Works great

I purchased one of these fence chargers late in 2018, and have been using it ever since to power around 4000 feet of fence with good results. We have a bull who was leaning on our barbed wire fence and even sticking his head through to "argue" with the neighbor's bull, but that all stopped after we installed a single strand of hot wire just inside the barbed wire fence.

I really like the gauge on the front of case that provides an indication of the status of the system. From time to time the hot wire will get tangled with the barbed wire fence when deer jump over, and the gauge shows when the electric fence has gotten grounded on the metal fence. I simply locate the point where the hot wire is hung up on the barbed wire and pull it off. Having the hot wire grounded in this way does not appear to harm the fence charger at all.

I used a 12-volt battery to power this fence charger until a couple of years ago, and now it is powered by a 12-volt power supply that is plugged into a 120-volt outlet. Both methods work well, but it was inconvenient to keep the battery charged up all the time.

I drove in one 8-foot ground rod next to the fence charger and that seems to be working well enough for the grounding connection. Many recommendations call for three ground rods spaced 10 feet apart, but we're getting by with only one so far.

I purchased this fence charger to use on a fence around my beehives. I do have bears that wander around on occasion. I am using a retired 12volt battery from my pickup and it will handle this charger for a week at least. Surprising how slowly it drains this large vehicle battery. I mounted the charger on an upright 2x4 in a plastic storage tub so that I can install the charger outdoors. No problem with weather, but then I have not really tested its weather resistance. Overall this has been a great purchase.

I have chickens and I wanted some protection so they didn't have to stay "cooped" up. This energizer checked all the marks. Plus, it was much cheaper than the less powerful energizers sold at Tractor Supply. With good reviews and a great warranty, it was an easy decision. I've had it for a couple months. I have two batteries that I switch out. Both batteries have lasted a full month. They may have lasted more, but I change them out to recharge after a month.
There are some reviews stating the charger isn't fully waterproof and may corrode. In light of that, I bought a small plastic tote to place the energizer inside. It stays completely dry and only cost me $5 at Walmart.

I could not find actual current numbers before purchasing. It's better to use a 12V charger if you're planning to run on batteries. The idle current (no load) for most inverters is larger than the running current on this one! Current draw seems UNRELATED to load. That was a surprise. Same current drain whether you short the output or connect nothing at all. It charges a capacitor, discharges it through a transformer, and what happens on the other side of the transformer is irrelevant to input current. The meter on the front shows the output voltage of the last pulse: draw an arc (1/8 inch) and the meter goes to zero until the next pulse.

I, like many others, wish the pulse interval was adjustable. I'd eagerly accept a higher current drain if I could up the pulse rate because I'm trying to protect against smaller faster critters. I also wish I could buy their higher power chargers with 12V inputs. Together that BARELY cost one star. (Almost unfair to reduce the rating but I can't get exactly what I want.)

Usage note: The local rats are VERY cautious. Pest control companies will not place traps outdoors because they never catch anything. Stories abound that rats can sense voltage and not approach. Wrong. MY personal pest visited my test rig several times per night, but took over a week to work up the courage to step on a wire mesh baited with bird seed. The birds were quite happy to eat undisturbed from a bowl of seed inside a yard square mesh enclosure. Squirrels never even tried to get inside. I think the locals know about live traps and anything that looks like a trap deters them. Once the rat got comfortable with seeds on the mesh, I energized the mesh and another layer of mesh on top of a 1x4 board... with the controller (10 ft away) and the mesh both making clearly audible ticking sounds once per second. The rat took the bait, got shocked, rolled over, walked around unharmed. Hasn't been back since that one shock (all on my DVR so I'm sure).

The pulse makes a pretty loud "tick". Don't sleep next to it.