Orchard Fence - Phase 2 and 3

 

So, where were we?

 

Oh yeah! Phase 2 of the orchard fence.

 

So ...there we were...all the posts done, the top and facing boards looking pretty. Now, I naively thought, we have some easy stuff to do. Just nail up the chain link and call it a day.

 

Step 1 - We had to unroll the chain link. Now this is used chain link, mind you. So it had a few bends and twists in it that the brand new stuff does not have.

 

Used chain link fence = lots of time spent getting unstuck while trying to unroll it.

 

Also, this chain link was a thicker, heavier, more industrial type of fence. Mark told me that it is 8 gauge if that means anything to you. It sure didn't to me. He could have said any number and it all would have been the same thing to me.

 

Step 2 - Haul the chain link over to the orchard. Mark hooked up a fence puller to the end of the fencing and my job was to use the 4-wheeler to pull it. 

  

 

 

(Gotta love that picture of Kye hunched over in the background! I think she's looking at me saying "C'mon Man!". I tried to edit her out but it whacked off Mark's head so I just left it.)

 

 

 

Step 2 didn't work out so well. The 4-wheeler wasn't strong enough to pull all the fencing.

So I went and got Big Red. We hooked up the chain and fence puller to the truck and I drove it out to the orchard. Mark stayed behind and pulled the chain link around the "corner" so it wouldn't tear out one of our frost free water pumps. He had to take a break after pulling that much of it - I'm telling you, it's heavy stuff!

 

Now the next few steps I didn't get a chance to take too many pictures of, because my hands were so busy trying to hold up fencing with all my limbs. I didn't even have a spare toe to operate my camera with!

 

What we did was this: Lift the fencing up onto it's side and lean it against the posts. Measure and mark the posts so that the chain link is the same height all the way around. Dig out some dirt in high areas, add some dirt in low areas. Then use lots of muscle, plus the 4-wheeler, to keep the fence taunt and stretched while Mark hammered in staples.

 

We did a straight stretch at a time.

 

It was easier to work with the fencing once we unrolled it all the way around the posts as far as it would go, but getting 150 feet of used chain link upright and unrolled around some posts took at least 2 years off my life.

 

 

One point during the day, I looked up and noticed that Moe had climbed the post and found a new way to tease Mercy. "Ha! Try and get me now sucka!"

 

 

Being the girl, and of course the weaker sex in this marriage, I often found myself in charge of keeping the fence taunt with the 4-wheeler. I would hook up the fence puller, climb on the 4-wheeler and wait for Mark. He would lift the fencing until he had it right where he wanted it and then he would tell me to go. I would then slowly start to pull the chain link until he told me to stop. Then I would have to keep that same amount of pressure until he had hammered in all the staples for those 2-3 posts on that given side.

 

In my humble opinion, being the weaker sex is much better off when it comes to fence building! Who's with me? No gender equality up in here and this girl is A-ok with that!

 

 

 

The boys were in there working away. Mark bought them each their own little shovels and they helped fill in the dirt around the bottom of the fence. They also helped us lift and pull the chain link on occasion and we were very glad to have the help of those little hands!

Now, if you were looking closely at the last picture you may have noticed something.

No? Go ahead and look again...

Did you notice that even though I have the chain link stretched out, it isn't going to be long enough to finish the fence? That's a problem!

 

So we had to think outside the box. Mark had cut off a small piece earlier in order to stop the 6 foot chain link at a post. (He had then used our next roll of 5 1/2 feet)

 



 

Mark thought we might have to undo some of what we had done and perhaps go to the store and BUY some chain link fencing.

 

No Way Jose! There had to be a way!

 

I spied some of the cut pieces that were on the ground and a plan came to my mind.

I decided I would try to weave these pieces into the two large pieces and see if we could join them somehow.

 

It worked! I weaved and Mark used pliers to bend and fasten. 

 

 

It turned out perfect but of course I forgot to take a picture of it so you'll just have to take my word for it until you can come and see it for yourself!

 

The last thing that we did (which I also got no pictures of us doing this!) was to put up one more board right above the chain link to give it a finished look.

 

The boys also began to line the bottom of the fence with rocks.

Did I manage to get a picture of the whole orchard fence once it was finished?

 

Of course not!

 

Did I realize that before I sat down to blog about finishing the orchard fence?

 

Of course not!

 

I will go out on special assignment tomorrow and snap one.

I will also take some of the raspberries Mark planted and the pig pen he started today!