Here comes the sun…

Well, the sun has been shining on southeast Iowa for a few weeks but after a week or so of rainy weather it's a welcome sight. Especially for the gardens. While the cornfields are racing to be knee high before the Fourth of July, our garden is taking its time to reach its zenith. Until then, we weed, mulch, plant, harvest (early season veggies) and generally tend the garden.

Fencing around the garden with a few FiberTuffs, VersaNet and a PRS. 

We also fence. The local raccoons, wood chucks, rabbits and deer are a problem. They like our garden as much as we do. Maybe even more so, as they often abscond with the whole plant rather than just a nibble or two.

For fences we have a few options. All of which can be found here.
VersaNet 20" or 30" is the best option for short ground based pests. It has tight spacings that can stop rabbits, ground hogs, raccoons and the neighbor's dog. For taller pests (deer) there are several 5'+ nets available to deter them from demolishing a garden.

If you have any questions, send us an email to info@premier1supplies.com or call us at 800-282-6631.

Solar Energizer FAQs

Using a solar energizer to subdivide a pasture with Cattle QuikFence. 

How do solar energizers compare to other fence energizers?

1. Their function is the same—a very brief high voltage pulse of energy.
2. Input source is a DC battery.
3. When the sun shines the solar panel recharges the battery—which eliminates the hassle of carrying the battery to/from a recharger.
4. They’re larger in physical size than 110 volt energizers—because of the solar panel, battery and case.

How do solar energizers differ from one another?

• Input needs (milliamperes per hr). 
• Pulse energy output (joules).
• Pulse rate per minute.
• Size of battery (in amp hours). 
• Size of solar panel (in watts & volts).
• Number of days the battery will last on its own without sunlight.
• Cost/joule of output and durability.

Energizing PoultryNet with a PRS 50.

What are the negatives of solar?

• Most expensive per joule of output.
• Usually lower pulse frequency than plug-in AC energizers.
• More maintenance including: 

1. Keeping the panel free of dust, snow and ice.
2. Keeping the panel fully exposed to the sun—unshaded by trees, grass, thick fence posts or buildings.
3. In winter the capacity of the battery goes down just when the amount of sunlight also goes down.

Solar energizers and electrified netting allow folks to easily graze hard to fence paddocks and pastures. 

Are solar energizers less expensive?

No. Plug-in units cost less because they don’t need a battery or a solar panel.

Are they less costly to operate?

No. The cheapest energizer to operate plugs into 110-volt AC current. 

Consider—a Kube 4000 provides 10 times more pulse energy than most farmstore solar units. Yet it uses less than 70 watts/day. That’s only $2.50 per year!

By comparison the battery in a typical farmstore solar fence energizer (1/10 the energy output of a Kube 4000) costs $24 and may need replacing every 2 years—an annual operating cost of $12.

If they cost more to buy—why are solar energizers so popular?

Because solar energizers are so easy to set up and use.

The steps are simple and few:

1. Place unit next to the fence. Face it south at a right angle to noon sun.
2. Clip the leadout wire (included in all PRS solar units) to the fence.
3. Clip the other leadout wire to a ground rod, nonrusted steel post or grounded fence wire.
4. Turn it on.
5. Check fence for proper voltage.

So how do Premier solar energizers differ from farmstore energizers?

Premier’s energizers have much higher pulse output—from .25 to 12 joules. Most farmstore solar units vary from .04 to .17 joules—enough to stop a mature horse or dairy cow but not enough for sheep, goats, poultry and wildlife or fences that will experience weed contact. 

1. We also offer “extreme” versions of PRS units for areas with less sunlight and/or colder temperatures—and we tell you where those areas are.
2. Larger solar panels and batteries.
3. Much lower cost per joule of output.
4. Stronger case that can either be placed on the soil (summer) or hung from a post (winter).

Fencing raccoons out of sweet corn with RaccoonNet. 

How do solar energizers cope with sunlight variations?

Some regions receive much less sunlight than others. And hours of sunlight vary from winter to summer.

The maps below depict the differing hours of solar “insolation” for a region in winter and summer. Solar insolation is the hours of sun available per average day that has sufficient intensity to enable a solar panel to charge a battery. 

Two very important things to note: 

1. The summer insolation hours (below) for all areas are much higher than winter hours. For southeast Iowa it’s 6 hours in summer and less than 3 in the winter. 
2. The hours available are very different depending on where you live. Michigan in summer has 5 hours vs 7.5 in Arizona! 

Then why is the same solar energizer sold in both Michigan and Arizona?  

It suits mass energizer suppliers to keep things simple. 

Yes, the panel and battery are too small for Michigan (except in mid-summer) and too large for Arizona (except mid-winter). That’s why many farmstore solar energizers often fail in the winter. 

