# Best type of e fence charger?



## ihuntgsps (Mar 10, 2008)

What are the best brands, models, of electric fence chargers? Looking for something that is not too expensive but will provide some power even in mildly weedy situations?


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## Haggis (Mar 11, 2004)

That is a question to which I too should enjoy enlightenment.

I've used a variety of chargers here at Wolf Cairn Moor, both AC and DC; they all worked for a while and then they began losing their "uummph". About a year is the longest one has endured here and they're costing me about $85 a copy. My fence line is only about 3 miles, and all of the chargers I buy say they're good for 20 or 25 miles.


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## Up North (Nov 29, 2005)

I would encourage you to look at the Parmak products. Preferably the ones in the old-fashioned steelbox. Preferably the ones that are painted red. Preferably the ones that have more power (miles rating or Joules) than you perceive you need.
Fencers work best when they make a *lasting* impression on the animal that touches them.


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## agmantoo (May 23, 2003)

I too use the ParMak chargers. I am electrifying a lot of fence. The last one I bought was the ParMak RM 1. It has performed admirably and has a 2 year warranty including lightning. These are good people to do business with.


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## topside1 (Sep 23, 2005)

I agree ParMak chargers are the way to go...you get what you pay for, so buy a ParMak that's applicable to you acreage. Don't skimp on a charger or you will be sorry....


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## topside1 (Sep 23, 2005)

This is the charger that I use for goats and cattle. Goat/calves touch it once and the beast will become confused, touch it twice and they learn to never touch it again.

A powerful model designed for today's large pastures. Ideal for single or multi-wired high tensile fences.
The Super Energizer 4 does everything a fence controller should do - it just does it better!!! 
Super Energizer 4 is equipped with a built-in DIGITAL performance meter which tells you the exact condition of fence. 
Shocks through wet weeds and brush. 
Over 8,000 volts of holding power with 500 OHM load. 
New color coded fence and ground terminals. Red to the fence and Black to ground.
The Super Energizer 4 controls both predators and livestock, including sheep. 
Fuse protection with built-in lightning arresters. 

Full 1 year warranty - From date of retail purchase - Covers damage caused by lightning.


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## ihuntgsps (Mar 10, 2008)

Thanks for the info. Will start checking out some Parmark charges on ebay today. I only fence about 5-6 acres...will I just be wasting energy to buy one rated for 30 miles?


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## topside1 (Sep 23, 2005)

No waste of energy, the best I recall your electric bill for your fencing system is about $1.00 per month.....can't beat that....look at the one you think you need, and then BUY the next strongest model. They use little to no power at all, the box is a step up transformer converting small amounts of 120 volt electricity into high voltage. My son has touched it a couple of times, and now he's even a believer....


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## Tad (Apr 2, 2003)

Buy a low impedance fencer. We have one, we have 55 acres devided into two acre pastures all the grass and wild roses in the world and it will still cramp your arm if you touch it on accident.


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## agmantoo (May 23, 2003)

I needed to know the power consumption of a ParMak rm1 and this is what the company provided. You can see the power consumption is nearly negligible. IMO you may ever save money by going with the higher output unit such as the RM1.

The average power consumption for your A/C fence-charging unit is rated at 1/8(.125) amps per 
hour. Based on this rating the units will average 12.5 watts per 24 hrs and 375 watts or .375 kilo watts 
per month.


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## wstevenl (Mar 26, 2008)

I've been using a Gallagher M1000 on my 6 wire hi-tensile fence for a couple of weeks now and I'm a believer! It got me a couple of times REAL good. We have to be really careful to keep kids away from it cause I'm afraid it could hurt them. It's slowly killing of the weeds that are touching it, and it has a digital display that shows how well it's working. Gallagher is made in New Zealand where they know fences. It was really important to us to not buy stuff made in China!


