Solar/battery farm gate openers

Builder · Jul 20, 2011

All of mine have been electric so far. This is my first attempt at a battery/solar charger on a gate. looking at the Mighty Mule 500 to do 3 seperate gates. Planning on using keypads for entry onto farm property and a house driveway.
Anyone use these? What are the good/bad?
Kind of concerned about the battery in the cold of winter still working.

weldingisfun · Jul 20, 2011

Builder said:
All of mine have been electric so far. This is my first attempt at a battery/solar charger on a gate. looking at the Mighty Mule 500 to do 3 seperate gates. Planning on using keypads for entry onto farm property and a house driveway.
Anyone use these? What are the good/bad?
Kind of concerned about the battery in the cold of winter still working.

I have been using a MM solar panel on my front gate for over five years. Be sure to use a deep cycle battery with it.

BeezFun · Jul 20, 2011

I had a mighty mule back in the 90s at a different house, can't remember the model. I had several problems with it related to the cold. The solar panel wouldn't keep the battery charged in winter, in fairness it was not in full sun but had reasonable exposure. The more serious problem was related to the mechanism itself. The push/pull shaft was guided by a plastic/teflon bushing that had to fit pretty accurately. The differential contraction in the winter caused it to bind so the gate wouldn't close completely. They sent me a different bushing, it was kind of a pain taking the thing apart, but it helped a little. Still had problems on really cold days, like below 10F. Also had several failed master control boards. Again the company was good about sending me replacements, but I spent an inordinate amount of time keeping that thing working. That was a long time ago, maybe they've worked out some of the problems. Can't tell where you live, maybe cold isn't an issue.

Stihlrunner · Jul 21, 2011

They should be renamed Mighty Big Piece of C****!

I have had several and they work great for a few months and then start falling to pieces. Parts are expensive and warranty is marginal. Tech support non existent.

I tried to power one via solar and could never make it reliable. Finally ended up trenching an ac wire to run a charger.

When this set up fails I will brand shop and then probably end up building one myself. The technology on a MM is no more involved than a garage door opener.

Save yourself some major headache and look for a better quality brand. Additionally I would purchase from a local fence company instead of online or box store. That way you have somebody to call when there is a problem.

Ken45101 · Jul 21, 2011

I have to agree with Stihlrunner. We've had a Mighty Mule for several years. It NEVER worked totally right and now isn't working at all. Expensive piece of junk.

If anyone has suggestions for a reliable gate opener, I'd like to hear it.

Builder · Jul 21, 2011

I have read good & bad reviews of them. What I don't understand is some of the kits come with a battery & charger, but suggest a marine battery in a box. Is this because the battery they supply is small and won't hold enough charge for frequent open/close cycles?

Are there any other readily available brands? MM seems to dominate the market for gate openers.

J_J · Jul 21, 2011

Here is Florida, lightening smoked several of my boards on the MM.

You can find them on Ebay, Lockmaster, Chamberlain, etc.

Builder · Jul 21, 2011

So the boards seem to be the most vulnerable part. How much are they to replace?

tennmogger · Jul 21, 2011

I have had good success with the Mighty Mule 500, the heavy duty single gate system, on a 16 ft steel gate. Got it at my local Co-Op. I added an external battery (36 AH NiCad wet cell) and solar panel (maybe 30 W). Had to add that extra battery and larger solar panel to keep enough power in winter because the location is in heavy shade except a couple of hours in the PM. Nothing will make you hate an automatic gate more than lack of adequate battery.

Squirrels were a problem with mine! I had to armor the whole apparatus. The gate stopped working one day and the darned squirrels had cut the control cable to the opener in two places, had been eating on the plastic housing, stripped the insulation off the receiver antenna, and cut deep grooves in the aluminum end of the opener!!. They weren't hungry, just vandals! I put the opener in a steel box and ran the cables through that flexible/spiral electrical shielding stuff, and set the receiver at the top of a tall piece of conduit. The opener has been running several years now.

Bob