Troubleshooting Cyclops Fence Charger and Shock box and FAQ’s
Problem: Your fence charger is not putting out any voltage and the orange light on the front of the charger has a click but no blink, or a blink but no click, or no click or blink.
Solution : Read the trouble shooting label on the left side or bottom front of the Cyclops charger instructing you how to change the fuses. See the troubleshooting page at the Cyclops website at http://www.taylorfence.net/trouble_shooting.php#
If it blinks and clicks after doing this, then you fixed it.
If not, then check to see if the charger is getting power. If you have a solar shock box, the battery voltage shown on the charge controller should be 12.0 or or more at dawn and 12.7 or more at dusk. Try connecting the charger to a charged battery (you can use your car battery), and if it works with another charged battery, then the problem is your fence. If the battery voltage below approximately 10.5 volts, the charger won’t work. If you have an AC charger, check the outlet to make sure it has power. Also, even though the solar charge controller says what voltage the battery is at, check the battery with a voltmeter to see if the charge controller is telling you the truth. If you own a shock box, a volt meter is a must have item. Also keep ants out of the charge controller, they love to go inside and do their thing. You may need to put ant poison in the shock box or petroleum grease around the supports of the shock box to keep ants out.
Problem: You changed the fuses, you have power to the charger, but it still doesn’t work.
Solution : You need to determine if the problem is with the charger or a short on the fence because if there is a short on the fence, the charger won’t blink or click. Make sure you put fresh fuses in your charger. A fuse may be bad, but yet look good. The only way to test a fuse is with a volt/ohm meter – get one if you own a shock box, it’s a must have.
First, check to see if the charger is working by itself. To do this, disconnect the wires to the fence and ground on the front of the charger, then connect the charger to power. It should blink and click and put out at least 5,000 volts.
You can check the voltage with an electric fence voltmeter by touching the terminal on the meter to the fence terminal on the charger, and connecting the ground terminal on the meter, to the ground terminal on the charger. You can get a shock doing this, so I recommend holding the ground terminal of the meter with a piece of Styrofoam so your hand isn’t touching the ground terminal of the meter. If it is working properly it should read 5,000 volts of more. If it reads “Hi” or “12” that means the voltage is higher than the meter can read and the charger is working fine.
Now disconnect the power from the charger, hook it back up to the fence. If it doesn’t work now, you need to go walk your fence and make sure it isn’t shorted out somewhere.
Problem: My shock box still doesn’t work.
Solution: Check all connections. Check the wires connected to the charge controller. Check the voltage on your ground rod, it should be 600 volts or less. Check the connections to your ground rod. Has it been many years since you installed your ground rod? Then a new ground rod is in order because as they corrode they lose their ability to conduct, so ground rods need to be replaced every few years.
Problem: There is no solar panel symbol showing on the charge controller display.
Solution: Check the connection from the solar panel to the charge controller. Make sure the wires from the solar panel to the charge controller are connected.
Problem: It still doesn’t work!
Solution: Call me to come out and fix it. It may be that you took a lightning strike and you need a new circuit board. I can do that in an hour or so and I have the parts here in Hawaii. All Cyclops chargers and shock boxes have a 1 year warranty that covers any failure, including lightning. Call me at 808-990-4468
Problem: I get funny readings on my fence tester. When it pulses I get 7000 volts, but in between pulses I get 2,000 volts, or nothing.
Solution: It’s time to put a new battery in your fence tester.
Problem: My fence was shorted out, the charger stopped working.
Solution: Keep all weeds off your fence, the guideline is “nothing touches the fence.” For regular fence maintenance, keep the wires tight on your fence, the should not be loose and touch each other.
Question: I need a new battery for my shock box, where can I buy one?
Answer: Buy group 24 or 27 deep cycle batteries at Interstate battery in Hilo. If your battery is a small black 18 ah or 35 ah battery, buy these for the lowest price on ebay with free shipping. You can buy one perhaps at ACE, but it will be twice the price. These batteries are deep cycle batteries which is what you need, do not buy a starting battery. Deep cycle batteries are made to supply electricity over a long period, such as overnight to your shock box. A starting battery is made to supply a large surge of amps to a starter motor for starting an engine and this is not what you need.
Question: I need a new charge controller for my shock box, where can I buy one?
Answer: Buy a 10 amp charge controller on Amazon for $10 – $15 dollars.
How to connect a charge controller:
The solar charge controller can be finicky when connecting. The instructions say to connect the battery first, then the solar panel. If you just want to change the battery and not mess with disconnecting the solar panel, the cover the solar panel with a towel or cardboard to block the sun and effectively turn it off, then connect your battery, then uncover the solar panel and you should be good to go.
Question: What is the best way to check my fence?
Answer: Buy a fault finder on Amazon for about $70. It will tell you the fence voltage and the amps. The amps should be zero or very low such as 5 or less. If the amps are high, like 20, the the fault finder will be beeping and the arrow will point you in the direction of the problem, follow the arrow to find the problem. Also read the instructions that came with the fault finder. This video explains how to use a fault finder: https://youtu.be/KLYdLbblnQ0?si=TBN0YmWCs7l-CcGy
How often should I check my fence and shock box?
Answer: Everyday for best results, or at least every few days.
How often should I need to weedeat under my fence?
Answer: In the summer months, about once a month for best results.