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## agmantoo (May 23, 2003)

wstevenl 
Those are great fence chargers. I live in a lightning prone area and the 2 year warranty on the ParMak helps. I acknowledge that the Gallagher is a work horse. Cost of ownership is the only reason I shift. I figure the purchase price divided by the warranty period is my cost of ownership. ParMaks are cheaper for me. Until they increase their prices I will remain a customer. PS...the output of a fence charger is restricted and all of the chargers must follow the guidelines if sold in the USA. Seems a child was killed prior to this upper output limit restriction.


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## wstevenl (Mar 26, 2008)

Yeah, ours has a warranty too, it may just be a year though. I 'll have to look. We had the fence builder put in a little device from Gallagher that is supposed to protect the charger from lightening. It's at the beginning of the fence and has a ground that comes off of it and goes to one of the 3 ground rods. Another thing that they did that I wasn't expecting was that they put a 4th ground rod on the furthest corner of the fence. This should help alot. With the weeds being wet the last few days our charger is now showing a 5.4kv reading. It can still hurt to get shocked but how does that compare to other chargers?


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## agmantoo (May 23, 2003)

Man has yet to devise a device that will protect sensitive electronics from lightning. I have a box of fence charges of various brands and a number of devices for protecting chargers that are destroyed by lightning. Your best bet for protection is the manufacturers warranty as the manufacturer is just taking their chances in order to entice you to buy their product.


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## wstevenl (Mar 26, 2008)

I may want to put some hogs out in the woods, rotating them with an electric fence. Any advice on a portable electric fence charger that we can carry out in the woods and hook up easily, without any AC power?


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## FL.Boy (Dec 17, 2007)

From my understanding miles don't mean anything it's the Joule volts. I have a 10 mile charger and its junk wont burn weeds and i only have about 1/2 mile of wire hooked up. I can't find how many joule volts it has so it is very low. I'm now looking at a 6 or 15 joule volt charger.


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## wstevenl (Mar 26, 2008)

I don't want to be a smart-alek but it's joules, not joule volts.


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## FL.Boy (Dec 17, 2007)

lol i got my mind on 5,000 things


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## linn (Jul 19, 2005)

This is not exactly on topic; but has anyone used a solar powered battery fencer? If so, what do you think?


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## Up North (Nov 29, 2005)

wstevenl said:


> I may want to put some hogs out in the woods, rotating them with an electric fence. Any advice on a portable electric fence charger that we can carry out in the woods and hook up easily, without any AC power?


They make a car battery operated charger for this application. They work IF you are religious about switching the battery with a recharged one on a regular basis. Any shorts or leaks in fence will draw battery down quickly. If you use a battery operated charger, purchase a deep - cycle marine battery instead of an automotive battery for best results.
If you can place the charger where sunshine can reach it... a solar powered unit with the backup battery inside can be convenient and effective. They are effective here in Kansas, but we have lots of sunshine.
Here's an example of a solar unit, I would compare prices at Kencove and Premier before purchasing though.
http://www.jefferslivestock.com/ssc...=UGH3CTTFB4FK8PLRE283F7PV5BD4DH75&pf_id=12154


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## wstevenl (Mar 26, 2008)

Has anyone ever used this one? It can also be used with a 12V.
http://www.jefferslivestock.com/ssc...G73WKUDVJSW8NMDBB503X2BALT24BL3&pf_id=0031722


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## agmantoo (May 23, 2003)

The best solar is the 12 volt ParMak, do not waste your money on the 6v from them. The best none mains powered unit is a 12 volt non solar and a regimen for recharging the big 12 volts. Charger output run this sequence
Mains.....Hotest
battery....next hottest
solar.....least output.

mains....most reliable, least attention
solar.....reliable but have to replace battery, subject to be stolen
battery....most maintenance, must charge the battery and replace same over time

mains.....broad selection and price but more output for money spent
battery...medium priced and decent output if you buy a good model
solar....with decent output with 12 volt unit, the price is high.


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