Originally posted by: KingNothing
Voltage doesn't kill, amperage kills. So what you need to do is figure out how much amperage the human body can withstand, then wire an [insert term] in between a power cord and your fence. Voltage and amperage are inversely related. Current traveling on electrical lines is high voltage, low amperage, then gets converted to low voltage, high amperage for your home appliances. You need whatever device that is.
it's not the amperage either... that might be what you heard in high school though.
It actually depends on a combination of voltage, current, and frequency. For example, the human body can survive about twice as much current DC as AC at the same voltage... Most electrocutions with household wiring are due to the heart getting knocked out of sync - this is mostly due to the 60 Hz characteristic of the AC commonly used in the US which coincidentally is close the the frequency of the electrical signals sent to the heart.
Anyway... Michael D.. any simple to build fence would be easily defeated. Simply ground the fence.. no more zap... or, since it's so big, get a running jump so you're not contacting the ground at the same time you're contacting the fence. Most intelligent primates could make it. (and probably at least half of the ATOT posters!) I just got a nice shock a couple of weeks ago from a cattle fence.. my shoes apparently are good insulators... I touched the wire, told my wife it wasn't hot, and unfortunately, lifted the wire for her to go under, while with my other hand, I grabbed the metal gate that was swinging toward her.. zzzzzzapppp.