How To Make Paddocks For Horses For Less Than $500

Having a paddock or corral for your horse is a very nice thing to have. It allows your horse to be able to move around, and be outside as well as inside. I needed to make our pens more secure and add new gates so I thought I would share with you what I did.
This is a project you can do yourself, with the right tools.
I used 4 x 6 x 8' posts to start. I used a post hole digger, and shovels and eventually we ended up renting a post hole digger to make fast work of the holes. I dug the holes about 3 1/2 feet deep. This way the posts are secure in the ground for when my horses lean on the posts. With the posts being 4 x 6, they are also strong enough to support being leaned on.
After I dug the holes, and put the posts in the ground, I filled the holes about half full of dirt. Then I used a tamper to tamp down the dirt, and make it as solid as I could.
Each pen required 3 poles on each end, and then 3 poles in the center that separated the pens into two.
Then we added new gates. The gates we used are called bull gates. They are really strong, so when the horses lean on them, they won't bend.
Then we attached the corral panels that we already have to the posts using U connectors and hex head screws. We attached the panels to the inside of the posts, so if the horses push on them, there is the added strength of the posts to prevent them from being pushed loose.
And there were some spots of the panels that were rough, or had sharp edges, and I filled these areas with painters caulk to prevent the horses from getting cut. Eventually I am going to paint the panels gray with rustoleum paint, but for now I am just happy to have the pens up, and my horses safe!

Total spent for the project: $495.00!

It took a full day to get the pens done, but it was so worth it!