Solar Fence Trouble Shooting

[DavidAH]

Charged my new Patriot PS5 for 3 days before connecting to about 180' of aluminum wire supported by step-down plastic posts. Weeded all along the line, inspected all insulators, put 2 rebar grounding stakes into about 12 - 14" of dirt, wired them together and connected to grounding terminal.

The red indicator light barely can be seen flashing, and of course I can touch the wire. I did get an inadvertent shock from the output terminal but couldn't call it 'shocking'. More tingly...

Anybody?

 

[dwilliams35]

I'd get a tester that will read voltage so you can see if the ground just isn't "making".. Rebar sometimes isn't the best thing to do that with..

 

[ustmd]

How dry is your ground?--if your ground is dry, try pour 5 gallons of water over the grounding poles and retest.

How far apart are your ground poles? Typical of 10ft and there are usually 3.

12-14" is somewhat shallow, most installations are at 36". I also agree that the rebar is not the best grounding rod. Rust will act as an insulator and inhibit the circuit.

You can also make a test loop of wire--maybe 2-3 ft and use that to see if your shock improves.

Have you checked the continuity of your wires?

 

[DT86]

I agree with others who said check the ground connection, but the light should be fairly visible on the charger even with a bad ground or even none at all. Is it possible you've got a dud?

 

[MossRoad]

Doesn't your product manual tell you to use three 6' ground rods placed 10' apart?

 

[dwilliams35]

I'm not sure about that model, but one of mine will go "dim" without a good ground.

 

[texasjohn]

The secret to successful and FAST electric fence problem solving is this tester:

Gallagher Fault Finder (Smart Fix) it can be located for various prices...I think I got mine for about $80.

Gallagher Fault Finder (Smart Fix) | QC Supply

I really mean it...all other testers pale in their capability to identify exactly what problem your fence has.

This tester shows VOLTAGE
and AMPERAGE
and DIRECTION OF CURRENT FLOW

With a little experience, I can now put the tester on the fence and know if it is good all along the fence, or if there is a problem somewhere.
By following the amount and direction of current flow, you can walk DIRECTLY to the location of a short.
Put the tester in the middle of the fence and you will determine if the problem is "behind" you or " ahead of" you.
Fix one problem and you know instantly if all problems are resolved or if there is yet another one to search out.

Yes, more pricey than the simple blinking lights, but OH, SO MUCH MORE WORTH WHILE!!

Finding a problem which previously would have taken me half a day with a five-o-light now takes less than 30 minutes. I have 200 acres of electric exterior and cross fences....that's miles and miles of electrified wire!!!! If your time is worth anything, just spend the money...I held off several years...DUMB ME.:ashamed:

 

[CowboyRon]

Try taking your shoes off before you touch the wire. I bet that tingle will turn into a jolt.
Like the other posters have mentioned, you have to keep the grounding rod in moist dirt.

 

[MossRoad]

Try taking your shoes off before you touch the wire. I bet that tingle will turn into a jolt.
Like the other posters have mentioned, you have to keep the grounding rod in moist dirt.

Ha ha!! That reminds me of when I put in my first solar powered fence around my vegetable garden. I just had to touch it. I was wearing flip-flop sandals. I keep a "death zone" tilled nice and fluffy a couple feet wide around the outside of the garden as recommended to promote good ground contact for animals that touch the fence. I could hear the fencer ticking. I tapped the wire. Nothing. I kept keeping my finger on it longer and longer thinking I might just be tapping it between pulses. Nothing. Finally I just left my finger on the wire and I felt the tiniest of little static tick......tick......tick..... well heck! That's not bad at all. So I kicked off a flip-flop and stuck my bare foot in the nice soft tilled dirt and grabbed that wire.........

I felt that pulse go right up my arm, through my shoulder and down my side through my leg and foot straight into the ground!!! BZZT!!! Man I jumped and did the stupid dance while I shook my hand, then looked around to make sure no one saw me!!! :laughing:

 

[CowboyRon]

Ha ha!! That reminds me of when I put in my first solar powered fence around my vegetable garden. I just had to touch it. I was wearing flip-flop sandals. I keep a "death zone" tilled nice and fluffy a couple feet wide around the outside of the garden as recommended to promote good ground contact for animals that touch the fence. I could hear the fencer ticking. I tapped the wire. Nothing. I kept keeping my finger on it longer and longer thinking I might just be tapping it between pulses. Nothing. Finally I just left my finger on the wire and I felt the tiniest of little static tick......tick......tick..... well heck! That's not bad at all. So I kicked off a flip-flop and stuck my bare foot in the nice soft tilled dirt and grabbed that wire.........

