THUMBS UP! Good Quality Solar Electric Fence Charger Review | Gallagher S100 Solar Fence Charger

[@TristanBanwell]

Great review, thanks!

[@FencerFixerRepairLLCKansasCity]

You're welcome, it's a reliable brand and model.

[@letsgo243]

Is this unit good for sheep?

[@FencerFixerRepairLLCKansasCity]

It's a good unit, but I don't think it's strong enough for sheep or goats. Those two animals require a bit more power. You would be better off getting a dual powered Gallagher unit like a MBS800 or a Cyclops Champ or Brute 12V. You need at least 5-6 joules to make them respect the fence. Cattle and horses would be a lot easier to make respect the fence with the S100 but they have shorter hair and thinner skin. Sheep and goats have wool and hollow hair, which insulates then and the shock has a heck of a time

[@knawl]

You said this unit was 1 joule stored, what is the actual joule output? I need a unit for goats, they are very hard to keep in and have been getting worse, I only need to fence in 5 acres at a time but given brush, using 6 mult wires, and the fact that goats are pretty tough, electrical wise I'm reluctant to go less than a Joule, I dont want to go under powered as I've made that mistake already, what are your thoughts on this?.

[@FencerFixerRepairLLCKansasCity]

The output joules is probably around .5 - .6 joules, enough for 5 acres, but not near enough for goats at all. You need 4 - 6 joules minimum for goats. If you're stuck with using the solar type only, then I would look at the Gallagher MBS800, 8 stored joules 5.9 output joules. They're a multi powered AC/DC unit and can be mounted outside on a t-post or screwed to a wooden post or on a wall inside. They don't come with a battery or a solar panel, but you can get a good deep cycle battery from wherever and then your would need to get the correct size solar panel with the right amount of wattage to keep up with the MBS800 discharging the battery.

[@knawl]

Would you have any Idea how many watts the solar panel would have to be to keep up with the Mbs800? I tend to think I'd need to go higher with the battery and panel due to seasonal sunlight but wonder what the baseline might be?? Also I noticed Gallagher seemed to have only 10, 20 and 130 watt panels, big jump above 20. My guess is that I'd need about a 80-100w but can't find any detailed specs on the energizer. I used to be an electronics Engineer but kinda flying blind without any data. The circuitry is pretty simple in these things but without any specs it's hard to judge. Guess I could just use battery power till I get if figured out. Also do you need a regulator hooking up to a larger unit and solar panel or does the MSB unit have one incorporated?

[@matthewnewberry5315]

@@knawl I had the same problem and what I found was that most companies recommend 10 watts per joule of output. I ordered a 100 watt solar panel kit for my 8 joule charger. You need a charge regulator for your solar panel and a good deep cycle battery. Hope this helps.

[@alanwhitaker1320]

Do you recommend the Gallagher over the Cyclops?

[@richardbennick3120]

Would like to know also. Gallagher or Cyclops Champ?