And it’s probable that the extra sunlight in the Southwest will damage the battery in the summer by overcharging it.

What powers a solar energizer at night and on cloudy days?

A DC battery. They all have one inside the case. The battery must be large enough to supply the energizer for several sunless days.

Summer vs Winter sunlight

The maps above indicate the hours of summer and winter sunlight available per average day that have sufficient intensity to enable a 12v solar panel to recharge a 12v battery (defined as the hours of solar “insolation”).

Winter Sunlight (hrs)

Summer Sunlight (hrs)

Why is this important? 

• Because a solar energizer with the right panel and battery size for New England may overcharge a battery in Arizona unless it’s equipped with a voltage regulator. We feel that all solar panels above 15 watts should be equipped with a regulator. Overcharging destroys batteries unless a regulator is used (costly for “off-the-shelf” units so it’s rarely included).
• Solar panels that are right for Arizona are too small for Vermont—thus reducing battery life by undercharging.
• And a solar panel sized for summer usage may be too small for winter. Putting it simply, the same solar unit cannot fit all situations. That’s why solar farmstore energizers disappoint users so often. 

In the winter months—a PRS should be close to vertical to keep it perpendicular to the sun's rays at 12 noon. 

During the summer—a PRS should be slightly tilted toward the south to catch available sunlight. We prop one edge on top of the ground rod. 

Poultry Fence 101

The seemingly endless transition from winter to spring back to winter has us wondering if we'll ever see spring again. We've been trying to wait 5 minutes for the weather to change, but as soon as we see a glimpse of spring, back to winter we go.

The fleeting glimpses of warm weather has folks getting their chickens out of the coop and into the pasture. And with that, we receive more than a few calls on PoultryNet. What follows is the basics on Premier's PoultryNet and electric fence.

What is the difference between PoultryNet and PoultryNet Plus?
Posts! PoultryNet Plus has more posts per ft than PoultryNet. PoultryNet Plus has posts every 6.8ft vs. PoultryNet's 10ft. Added posts increase net support (which reduces sagging) and aid in adapting to curves, corners and dips. Click here for more information on Plus Nets.

Double spike vs. single spike—number of ground spikes at the bottom of the post. For more information on when to use double or single spikes, click here.

Connecting two rolls of netting together—place the end posts next to one another, connect the clips at the top of the net (image above). Tie posts together with supplied strings.

Energizers and electric fence—A fence energizer is a box that takes in small amounts of electrical energy from an outside source (battery or 110 volt outlet). 

The energizer stores this energy, then pushes it out of a metal terminal (marked “fence”) in very brief, high voltage and high amperage bursts (pulses). The outbound terminal is commonly called the “positive” or “fence” terminal.

All energizers also have a second terminal (marked “ground” or “earth”) whose purpose is to absorb as much of the pulse energy as possible back into the energizer. Experts call this the “negative” terminal.

An electric fence v is an extension of the 2 terminals (fence and ground/earth) of the energizer.

The inbound (earth) terminal is extended by driving metal rods into the soil and connecting them to the earth terminal with conductive wire. 

Because soil moisture is a good conductor, this makes the subsoil for miles around (not an exaggeration) an extension of the earth/ground terminal. So animals, humans and grass are all “standing” upon an extension of the energizer’s earth/negative terminal.

The outbound/fence terminal is extended by attaching conductive wires to it. They are suspended above the soil and kept separate from the soil by insulators and/or nonconductive posts.

In short, an energizers pulse travels out from the fence terminal, along the fence, through an animal, into the soil, up the ground rod and ending at the ground terminal, this completing the circuit. 

If you have any questions about netting or energizers, please call one of our fence consultants (800-282-6631) or email (info@premier1supplies.com).

Lamb survival: The first 24 hours

Today’s shepherds are different from those of 50 years ago. Most shepherds nowadays have very little time to spend with the lambs—an hour or so in the morning and then it's off to their day job for 8 to 10 hours. If shepherds work close to home, then they may also have a couple of evening hours to spend in the barn. 

If we can get the lamb through the first 24 hours, its chance of survival is greatly increased. Below are a few things that will help the lambs and the shepherd survive cold weather lambing. 

