If you’re a dog owner, you know that dogs have an amazing sense of smell and a wonderful curiosity about everything happening outside their own fenced yards. If your dogs are anything like mine, they thoroughly investigate every inch of the yard and even try to push the boundaries as often as they can. Enter this roll bar fence DIY & my Dad to the rescue. 
FYI we’re not a professional builders, just dog owners that needed a solution and this totally helped us with our problem.
Trust me, I’ve already found ways to deal with my diggers by finding ways to patch the bottom of the fence to keep them from digging out, but I never thought I had to worry about them jumping the fence since I mainly had dogs under 20 lbs. Once I adopted my 70 lbs of muscle however, I knew I had to figure out a way to keep him in without having to re-fence my backyard.
Instead of spending thousands of dollars to redo the fence, the roll bar on the top of the fence is intended to keep your pets in by making it difficult for them to grab the top because the roll bar makes them fall off with its spinning capabilities (much like how a rolling-pin works). The added benefit is that it also keeps other animals and/or predators like coyotes from entering your yard.
After 3 months of use, it seems to be doing its job, which is why I wanted to share this roll bar fence DIY to help other furbaby parents who are running out of low-cost options.
Roll Bar Fence Supplies:
- tape measure
- 2 sizes of pvc pipe (1 in. inner roller & 3 in. outer roller)
- steel/braided wire
- L-brackets – we used 4″ x 7/8″
- crimps/wire anchor locks
- electric screwdriver/drill with enough power to get through the top of your fence
- wrench, to tighten down the bolts on the crimps/wire anchor locks (or whatever it is you buy to lock down the ends of the wire rope).
- hacksaw
- Bolt cutters, or wire cutters, to cut the wire rope.
(affiliate links provide an idea of what to look for; actual supplies were purchased at a hardware store)
Roll Bar Fence Directions:
Measure your fence line to determine how many feet of pvc pipe and wire you’ll need (feel free to purchase extra feet of wire for cut-off & tie-down purposes). Then measure out small sections of your fence line (try to break it up into 4 ft or smaller, to help it work right) so you’ll know how many L-brackets and crimps/wire anchor locks you’ll need, along with how many cuts you’ll need to make on the pvc pipes. Once purchased, use your hacksaw to cut your pvc pipes into the appropriate lengths, leaving about a ½ inch to ¾ inch leeway to allow the tubes to spin freely.
Attach the L-bracket to the fence, making sure the L is facing towards the center of the wire run.
Now you need to measure for your next L-bracket. Leave about ¼ inch gap between the roller’s end cap. Secure one side with the lock, then thread the wire rope through the smaller PVC pipe, slide the larger PVC pipe over that, and feed the wire through the next bracket.
Secure that end with the lock.
Make sure you keep as much tension as possible on the whole thing to keep the PVC up and spinning free above the fence.
Continue this process until the entire fence is complete.
So far this has proven to keep my muscle-bound, climbing, hurdler in check. Fingers crossed it continues to work and that it helps keep your furbabies safe and out of harms way in your yard too!
Happy building!
What DIY techniques have you developed to help keep your pets in and/or others out?
This post contains affiliate links, which means if you purchase something via those links Your Sassy Self receives a small percentage of the profits. Thanks for your support!
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You make it look so easy! I wish I had that when the kids were little to keep them in the yard 🙂
Ha, too funny! The basics of it are pretty easy, but making all the cuts, ties, etc. can get tedious especially if you have a big yard. 😉
I did this and it works sooo good. Dog has not got out. I did it in 5 foot sections. Used flower pot hanger brackets and put over cinder block wall.
Amazing! Great work!
What do you think it would cost from about 300 ft of fence?
Sorry Leslie, depends on how much the materials cost in your area, but it would definitely be less than replacing the entire fence 😉
All PVC pipe I have seen has writing on it which is pretty tacky looking atop a fence. Where can I find PVC with no writing?
Sorry Richard, mine had writing on it too, but most of it gets covered in the Spring and Summer with shrubs and trees so it’s not that big of an issue at my place.
Just use a plastic safe spray paint on the PVC before you install it 🙂
Try maybe painting it?
Yes, good point Maranda, thanks!
Put on a pair of gloves and use acetone or some other solvent based PVC cleaner with a rag to wipe off any printing or marks on the PVC pipe before use. It will usually wipe off very easy with this and it won’t harm the PVC as it will only be in contact with the surface for a very brief period.
Great idea Ben, thanks for sharing!
If you use alcohol, sometimes it will remove it. Make sure it’s a strong %…hope that helps.
They sell PVC Cleaner which takes the writing off the pipes. Or you can use Goo Gone or Acetone. Or spray paint with a plastic spray paint like Krylon fusion.
We’re you able to do this same solution on your fence gates? That is where our pup likes to jump. Thank you.
Yes, same set up, just cut the pipes to fit and it worked
Spray paint the roller the same color of your fencing. They make all sorts of paint for metal, Plastic etc.
Would this work on cinderblock fence. Not sure the L brackets will hold.
[…] I did find a really ingenious post about a DIY project for fence jumpers. You guys know how much I love DIY projects! It involves PVC pipe on the top of the fence. The post even includes a Youtube video. Check it out if you have a fence jumper. […]
We built the rollers on top of our 4 foot fence but the rollers do not always roll. Our dog can still climb over. I looked again at your instructions and I do not think we did anything too much different than what you said. We did make the large roller a little shorter than the inside roller so that the big roller would rest on the small one and not on the cable.
Have you any ideas to make the rollers roll as they should? Would axle grease on the small roller work or would it just make a mess?