I felt that pulse go right up my arm, through my shoulder and down my side through my leg and foot straight into the ground!!! BZZT!!! Man I jumped and did the stupid dance while I shook my hand, then looked around to make sure no one saw me!!! :laughing:

My son was arguing one time that the fence wasn't strong enough.
I had him take off his shoes and test it again. He was agreeable after that.

 

[TomSeller]

The secret to successful and FAST electric fence problem solving is this tester:

Gallagher Fault Finder (Smart Fix) it can be located for various prices...I think I got mine for about $80.
:

That sounds interesting. I tried to find a you tube on it, but could not.

 

[DT86]

That sounds interesting. I tried to find a you tube on it, but could not.

If it's anything like my STAFIX tester they are the greatest thing ever for electric fence. Mine can even turn the charger off, from anywhere on the farm, by touching it to the hot wire and pressing a button. (Obviously it has to be a certain charger to work.)

Try this for a video...

Stafix Fault Finder

 

[texasjohn]

I couldn't find a video, either. Did find this sale price.
Amazon.com : Gallagher G50905 Fence Volt/Current Meter and Fault Finder : Patio, Lawn & Garden
The STAFIX sounds very similar.

 

[TomSeller]

If it's anything like my STAFIX tester they are the greatest thing ever for electric fence. Mine can even turn the charger off, from anywhere on the farm, by touching it to the hot wire and pressing a button. (Obviously it has to be a certain charger to work.)

Try this for a video...

Stafix Fault Finder

Very cool. Sounds like you don't need to ground it other than through your hand? Amazing it can tell amperage and direction of flow.

 

[texasjohn]

Correct, you just touch the probe to the wire and it shows the information...no mandatory grounding...true for both testers under discussion. The Gallager does not even have an obvious panel on the back side where the hand must rest....you actually begin to get a reading as you approach the fence...you can tell if that wire is carrying a current/charge before you touch it. A ground wire comes with it and can be plugged in and used...but I never have. Auto off and on, so no punching buttons necessary, automatic battery saving.

 

[DT86]

Very cool. Sounds like you don't need to ground it other than through your hand? Amazing it can tell amperage and direction of flow.

That's right, I can even drive up to the fence on my RTV and check the fence with out getting out.

They make finding faults in the fence so easy, if you've got any electric fence I would highly recommend one.

 

[TomSeller]

You guys sold me! I ordered one and can't wait to do my drive-by fence testing. Seriously, the direction of current flow will be a huge help.

 

[redman135]

Hullo DavidAH. You have a bad earth,and your system will not work properly until you install a proper earth. As you found , a cheap earth is just nasty and the animals you are trying to control will soon figure out they can beat the fence.
You don't say what size of power unit you have, this governs the size of earth system you need.
READ THE MANUAL. It will tell you what size earth system you need and what components to get. Earth rods are 6' long, galvanised(rust = bad earth in very short time) and MUST be 10' minimum apart in damp earth NOT dry earth.
My system is a Gallagher M5800. For the earth I ran an under ground stainless steel wire about 60m to a swamp and used 6x2m earth rods. I don't have trouble with bad earth any more. The earth system I inherited was bad as it was to small and would dry out around the earth wire.
The tester that comes with these units tells you the power output AND the direction of shorts, a major time saver. There is an optional unit that will turn the power on and off remotely.

 

[texasjohn]

Redman is in NZ, where electrical fencing is used widely and in very long fences. Their experience with the fencing is excellent as is the equipment, which was first used extensively there and in Australia, if I recall correctly.
He's right, a good electrical connection is founded with a GREAT grounding technique (earthing). Given that, and a modern, high impedance fence charger and a great fence tester as we are discussing, you are all set.

TomSeller, when yours arrives, let us know if you think it is worth it...wait until you have a REAL problem with your fence...did you find it faster than your present method? I'm betting you will become a believer!

 

[TomSeller]

TomSeller, when yours arrives, let us know if you think it is worth it...wait until you have a REAL problem with your fence...did you find it faster than your present method? I'm betting you will become a believer!

I am looking forward to it. I spend too much time hunting the problem down. I assume these work on a looped system?