S&S Fencing & Property Maintenance LLC

    Agricultural Markets

    Deer & Game Fence

    Eight-foot fixed-knot exclusion and containment fence for orchards, vineyards, high-value crops, food plots and game enclosures across Kentucky and Southern Indiana.

    Request a Scope Review Prequalification & Credentials
    • Operating since 2015
    • Family-owned & woman-owned
    • BBB A+ Accredited
    • Blue Book ProView Verified

    General liability and Workers’ Compensation carried — COIs on request. See full prequalification and contractor credentials.

    Tall woven wire game fence line running along a field edge with the full fence height visible against the sky
    Illustrative — product example, not an S&S Fencing project. Photo: Paul Schultz (CC BY 2.0).

    What a game fence has to do differently

    A game fence is not a taller livestock fence — it has to defeat a vertical jump rather than lateral pressure, which changes the height, the wire layout, the post spacing and the way corners are braced.

    Cattle and horses push sideways into a fence. Whitetail deer go over it, and they read the top line before they commit. That is why a game fence must be tall enough that the jump is not attempted, tight enough at the bottom that nothing goes under, and stiff enough at the top that a contacted wire does not fold.

    • Exclusion — orchards, vineyards, nurseries, row crops, food plots and gardens where browse damage is the loss.
    • Containment — managed game enclosures and hunting preserves where animals must stay inside a defined boundary.
    • Mixed use — perimeters that must exclude deer while also holding livestock, which drives graduated stay spacing.

    Published specifications

    S&S builds game fence at 8 ft (96 in) in fixed-knot construction with 12.5 gauge Class 3 galvanized wire and graduated stay spacing, either as a single tall roll or as stacked rolls.

    ItemSpecification
    Height96 in (8 ft) — the working minimum for whitetail exclusion
    ConstructionFixed knot — knot wire locks every stay to every line wire
    Wire12.5 gauge high-tensile, 179,000–200,000 psi, approx. 1,380–1,535 lb breaking strength
    CoatingClass 3 galvanized (approx. 0.85–1.1 oz/ft² zinc); Class 40 / Bezinal in wet or aggressive ground
    Stay spacing3 in at grade graduating to 12 in at the top; 6 in where small stock is also held
    Roll length330 ft
    Line post spacing12–20 ft, tightened to 8–12 ft on grade and curves
    Post lengthSized so 8 ft of fence stands above grade after full embedment
    Brace assemblytwo posts 8 ft apart, 4 ft embedment, compression member plus diagonal tension wire
    Service life30–40 years

    Construction detail and the fixed-knot versus hinge-joint argument are on fixed-knot and game fence.

    Post spacing and corner bracing under load

    An 8 ft fence carries roughly twice the wind and wire load of a 49 in fence, so corner and end assemblies are built heavier and line posts are spaced tighter than a livestock line of the same length.

    • Braced ends. Two posts 8 ft apart at 4 ft embedment with a horizontal compression member and a diagonal tension wire opposing the pull — non-negotiable at every corner, end, gate and grade break.
    • Line posts. 12–20 ft spacing on level ground, tightened to 8–12 ft on grade and through curves.
    • Driven, not hand-set. Posts driven so soil compacts around the shaft; see post augering and driving for rock and hardpan.
    • Stretching. Full-height stretcher bar so the top wire is not left slack — a loose top wire is the one a deer will fold.
    • Sail load. On exposed ridge lines and long open runs, spacing tightens further and intermediate braced posts break the run.

    Gates, crossings, terrain and water gaps

    Gates and crossings are where game fence fails, because a fence that is 8 ft tall for 4,000 ft and 6 ft at the gate is a 6 ft fence.

    • Gates at full height. Every gate is framed to the same 8 ft height as the fence line, with a tight ground clearance.
    • Equipment access. 12–16 ft gates for tractors and sprayers; 4–6 ft man-gates for walking access.
    • Terrain following. Mesh contoured to grade with tie-downs in dips so nothing can pass underneath and intermediate bracing over crowns.
    • Water gaps. Creek and drainage crossings built as breakaway flood-gate panels that release in high water rather than taking the fence line out.
    • One-way jumps and escape ramps. Available on exclusion perimeters so deer already inside the enclosure can leave without breaching the fence.

