A bare wire will ground out on the wood post, especially when it gets wet. You can use wrap around insulator tubing instead. It's a little bit cheaper than individual termination insulators. kencove.com/fence/detail.php?code=I40-100

Yes

Fire really isn't an issue with modern energizers because the current is pulsing. Older energizers had an issue with fire because the current was continuously flowing. The only real risk might be if the grass is extremely dry and the wire contacts something that might cause it to throw a spark. Even then, the risk is low because that spark isn't likely to be hot enough to start a fire. I hope this helps.

I probably should have done that in the video. 🤦‍♂️ Being oversized for the fence system can be hard on the internals of some of the cheaper equipment. If you buy a high quality charger, you'll likely be ok.

I bought a really powerful energizer and it has worked out pretty good. I do think that being oversized causes it to "find" weaknesses in your system. For example, I've had it burn through some of my cheap tubing insulators. But the advantage of the powerful system is that it burns the weeds / kills the grass and weeds so that you don't have to trim as much. For me, it's worth it to have the big joules.

​@@PlaneViewFarmcan a cracked insulated cause it to ground out. Even if the wire is not completely against the post

@@solschwartz7119 Yes it can! It can arc across and ground out. That's a really good question. I wish I had included that in the video.

@@PlaneViewFarm thank you

Good question! It does provide some grounding for the system, but not much for a couple of reasons. The posts don't get deep enough to provide much ground contact, while a grounding rod will be at least 6 feet deep, if not more. Also, the wires are not fixed tight to the posts with the clips. They are just loose enough to expand and contract. That allows for breaks in the flow of current back to the energizer through the ground. I hope that helps.