Use at least one 2.5mm double insulated cable as your leadout. Two or more joined in parallel are better, as this lowers the resistance of the wire. See the table below for "Wire Resistance". Leadouts can be run either overhead or underground. Underground is preferred, as there are less chances of the leadout being interfered with by high vehicles. Where leadouts are being run underground in high traffic areas, it is recommended that the leadout cable or cables are run through irrigation tubing as an extra safeguard against damage. Using insulated cable as a leadout has several advantages.

• No chance of shorting out on sheds or the ground
• Totally waterproof
• Easily installed and long lasting

The longer a leadout wire, the greater it's resistance. Resistance of the wire is one of the biggest problems to overcome. Larger diameter wires create less resistance and therefore better current flow.

The table below shows the Ohms resistance of galvanised steel fence wire over 1km (0.6 miles). The lower the Ohms the lower the resistance.

Different metal types have varying resistances. For example, 1km of 2.7mm aluminium wire has only 11 ohms resistance. Aluminium wire makes an excellent leadout over very long distances but it is at least double the price of conventional steel wires.

• Use bigger diameter wires i.e. Use 3.15mm or 4mm wires instead of 2.5mm.
• Run wires in parallel. Run two or more wires along the fence line side by side and connect these wires together at each strainer post (see diagram below) Two wires together will halve the resistance and three will reduce it to only 1/3.
• Use aluminium wire for leadouts. Aluminium wire has only 1/6 the resistance of steel wire. It does not have the same tensile strength however, so a minimum diameter of 2.7mm is recommended.

Always connect your live and earth wires in parallel at both ends of the strain.