Electric Fence Basics | Electrical stuff you should understand

Some helpful electric fence terms

Watts: Units of electrical rate of doing work (similar

to how horsepower is a physical rate of

doing work). One horsepower can lift 1 pound

vertically at the rate of 550 feet per second, or

heat 1 pound of water at the rate of 0.7

degrees Fahrenheit (0.39 degrees C) per second.

46 watts equals 1 horsepower. Therefore, 746

watts can lift 1 pound at the rate of 550 feet

per second, or heat 1 pound of water at the

rate of 0.7 degrees Fahrenheit per second. A

flow rate of 1 amp at a pressure of 1 volt produces

1 watt.

Amps x volts = watts.

Joules: Units of electrical energy [similar to how

550 foot pounds (which is equal to 1 horsepower

for one second) is a specific amount of

physical energy]. 746 joules equals 550 foot

pounds. One joule is the amount of energy

required to do approximately 0.74 foot

pounds of work. One joule is the energy

required to produce 1 watt for 1 second.

Watts x seconds = joules.

Energy: The capacity or ability to complete a particular

amount of work (see joules). It is largely

the quantity of joules released by an energizer

during each pulse that determines the

energizer’s effective power.

3,600,000 joules = 1 kilowatt-hour.

Capacitor: An electrical component capable of

storing and releasing electrical energy and

approximating a reservoir, the volume of

which is stated in electrical units called farads

(micro farads). If 1 amp flows into a capacitor

for one second and this causes a rise in pressure

of 1 volt, then the volume of the capacitor

equals 1 farad.

Amps x seconds/volts rise = farads.