I had my energiser stolen...:(

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crystalclear

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Wel I don't like posting moany threads so I'm not going to moan (or try not to) just ask advice. How can I stop my energiser being stolen? I've seen the metal boxes you can get to put them in but they're around £200. What else can I do? Also concerned they might come back for other stuff thiugh thered not much there and concerned about goin up there on my own now but I'm a big brave girl (eeeeeek!!) My trailers usually uo there but its insured incase anythin happens to it. But I expect they just saw it as it was near the top hedge and did it by chance. I just don't like that someone's been on the land around the horses. But at least they are all good. I have no fencer at the moment and of course now worry about the horses! My friend had all hers stilen so now just doesnt replace them. I've seen people padlock and chain their fencers somehow? And also drive a stake through an ammo box? Or taking the lead that goes from the fence, extending it and locking it in the hay shed? Any ideas appreciated please. And of course hearing your stories too is also fab. Thank you :)

Thank you :)
 
I'd buy the box - by the time you have bought another energiser you have spent nearly as much anyway. Always try to put it out of sight too, never keep anything of value on the yard, take tack home. Bloody do as you likeys..:mad::mad:
 
My energiser is in a heavy old galvanised feed bin of medium size. It cost me £35 via Preloved. Hubby drilled a line of holes so that the stake could go through the bottom to the ground and a hole in the back for the wire.

You can add some paving slabs for weight to make it really immovable. We added a hasp and shackle and a good paddlock. We even have a small (used for boat batteries) solar panel hubby screwed to the top to constantly charge the battery.

I rarely open the bin - I used to use it for a bit of storage too. To disable the electric fence I simply take the crocodile clip off the wire and temporarily attach to a fencing stake. It works brilliantly :)
 
It's sickening how many are stolen and I feel for you as I've had three stolen over the years and an almost new battery. After the first one went I had a large metal box made (1m sq) weighed down with several concrete blocks with two holes in the back for energiser wires. Worked for several years until someone came with tools and sawed through the hasp. In the back of my mind I knew the hasp was the weak point and should have spent more on it. You have to use heavy duty everything. Since then I only put electric on for short periods and take it home but even then I had one taken the first night I'd put it on, which made me think it was someone in the village as footpath runs alongside fence and everyone walks their dogs. I'd be careful about locking it away when more damage can be done breaking in to get what's inside - I didn't have my lock repaired as it would have cost £100+ and padlock £60, so I just have to manage without and use energiser no.4 on rare occasions.
 
horserugsnot4u said:
It's sickening how many are stolen and I feel for you as I've had three stolen over the years and an almost new battery. After the first one went I had a large metal box made (1m sq) weighed down with several concrete blocks with two holes in the back for energiser wires. Worked for several years until someone came with tools and sawed through the hasp. In the back of my mind I knew the hasp was the weak point and should have spent more on it. You have to use heavy duty everything. Since then I only put electric on for short periods and take it home but even then I had one taken the first night I'd put it on, which made me think it was someone in the village as footpath runs alongside fence and everyone walks their dogs. I'd be careful about locking it away when more damage can be done breaking in to get what's inside - I didn't have my lock repaired as it would have cost £100+ and padlock £60, so I just have to manage without and use energiser no.4 on rare occasions.
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That's awful. I wonder could you borrow a wildlife camera and catch the culprit on film? We have invested in one of these due to attempted breakins. It's also worth talking to your local Parish Council/Police, because I was given one of those DNA sticker kits which you use to mark your property and register it to make it very traceable. It also includes notices to say the property is marked. My Parish Council gave me it free - it's £60 worth so I was very happy. There must be some incentive that they get them free/cheap.
 
Hmmm some awful stories. It's bad these things happen. I always take my tack home. I don't really have anything up there but my feed. Some fab ideas about securing them down. Keep them coming please :)
 
YasandCrystal said:
My energiser is in a heavy old galvanised feed bin of medium size. It cost me £35 via Preloved. Hubby drilled a line of holes so that the stake could go through the bottom to the ground and a hole in the back for the wire.

You can add some paving slabs for weight to make it really immovable. We added a hasp and shackle and a good paddlock. We even have a small (used for boat batteries) solar panel hubby screwed to the top to constantly charge the battery.

I rarely open the bin - I used to use it for a bit of storage too. To disable the electric fence I simply take the crocodile clip off the wire and temporarily attach to a fencing stake. It works brilliantly :)
Click to expand...

we do something similar to this but have a smaller box which is padlocked and chained to the nearest immovable object. Obviously is someone is determined to nick it then they will, but it does slow down or put off the less determined. we keep virtually nothing of value at the yard, only mucking out tools, bedding and hay - and all of those are padlocked in sheds too. everything is marked with paint, even electric fence posts, and we have signs for smartwater and for freezemarked horses. rugs are postcoded in big letters. I work hard for my stuff and have had too many things pinched in the past!!
 