Thank you.
Dogs, they are persistent. Donald I would totally try some greasing agent like you suggested and maybe even petroleum jelly to see if that helps it roll.
Hi Donald,
I would definitely avoid any oil based lubricant. Not only is it messy but it will also attract dirt and grime like a magnet. We use a dry teflon or silicone lubricant on our product and it works amazingly. Remington makes a teflon lubricant called “Remington Dry-Lube” which can be found at Wal-Mart. It you cannot find that try Home Depot for a silicone lubricant. Both are in a spray can. Hope this helps!
All the best,
Kip Robinson
Roll Guard Inc.
http://www.coyoteroller.com
Perfect, thanks!
Make sure they have wiggle room between the brackets. Sometimes having them too close will keep the pipe from rolling, The larger the outer PVC pipe the more likely it is to roll….but that means u have to adjust the bracket size
GL!
Great tip!
We built the coyote roller when my lab suddenly decided she was going to climb the fence. We are still having a problem on the roller on our curved-top gate. Do you have any suggestions on a corner hinged curve top chain link gate? Seems whatever we try, she can still climb over! I’m so afraid she will get out while we are gone and get hit by a car!
Oh Vicki I know that fear well. My gates had decorative curved tops, which we removed to secure the coyote roller appropriately. But if that isn’t an option, maybe try stacking items in front of that portion of the fence so that she can’t use the fence to climb and/or would need a large running start to clear it to deter here. Hope these suggestions or something else helps.
This is amazing! What a great idea and it’s so great that it’s a DIY so you’re not paying thousands for an actual fence with the roll bar!??
God bless you for sharing the idea! Even with the item list & total directions too! (Plus the video is so helpful!)
?Yay! to Dad for such a great idea!!!
I’m sure he’s got the whole family, friends, the whole neighborhood and town calling to pay him to do their fences too! ?
You are so very welcome Serena – it made the world of difference for us. Hope it does for you too!
Rocio – this is a wonderful post on using a roll bar fence to keep your pets in and to keep your home secure and safe. I’ve always used secure fence panels but had no experience with roll bar fencing.. Until I read your blog post (that is) so, thank you for sharing this with us Rocio.
That’s great, thanks Karl.
Thank you for sharing this! Now that it’s been over a year, I’m wondering how your rollers are doing. Still going strong?
When you attach the L-brackets, do you use bolts that go all the way through both layers of metal to a nut on the bottom side, or do use screws that hold well through a single layer of metal? Thank you so much
Hi Jocele, yup, we’ve only had to tighten up one bracket. And I think the way my dad did it was that it just went through one layer of metal. Hope that helps and good luck!
oops didn’t get a notification of the reply. Thank you! Off to Home Depot I go!
Awesome, let me know how it goes Jocele 😀
Have you had any experience with only a single 1″ pvc? Will it roll just as good?
Does the braided wire have to be bare wire, or can you have a plastic coated wire?
No, sorry. This is our first and only addition. As for the wire, it just need to be something that stays taut regardless of how many times it gets pressed on as our escape artists try to get out. ?
Me ha enamorado tu artículo. Gracias por mostrar artículos así
When I saw coyote roller mentioned here I thought you mean to use it on bottom of fence. Here we have field fence and coyotes come through on the bottom and break it down enough that our x-large dog can get through. Wouldn’t this pvc pipe work on the bottome and just attach it securely to the existing fence? wherever there are large holes. I have to do this project by myself and I can’t take on repairing field fence!
thanks for more tips. Great site.
Thank you for stopping in and sharing your concerns and love for my site. I had small dogs that liked to dog under the fence before I had to come up with the roller option. I wouldn’t recommend the roller option for the bottom of your fence. Personally I used chicken wire to keep them from digging under. I connected it to my fence and dug it it a foot down with metal stakes to hold it in place. Then I placed bricks in front to keep them from getting close enough to dig through. It took some time to complete, but it worked perfectly. Hope this gives you some ideas for your fence and you’re able to keep your dog in and those pesky coyotes out.
Will this work for cats? Has anyone tried with Eire pet cats?
We live in an RV park and are only allowed to have a four foot fence. Lol we already stretched this a little bit by making it five feet. Do you know if this would work as well if installed on the inside of the fence at the top at a 90 degree angle? We made our fence posts a bit higher so that we could install solar lights that would mostly stay out of the dogs’ reach, and the park owners are also picky about aesthetics.
Wow Kelly, that’s a lot of restrictions, but glad you’re making them work for you. As for the 90 degree angles, I say you do a test run on a small section of fence to try it.
Wow Kelly, that’s a lot of restrictions, but glad you’re making them work for you. As for the 90 degree angles, I say you do a test run on a small section of fence to try it and keep us posted on how it goes. Good luck!
I’ve been looking at various ways to make Coyote Rollers. I saw some people say the version with a steel cable support tend to weaken and sag down to the rolling pipe getting stuck on the fence-top surface or pressing against the cable . It seems possibly simpler and more robust to replace the cable with a 6 to 12 inch 1/2-inch thick metal bolt from the brackets into both ends of the inner pipe. It should be much easier to install and needs only a wrench to tighten a nut or two holding a bolt to each bracket. It would also be wise to use a metal pipe for the inner piece to prevent sagging that is inevitable eventually with PVC pipes outdoors in the weather and Summer heat. The trick is to make the mechanism sturdy in the long-term and easy enough for a non-handyman like me to install. What do you and your readers think of these ideas?
I was thinking something similar and am about to give it a try.