    Maintenance, service life and cost per year

    A Class 3 fixed-knot game fence should give 30–40 years with an annual walk, which puts its cost per year of service well below a shorter-lived fence that has to be rebuilt inside the same window.

    • Annually — walk the line, clear brush and volunteer trees off the wire, check brace diagonals.
    • After storms — reset water-gap panels and clear fallen limbs before the wire takes a permanent set.
    • Ongoing — no annual re-stretching, unlike hinge-joint fence.
    • Crop math — annualize the fence cost against the browse loss it prevents on your own acreage; that comparison is what justifies 8 ft fence.

    Installed pricing for 8 ft fixed-knot is quoted per linear foot after the line is walked, since clearing, terrain and corner count drive it. Call 502-468-1209.

    S&S installs new fence and full replacements only, plus painting and temporary fence rental. Warranty service covers our own installs for one year.

    Warranty and proof

    Every game fence install carries the S&S one-year workmanship warranty, with General Liability and Workers’ Compensation carried and COIs issued on request.

    S&S Fencing & Property Maintenance LLC — family-owned and woman-owned since 2015, based in Cox’s Creek, Nelson County, Kentucky. BBB A+ Accredited and Blue Book ProView Verified. Shawn and Shelby Fick at 502-468-1209. See prequalification and credentials.

    References for game, orchard and vineyard exclusion work are provided on request. Completed work is shown in the projects gallery.

    How We Work

    Our Process

    1. Step 1

      Walk the boundary

      We walk the perimeter, mark crossings and grade breaks, and identify where deer are actually entering.

    2. Step 2

      Specify the fence

      Height, stay graduation, coating class, post spacing and gate schedule written into the scope.

    3. Step 3

      Heavy ends, driven posts

      Braced assemblies sized for an 8 ft sail load, posts driven rather than hand-set.

    4. Step 4

      Stretch, gate, walk off

      Full-height stretching, gates framed to 8 ft, water gaps built breakaway, then a final walk together.

    Frequently Asked Questions

    Eight feet (96 in) is the working minimum for excluding whitetail deer. Shorter fences are jumped, particularly under food pressure or when deer are pushed by hunting activity nearby. Fences under 8 ft only work with additional deterrents such as outriggers or electrification.
    Fixed-knot construction locks each vertical stay to each horizontal wire with a separate knot wire, so an 8 ft mesh keeps its shape under impact instead of pivoting and bagging like hinge-joint fence. It is also why fixed-knot game fence lasts 30 to 40 years.
    Line posts run 12 to 20 ft apart on level ground and tighten to 8 to 12 ft on grade changes, curves and exposed runs. An 8 ft fence carries about twice the wind and wire load of a 49 in fence, so spacing and bracing are both heavier.
    Every corner, end, gate and grade break is built as a braced assembly of two posts set 8 ft apart at 4 ft embedment, joined by a horizontal compression member with a diagonal tension wire running from the base of the brace post to the top of the end post so the diagonal opposes the pull.
    Crossings are built as breakaway flood-gate panels that release under high water instead of dragging out the adjacent fence line. Dips get tie-downs so nothing can pass beneath the mesh, and the panel is reset after storms.
    A Class 3 galvanized fixed-knot game fence lasts 30 to 40 years in Kentucky conditions with an annual walk to clear brush and check brace diagonals. Class 40 or Bezinal zinc-aluminum coating extends that in wet or aggressive ground.

    Send us the drawings and the spec section

    We bid from plans, walk the site, and return a line-item scope. Ask Shawn or Shelby Fick directly at 502-468-1209.

    Request a Scope Review 502-468-1209

    Also See

    Related Scopes & Documentation

    Family-Owned · Woman-OwnedFully Insured · COIs on Request1-Year Workmanship WarrantyNew Installs & Full ReplacementsFree On-Site Estimates
    BBB Accredited BusinessBlue Book ProView Verified

    Ready for your free fence estimate? Call Shawn & Shelby anytime.

    Call 502-468-1209Get Free Estimate
    Call NowFree Estimate