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YasandCrystal said:
My energiser is in a heavy old galvanised feed bin of medium size. It cost me £35 via Preloved. Hubby drilled a line of holes so that the stake could go through the bottom to the ground and a hole in the back for the wire.

You can add some paving slabs for weight to make it really immovable. We added a hasp and shackle and a good paddlock. We even have a small (used for boat batteries) solar panel hubby screwed to the top to constantly charge the battery.

I rarely open the bin - I used to use it for a bit of storage too. To disable the electric fence I simply take the crocodile clip off the wire and temporarily attach to a fencing stake. It works brilliantly :)
Click to expand...

^ This is really clever - have you ever considered taking the idea to Dragon's Den :D

We have this issue. We used to take it home but now the farmer lets us use a field that is away from the road. We also hide it in a hedge. We have not had an issue yet, but I will have a rethink before Appleby!
 
Get a pen knife and carve your surname and post code into it over a few places in the plastic or see if you can get some 'smart water' from the police and a sign explaining that everything is covered in it.
We lost one about a year ago - I kicked myself because it wasn't marked ! It had a obvious dent on the handle and I saw it on Ebay a couple of days later just down the road from me - but I couldn't prove anything because only we knew what the dent looked like - I was gutted because they only got £40 quid for it !
I'd almost prefer to have given them £40 to save the hassle of not having one for a few weeks and feeling grim that people were wandering through my fields in the night with the boys out there! Energiser was in the middle not on the outside!
 
Keep it out of sight away from gateways main road etc. It's a pain carrying batteries the extra distance, Also cover it as thieves often spot the flashing light in the dark. My husband made a wooden box to cover ours so it blends in with the hedging. I also write my name and postcode on ours with permanent black marker pen.
 
Ours is in a box fastened as high up in the barn as we can manage - it must be about 12' up - and we don't keep step ladders there - just take them up if we need to. It has got a wall switch to turn it off.
 
We have a metal weighted box. It can only be lifted with tractor. Because of this we rarely use it, but if it will be in the same place all the time it's worth using.
When not using the box we stuck everything in the middle of a prickly hedge. It's a pain but have none missing since. Don't know whether coincidence, hidden or painful to remove!
 
Our energiser is padlocked to a tree! We had about 7 or 8 of the things stolen at our last field so we dont make it easy to get to.Its also got a green tshirt over the energiser and battery to make it less obvious. Get a rape alarm on it.
 
I had my energizer padlocked with massive chain to a tree and hidden in hedge. B****s smashed part of the actual energizer body to remove it! Couldn't have been worth much to sell after that.
I've never replaced it, and gradually invested in more post and rail to divide field.
Sadly if they want it they'll eventually get it. You just need to follow the tape to find the box!
Like the idea about putting it up really high though...
 
The other plus about putting it up high - and in a really big deep box - is that we had barn owls nesting in it one year! They raised babies successfully, and the energiser kept on working.
 
I had my energizer padlocked with massive chain to a tree and hidden in hedge. B****s smashed part of the actual energizer body to remove it! Couldn't have been worth much to sell after that.
I've never replaced it, and gradually invested in more post and rail to divide field.
Sadly if they want it they'll eventually get it. You just need to follow the tape to find the box!
Like the idea about putting it up really high though...
 
Mine is in a metal padlocked box, it has hole in the bottom and one of those dog tie things (looks like a giant corkscrew) screwed into the ground through that hole to stop anyone lifting it.
Obviously won't stop a determined thief but then nothing will.

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I can't believe someone stole the gate it was padlocked to!!Some fab ideas and loving the pictures to explain thank you so much :) some really really great ideas thank you.
 
Just thought, if its in a box do you have to get a specific type of energiser? Like where does the earth rod go or how do you get around this?
 
I have a hole in the bottom of the box for the earth stake to go through.
I had my energiser first so the box was designed around the energiser I had.
 
I had mine stolen a few years ago & I've had my battery stolen on another occasion. I now keep both on a metal box which is chained to a post/tree etc where ever I set it up. The lid is padlocked shut & I've fitted a switch to the side of the box to turn it on & off. Of course it could still get stolen but I've made it so awkward that hopefully they'll go elsewhere.

As for marking the energiser & battery with postcode or smart water, that's ok but the property has to be found before that comes into its own. I'd rather stop it being stolen in the first place.

I used an old steel ammunition box to house the energiser. :)
 
I think a good idea is to make the energiser look old & tatty, ie insulation tape is a few places as though to hold it together, even a crack in the plastic which won't effect use bit will disfigure it plus dirt. The crack will mean you can identify it if you take a photo of it. All cheap & cheerful deterrants. Not worth nicking as they can't sell it in tha, supposed, condition.:).
 
Well you say that but mine had the two hoops that connect to the battery, one of them had come off completely so I just wrapped the wire around it to make a connection, and both bits if wire positive and negative had electrical tape on them and they still took it! Mind you they left the earth ride behind and the battery!
 
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