How to Install Irrigation & Invisible Pet Fence Wire

We've been getting requests for instructions on installing RamcorpWire invisible pet-fence wire. The video below from the manufacturer walks through installation with a small trenching machine — if you're only doing one yard, your local tool rental likely has the same machine for the day. A few notes from our side:

• Pet-fence wire and tracer wire are the same product in our catalog — single-conductor insulated copper, available in 12, 14, 16, and 18 AWG. It's listed under Ramcorp's tracer-wire category; the gauge you want depends on loop length. Rule of thumb: 18 AWG for yards under half an acre, 16 AWG up to 2 acres, 14 AWG up to 5 acres, 12 AWG for anything bigger or where soil is highly resistive.
• We stock continuous put-ups up to 2,500 feet, so most residential perimeters can be done splice-free. Splices in buried pet-fence wire are the #1 cause of failure 2–3 years in — water gets into the splice, the copper oxidizes, the signal drops out.
• Bury the loop 3–6 inches deep. Going deeper than about 6 inches starts to attenuate the signal at the collar.

Safety: consult a professional installer if you're not confident, and follow your local codes and ordinances. Before any digging, call 811 or your local Call Before You Dig center to flag underground utilities. It's free and takes a few business days.