Preparing Your Fences for Bushfire Season

After the fires of 2019-2020, no one in rural Australia needs reminding how devastating bushfire can be. Fences are one of the first casualties — thousands of kilometres of fencing were destroyed in those fires, and the cost and effort to rebuild was enormous. While you can't fireproof a fence, you can prepare in ways that reduce damage and speed up recovery.

BEFORE FIRE SEASON: PREPARATION

1. CLEAR VEGETATION ALONG FENCE LINES

This is the single most effective thing you can do. Fire needs fuel, and long grass, scrub, and dead vegetation growing against a fence line is fuel. Clear or slash a minimum 3-metre strip either side of boundary fences. Wider is better — 5-10 metres if practical.

This doesn't just reduce the chance of fire burning along the fence line — it reduces the intensity of fire that does reach the fence. Lower intensity means less damage to wire, mesh, and posts.

Around Orange, Bathurst, and the Central West, the grass grows thick after good spring rains. By December, it's dry and it's fuel. Slashing fence lines should be part of your November routine, every year.

2. CHECK STRAINER ASSEMBLIES

Timber strainer posts, stays, and rails will burn. There's not a lot you can do to prevent that — CCA-treated timber burns just like untreated timber in a bushfire. But what you can do is make sure your strainers are in good condition before fire season.

Why? Because after a fire, your strainers are the first thing you need to rebuild. If they were already deteriorating, you've got a bigger rebuild job. If they were solid, you may only need to replace the burnt timber while the footings and wire are still serviceable.

Document your strainer locations and types. Take photos. After a fire, when everything is black and unrecognisable, knowing where your strainers were and what type they were makes the rebuild faster.

3. CREATE STOCK MANAGEMENT PLANS

Know in advance where you'll move stock if fire threatens. Have a plan for opening gates to let stock move to safer paddocks. Make sure gateway latches work and aren't seized or rusted shut. A few minutes fumbling with a stuck gate latch while a fire is bearing down is a few minutes you don't have.

4. STOCKPILE ESSENTIAL MATERIALS

If you've got the shed space and the budget, keeping spare fencing materials on hand means you can start repairing fences immediately after a fire, rather than waiting for deliveries when every other property owner in the district is ordering the same thing.

Useful stockpile items:

• Star pickets (our 2.1kg/m heavy-duty pickets)
• Wire (HT 2.5mm rolls)
• Fence clips
• Tie wire
• A roll or two of mesh
• Strainer post timber

After the 2019-2020 fires, fencing materials were in short supply for months. Having stock on hand puts you ahead.

5. PHOTOGRAPH AND MAP YOUR FENCES

After a fire, insurance claims require documentation. Walk your fence lines and photograph them. Note the type of mesh, picket spacing, strainer locations, and overall condition. Store photos and notes off-property (cloud storage or at a friend's house in town).

This documentation also helps with government recovery assistance programs, which have been available after major fire events.

DURING A FIRE

Stay safe. Fences can be rebuilt. Lives can't. Follow your bushfire survival plan, evacuate if necessary, and don't try to defend fences while a fire is burning through.

If it's safe to do so and you have time before a fire reaches a particular fence line, opening gates gives stock an escape route. Some farmers pre-position water tanks or sprinkler systems near critical fences, but this is only viable for small sections around the homestead.

AFTER A FIRE: ASSESSMENT AND RECOVERY

1. WAIT FOR IT TO COOL: Don't walk a burnt fence line immediately. Timber posts can smoulder for days, wire under tension can snap without warning when heat-weakened, and fallen trees on fences can shift.

2. ASSESS METHODICALLY: Walk the entire fence line with a notebook. For each section, note:

• Is the mesh intact or destroyed?
• Are pickets still standing and functional?
• Are the wires still holding tension?
• What's the state of each strainer assembly?

3. PRIORITISE REPAIRS: Fix boundary fences first (to contain stock and maintain legal boundaries), then high-priority internal fences (separating stock from hazards, lambing paddocks), then lower-priority internal fences.

4. CHECK WIRE BEFORE RE-TENSIONING: Fire can weaken wire without it being visible. HT wire that's been through extreme heat may have lost its temper (hardness) and become brittle. Test it before re-straining — a few firm bends should tell you if it's still got its spring or if it's become soft and weak.

5. ACCEPT HELP: After major fires, organisations like BlazeAid coordinate volunteers to help rebuild fences. There's no shame in accepting help — the fencing community in rural Australia is remarkable in how it pulls together after disasters.

FIRE-RESISTANT FENCING MATERIALS

Steel components (star pickets, wire, mesh) survive fire far better than timber. Star pickets may discolour and lose some coating, but the steel itself is usually fine. Wire may lose tension but remains functional if not overheated.

The main losses are:

• Timber strainer posts and stays (burn completely)
• Plastic components (insulators on electric fences, poly pipe)
• Fence coatings (bitumen on pickets melts off, but the steel survives)

When rebuilding, consider whether steel strainer posts (concrete-filled pipe) might be worth the extra cost in high fire risk areas, even though timber is the traditional and usually more practical choice.

Bushfire preparation is one of those jobs that feels like a hassle until you need it. A day of preparation now can save weeks of recovery later. If you need fencing materials for preparation or recovery, Outback Fencing Supplies is here to help. 76 Astill Drive, Orange — call 0434 093 077.

END OF 25 BLOG POSTS (POSTS 26-50)

Written for Outback Fencing Supplies

76 Astill Drive, Orange NSW 2800

ABN 76 674 671 820

Ph: 0434 093 077