•	First of all, strong healthy lambs come from ewes that are the same. Make sure your ewes are in good shape before breeding and do not lose too much condition during gestation. Putting them on the best feed you have 6 weeks before lambing will help to make sure the ewe has plenty of milk and the lamb has a good supply of fat where he needs it. This gives the lamb the strength to get up and start nursing as soon as he is born. There is nothing better to see when you walk into the barn than a set of healthy newborn twins nursing with their tails wagging.
•	Create a routine that makes every minute count, beginning when you first walk into the lambing barn.
•	Ewes have a wax plug in their teats. In cold weather that plug can be difficult for weak lambs to suck out. So grab each ewe that lambs and strip out each teat to make sure there is plenty of milk for the lambs.
•	The next step is to take the temperature of each lamb. Your body temperature is 98.6, and the lambs' temp should be 102. If you put your finger into the lamb’s mouth and it feels warm, he is fine. If his mouth feels cold, you have a lamb that is in trouble.
•	For any lamb that is warm, all you need to do is to dip the navel into Triodine-7 to help stop infection and they should be fine.
•	The cold lambs need help right away. First try to get the lamb to suck for himself. If he will not, you will need to tube-feed him. I like the 140 cc syringe and plastic tube the best for this. The 60 cc is too small and must be refilled several times in order to get enough milk in the lamb. A 10-pound lamb needs 50 cc of milk every hour. By giving him a feeding of 140 cc, he has about 3 hours to gain his strength and begin to nurse on his own. Also, I do not like putting a tube down the lamb's throat too often--this can make it sore to the point where the lamb does not want to swallow. I like the plastic tube because it's easier to use on a lamb that fights you. In very cold barns the red tube is better as it will stay flexible.

THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT: If a lamb cannot hold its head up on its own, do not tube-feed it. Many lambs die because they are too cold and weak when being tube-fed, and they drown from the milk. You must first warm up the lamb. Put a heat lamp over the lamb until he can control his head. Then it's safe to feed him.

Heat lamps are a great source of warmth when needed, but do not overdo it. When a healthy lamb gets cold, he needs to get up and eat to stay warm. They can become too dependent on heat lamps.

To make sure the lambs have a good start, some shepherds who have the time will tube-feed every lamb that is born with colostrum from its mother. Or, you may want to use Nutri-Drench (this is not a substitute for colostrum), a product that works well to start all lambs. One pump to each lamb will give them a boost to improve their chances during the first 24 hours.

If your barn temperature is below freezing and you need to be away, put a lamb cover on each of the newborn lambs. It will help them to adjust to the cold before losing too much heat. When you return to the barn, remove the cover and the lamb should be fine.

So remember:

•	Feed the ewes well.
•	Strip out every teat.
•	Take the lambs' temperature.
•	Tube-feed when needed.
•	Give each lamb a pump of Nutri-Drench.
•	Dip all navels in Triodine-7.

Enjoy your lambing season. It does not need to be stressful.

-Gordon Shelangoski,
Premier Consultant and Product Development 

The post above originally appeared in Premier's January Sheep Newsletter. 

Positions available

We have a few positions open—

Product Consultant
Assist customers by providing needed advice on farm and backyard related products. Essential skills: farm/livestock experience, curious mind, pleasant style/tone on the phone, interpersonal and computer skills.

Purchasing Manager
Organize the acquisition and distribution of product from all over the world via road, sea and airfreight. Essential skills: good interpersonal, computer and spreadsheet skills. Prior experience strongly preferred.

Facility Maintenance
Job includes building/HVAC/electrical upkeep and internal
office construction.

All above include full-time with benefits. No smoking.

Telephone Receptionist
Job includes clerical skills. Needs excellent people skills, high attention to detail, basic computer skills. Part-time or full-time with benefits. No smoking.

For all positions please contact jpotratz@premier1supplies.com

Heat lamp hints

Here's a hint for the occasions that you need to change a bulb in a Premier Heat Lamp: use pliers.

For some, it's difficult to squeeze the clips together in order to open the lamp's grill.

 Simply squeeze with a pair of pliers to open. 

Recharging 12v batteries…

We're going to discuss a 40% charge. Don't worry, it has nothing to do with our pricing, so you can breathe easy. However, it does have to do with some of our batteries.

When we sell a battery, we recommend it not going below a 40% charge. All right, that's easy to figure out. A 12v (volt) battery holds 12v, 40% of 12 is 4.8 or 4.8v. That line of thought is incorrect.

12v batteries are fully charged at 12.6v and are depleted or 0% at 11.7 volts. Some energizers will function even when a battery is below 11.7v. However, this will cause damage to the battery. So a 40% charge is slightly over 12.1v. Clear as mud right? For 12v batteries we use the chart below for determining charge percentages.

How do you determine the voltage of your battery? Use a Battery Charge Meter to check the voltage. Use a ReCharger for 12v batteries to charge batteries. If you have a 12v voltmeter (not a fence tester), test your battery after charging. Try to avoid going over 13-14v charge on a 12v battery. Overcharging is similar to blowing up a balloon until it pops. You may continue getting air into it, but eventually it's going to pop. Our battery won't "pop" but overcharging does cause damage and will reduce its usable life. -