Bl4—Lancaster Farming, Saturday, June 26,1982
isolated pasture chargers
BY GINGER SECRIST MYERS
Staff Correspondent
GETTYSBURG Do you have
animals on pastureland that is
isolated from buildings, or on
rented property that is out of your
daily view? Are you tired of the
expense, time, and labor of
checking and changing power cells
in battery-powered fencers? Are
you trying to save on your electric
bills 7 If so, perhaps you should
follow Adams County cattleman
John Bigham’s lead and install a
solar-powered fencer to solve these
problems.
John, his father James W., and
his brother James R., from 450
acres just down the road from the
Eisenhower Farm near Gettysburg.
They have a variety of livestock
which includes a 120-head, cow
calf operation With the labor
involved in farming and their
proximity to the tourist trade from
Gettysburg, the Bighams find that
reliable fencing is a must for their
operation
John Bigham saw a solar fencer
last winter at his local Agway
dealership and decided to give one
a try on his hillside pastures. John
is using the fencer, which installs
like any other fencer, to run a double
strand of wire 1/8-mile. The unit
can run up to 25 miles of fence
compared to other units which
usually run up to 10 miles of fence,
he said.
The 6 volt unit, which carries an
Underwriter’s Laboratory ap
proved label, can run up to 21 days
without sunlight on stored solar
power. It features a normal or
miser power control and has a
normal or dry weather condition
grounding option. The battery is
sealed inside the unit and comes in
a dated package. If the package
date is over two months old, the
unit should be left in the sun or
exposed to house lights for three to
five days for battery recharge.
Bigham projects that with
proper care of the unit, which cost
him $139.95, he expects it to run
five years. He says he plans to take
the unit mdoors this winter.
Bigham says the initial cost of
his fencer, is a bargain compared
to the $l2O it cost to replace bat
teries annually in cell-powered
fencers.
“I can’t see a more economical
way to put up a fence,” Bigham
exclaims. “This unit didn’t cost me
as much as one roll of woven wire
fence and I can rest assured that as
long as the sun shines sometime,
my fencer is working. With battery
powered fencers you can’t always
be sure."
With his solar unit, Bigham
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Solar fencers shine as
John Bigham, Gettysburg, inspects his solar-powered
fencer. Bigham says the unit saves him labor and material
costs m fencing his cows and calves.
constructed the fence using v 4-mile
of wire, post and insulators that he
had on the farm. He inserted
springs periodically to give the
fence some stretch in case deer run
into it. Altogether it took him 7
hours to put the fence up for a total
investment of $172.
The cattle confined by the solar
powered fencer are about four
tenths of a mile from Bigham’s
mam buildings. “If I were to run a
wire from the barns out to here, it
wouldn’t have enough power in it to
be effective I’d have to keep the
weeds off of it too. With the solar
unit, I can put it where I want it
and it gets the job done. You just
can’t get any more effective
fencing than this for the money,”
claims Bigham.
The Bighams are planning to put
a solar fencer on another farm
where they currently have electric
fencers. John estimates they will
save $2O on their electric bills by
replacing these fencers with solar
units
John says he hopes solar
waterers will be next so that
watering distant pastures becomes
more economical.
Fred Kelly, department manager
for Agway’s Gettysburg store
ttpabts the solar umt’s current
fMpng price is $159.95 each. Kelly
ajlmits sales have been slow so far,
but feels confident that, as fencers
are replaced, farmers will con
sider the solar units.
“These units may be more ex
pensive to start with, but they
should be maintenance free. Their
best feature is that they can be
used on isolated pasture,” Kelly
says
Farm Supply Supervisor Johnny
Robertson of Southern States Inc.,
Taneytown, Maryland, has his
doubts about the popularity of the
units. Southern States carries a
similar model which sells for
1166.70.
Robertson points out that in
thirty-three stores last year, only
four solar units were sold com
pared to 275 regular fencers.
Stated Robertson, “Solar fencers
have an advantage in that you
don’t have to change the batteries.
But, if you have the use of
buildings, I don’t think farmers
will pjs the difference in price for
the units ” Robertson quotes the
average cost for a conventional
fencer at $55-S6S.
