Battery management

Warning! Batteries contain harmful chemicals and when used incorrectly, may cause injury. Observe the guidelines for battery care, maintenance and safety in this manual and in the documentation supplied with your battery.

Battery charging

Warning!

-Do not attempt to recharge a non-rechargeable battery.

-When recharging a battery, ensure that there is adequate ventilation to allow gases to disperse.

Regular recharging of the battery is essential. Use a suitably rated battery charger and refer to the battery manufacturer’s recommendations.

1Disconnect the battery from the energizer.

2Attach the positive (+) battery charger lead to the positive terminal of the battery, and the negative (–) battery charger lead to the negative terminal on the battery.

3Insert the battery charger's input power plug into a mains or line socket and turn on the power supply.

4After the battery is charged, disconnect it from the battery charger before connecting it to the energizer.

Caution! Over-charging the battery will reduce its life. Do not exceed the recommendations of the battery manufacturer on recharging the battery from a mains-powered (line-powered) source.

Battery care and maintenance

•House the battery in a suitably designed battery box, if the battery is likely to be exposed to the weather.

•When not in use, keep the battery as fully charged as possible.

•Recharge a discharged battery as soon as possible.

•Batteries should be stored fully charged and recharged at regular intervals (every 8 weeks)

•Inspect the battery regularly to ensure that the electrolyte level does not fall below 12 mm (½") above the surface of the battery plates.

•Fill using deionised, distilled or rain water. Do not overfill. Refer to the battery manufacturer’s recommendations for more information.

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Battery safety
•Ensure that the battery is well ventilated when recharging.
•Avoid temperatures greater than 50 °C (120 °F).
•Ensure the battery is not exposed to naked flame or sparks.

Building a permanent electric fence

Components of an electric fence

An electric fence system comprises the following elements:
•An energizer.

•An earth system. This comprises a number of metal rods inserted into the ground, which are connected to the Fence earth terminal on the energizer.

•Insulated underground cables. Used to connect the energizer to the earth and fence.

•An insulated fence. Connected to the Fence output terminal of the energizer. Fences can be made to a variety of designs (see below).

Other useful components that can be added: Cut-out switches. Installed at regular intervals, these allow you to isolate sections of the fence for repair.

Lightning diverter kit. Used to minimise the damage to your energizer from lightning conducted down the fence line.

Typical installation

The animal receives a shock when it completes a circuit between the fence and the earth system. The fence below has all live wires and requires conductive soils. These fences are often referred to as 'all-live' or 'earth-return' fences.

Alternative installation

For poor conductivity soils (dry or sandy), a 'fence-return' or 'earth-wire-return' system is recommended. On these fences the Fence earth terminal is connected directly to at least one of the fence wires. The animal gets maximum shock from touching a live and earth wire at the same time.