Snail Fence made of Copper Mesh

This snail fence comes from a ribbon weaving shop in Wuppertal. They normally work with fabric, but for the snail fences they weave copper wire with polypropylene threads, (which gives the copper mesh a stability) into long, flexible strips.

Up to 20 sqm large areas can be fenced with this filigree woven band. It is not necessary to set up the fence in a particular form; the band is flexible. You wind the enclosed pegs like post of a fence through one or two stitches in the band and put them into the ground. You can also stretch the band in planters along the edge of the vessel. It has been proven, that copper, when it comes into contact with the snails’ natural body slime, sets off an unpleasant reaction (due to oxidization) that deters them from trying to crawl over the copper fence.

That snails get an electric shock when they come into contact with copper is a theory that is as widespread as it is unproven. What is considered certain, however, is that the slime produced by the snails in combination with copper leads to a chemical reaction that damages the animals' mucous membranes through oxidation processes - and ultimately prevents the animals from crawling over a copper strip. We offer repellents that owe their effect to a proportion of pure copper - they are suitable for beds and pots.