/ MICHAEL HOOK \
/ THE FARMER'S BUILDER X
(717) 548-2615
RD#2 Box 163
Peach Bottom, Pa. 17563
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INTERCOURSE. PA
See your nearest
HOLLAND
Dealer for Dependable
Equipment and Dependable
Service:
Alexandria. PA
Clapper Farm
Equipment
Star Route
814 669 4465
Annville, PA
BHM Farm
Equipment, Inc
RD 1
717-867 2211
Belleville. Pa.
Ivan J Zook
Farm Equipment
Belleville, Pa
71/935 2948
Carlisle. PA
Paul Shovers, Inc
35 East Willow Street
717 243 2686
Catawissa. PA
Abraczmskas Farm
Equipment, Inc
RD 1
717 356 2323
- Chambersburg. PA
Clugston
Implement, Inc
RD 1
717-263 4103
Oavidsburg, PA
George N Gross, Inc
R D 2, Dover, PA
717 292-1673
Elizabethtown. PA
Messick Farm
Equipment, Inc
Rt 283 Rheem’s Exit
717 367 1319
Gettysburg. PA
Yinglmg Implements
717-359 4848
Greencastle, PA
Meyers
Implement's Inc v
400 N Antrim Way
PO 80x97
717 597-2176
Halifax. PA
Sweigard Bros
R D 3, Box 13
717 896-3414
Hamburg. PA
Shartlesville
Farm Service
R D 1, Box 170
215 488 1025
Honey Brook, PA
Dependable Motor Co
East Mam Street
215 273-3131
215 273 3737
Honey Grove, PA
Norman D Cla/k
&Son, Inc
Honey Grove, PA
717-734 3682
Hmhesville, PA
Farnsworth Farm
Supplies, Inc
103 Cemetery Street
717 584-2106
Lancaster, PA
L H Brubaker, Inc
350 Strasburg Pike
717-397 5179
Lebanon. PA
Evergreen
Tractor Co. Inc
30 Evergreen Road
717 272-4641
Roy A Brubaker
700 Woodcrest Av
717 626 7766
Loysville, PA
PaulShovers Inc
Loysville, PA
717 789 3117
Lynnport, PA
Kermit K Kistler, Inc
Lynnport, PA
215 298 2011
Martmsburg, PA
Forshey’s, Inc
110 Forshey St
814 793 3791
Mill Hall. PA
Paul A Dotterer
RD 1
717 726 3471
Nazareth. PA
Edwards Farm
Equipment
291 West
Moorestown Rd
215 759 0240
New Holland. PA
ABC Groff, Inc
110 South Railroad
717 354 4191
New Park. PA
M&R Equipment Inc
PO Box 16
717 993-2511
Oley, PA
C J Wonsidler Bros
RD 2
215 987 6257
Palm. PA
Wentz Farm
Supplies, Inc
Rt 29
215-679 7164
Pitman. PA
Marlin W Schretfler
Pitman, PA
717 648 1120
i. PA
Pleasant Gai
Brooks Ford Tractor
W College Ave
814-359 2751
Quarryville, PA
CE WileyS Son, Inc
101 South Lime Street
717-786 2895
Ringtown, PA
Rmgtown Farm
Equipment
Ringtown, PA
717-889 3184
Shippensburg, PA
R B Miller, Inc
N Seneca St
717 532 4178
Silwerdale. PA
I G Sales
Box 149
215 257 5135
Tamaqua, PA
Charles S Snyder, Inc
RD 3
717-386 5945
West Chester. PA
M.S YearsleyiSon
114-116 East
Market Street
215-696 2990
West Grove. PA
SG Lewis & Son, Inc
RD 2, Box 66
215 869 2214
Churchville. MD
Walter G Coale, Inc
2849 53
Churchville Rd
301-734 7722
Rising Sun. MD
Ag Ind
Equipment Co , Inc
1207 Telegraph Rd
301 398 6132
301-658 5568
215-869-3542
Washington. NJ
Frank Rymon & Sons
814 793 3791
Woodstown. NJ
Owen Supply Co
Broad Street &
East Avenue
609 769 0308