super depends on terrain, livestock, budget… round posts don’t make sense jn the desert where feed is so low density. ‘Fences are merely a suggestion’ If you don’t get that you must not be the same kind of rancher as me haha
I have 1200’ I had to cut through original growth undisturbed chokecherry floodplain… no way to get a machine down that fence line only to drill through solid rock to bury the post in anyways. You’d split 100 trying to drive them in. t posts are the truth in rough terrain, you must just be in lovely wonderfully loamy pasture.. wouldn’t it be nice
I fenced 180 acres in SW CO last summer and have already done some more this spring. Here's an idea on material. These are real prices within the last year, but it all goes up every month. Let's assume a perfectly square 40 acres (1320 ft/side), one H brace in the middle of three sides, the fourth side has two H brace with two 8' gates in between. Prices: $18 per 8'x6" post, $85 per roll barbed wire, $100 per gate, $5.75 per 6' tee post. Each corner takes 5 posts, each H brace takes 3. 35 posts = $630 500 tee posts = $2875. Really you should mix in some 4" wood posts. 16 rolls of wire (who does 3 wire?) = $1360. You'll need a little extra. $200 for the gates. $200 in misc staples and smooth wire for the corners. That's $5265 in material. Call it $1/ft material. Labor? Depends on where you are and what people charge. Are you getting a fence company/crew, are you hiring day labor, etc. Are they using a skid steer or doing it all by hand? I've been quoted $4/ft in labor (included equipment rental) but I'm in an expensive market. I did it myself instead. Edit - If you're in San Juan county I could possibly help you out, I have an auger and post pounder on my track loader etc. Any further the drive wouldn't make sense tho.
Thanks a ton, I wish I could take you up on that offer but I am going to be in Catron co a few hrs South. I genuinely appreciate that though! I'm still in my 30's and the only thing that I was intimidated by was doing the H braces properly for tension sake. Me n my buddies can drive T-posts all day etc. I considered just getting it properly surveyed and going that route. [the southern end is already fenced thankfully so it seems rough estimate it's only 3/4 mi or so.](https://i.imgur.com/ZHcM1M9.png) I did a rough perimeter in Google Earth. I really appreciate the insight though. I bet it's beautiful where you're at. I was also looking around the Trinidad area b/c I love it there too. My homebase is West Texas so it's just red dirt and the smell of crude out here. Anything with trees is amazing in my book. I got access to skid steers here from multiple friends, but im weighing the cost to haul them 7hrs to the land for a weekend of hard labor vs supporting someone local which I am a big fan of.
You might check if your neighbors would split costs on fence, I don’t know about New Mexico but in Missouri it’s supposed to be a 50/50 fence. Idk how they enforce that law but that’s what I’ve always been told
I know that's a thing, and if I had a long standing relationship with them maybe. Plus New Mexicans talk about Texans(me) like we talk about people from Oklahoma. The last thing I want to do is be like "Howdy, I'm your new neighbor, wanna give me a grand?" I'd be "that guy" for the rest of my life there I feel lol
Hahahah oh yea no doubt!😂
I think $2/ft is a good starting point.
That’s what it is in East Texas
$4256 wire mesh, 17 47” 3 39” $1900 360 t posts $138 6 RR ties $480 40 cedar posts $380 hole digger rental $150 misc, nails, flatwire $6824 material $12,800 total I copy pasted this from my spreadsheet from a 51 acre Utah job I’m in the middle of. I’m doing a 47” mesh with 1 strand of barbed wire on top (he had enough extra rolls), I also had to cut through 1000’ of serious wooded stuff. I’d travel to come build your fence.
Go on daft logic area measure tool. Use it to calculate the linear feet for the fence line you want. Once you know that number you can get a better idea. I’m guessing it should be around 1400? Now you can look up costs of t posts. Probably about $5-8/post. Every ten feet gets you 140 of them so let’s say 150 at $7 is $1000. A spool of barbed wire for that is around $100 might need 4 so $400. The fence staples maybe $25-40? (Guessing). A t post driver is about $30. So all that puts you at about $1500 for all the parts. The job is roughly 2-3 people a days worth a work. Maybe two if they don’t do this regularly. It’s super simple to do so you don’t need very skilled labor. You and a buddy could knock it out easy. To pay someone you could probably find someone to do it for an additional $1000. But if you contact a fence company I bet they quote you $3000+
That's what I was thinking ($5kish or so give or take), but I wanted to ask around here. [You're pretty much spot on measurements wise though.](https://i.imgur.com/ZHcM1M9.png) The south end is already fenced it seems too thankfully, but I think that's the only side based on my tour of the land before signing. I really want to thank you for the detailed input, it means a lot.
Ya no problem. Though clearly by being downvoted someone here disagrees. I may have left out some materials that others would put in. Good luck though! I just replaced one side of my fencing last month. It was some hard work but nothing difficult.
Pro fencer here, your labor estimates feel low and like OP has said in other comments the h tension braces are intimidating and simple labor turns into wasted effort really fast with expensive products and hard dirt. Building a solid fence isn’t ‘simple’, it’s just simple if ya know how already…
Hey sorry man didn’t mean to belittle what you do. I’ll clarify and say I didn’t have to do any H braces and yes those are much more difficult. I had someone who has done many fences and so just the t posts and barbed wire portion is time consuming but easier when there’s no turns or braces involved. What’s your estimate on labor?
43 acres, if it’s not a flat rectangle with any features of any kind to go around you can estimate 15-25 H braces, 300-400 t posts, 20-26 strands of wire and dancers…. $4-6k materials, To build and install it completely $5-7k labor. Two weeks of one guy working all day 6 days a week… how I do it
Thanks. Good to know. Where do you live/operate? Also how would that change if instead of barbed wire you had hog/sheeps fence 4ft high.
I put a comment on this post somewhere else that had the cost for 5,400ft of 48” mesh with a barbed wire on top… I’m in Utah. Willing to travel, won’t charge extra just like to see places. Mesh costs more that barbed wire for sure.
Saving this...
I never understood you folks down south using t posts, can’t think of a single person here that doesn’t have 4” posts throughout.
I'd imagine it depends on soil conditions etc, you get a mix of T Posts here and rough cedar posts though for hard packed red dirt and caliche
They drive in with a hammer and pull out pretty easy, last over 20 years and only cost around $5 each and most fences are merely a suggestion to livestock so what’s the down side?
Super depends on terrain, livestock, budget… round posts don’t make sense jn the desert where feed is so low density. ‘Fences are merely a suggestion’ If you don’t get that you must not be the same kind of rancher as me haha
We kill fence crawlers, but we’re in the foothills of the Rockies not a desert
We run ts in creeks sometimes but that’s the only time I can think of
I have 1200’ I had to cut through original growth undisturbed chokecherry floodplain… no way to get a machine down that fence line only to drill through solid rock to bury the post in anyways. You’d split 100 trying to drive them in. t posts are the truth in rough terrain, you must just be in lovely wonderfully loamy pasture.. wouldn’t it be nice
Like I say Alberta is probably different, we’ve got basically solid clay 3 feet under the top soil
Guys closer to the river here have bedrock but that’s still probably 4 feet down