Help extending the range of my Dakota Alert System

[garry1p]

Kind of what Im thinking. Transmitter sits at the bottom of about a 35ft hill so its the earth thats killing the signal. I could get some wire and raise the transmitter high uo the tree but dont want to have to get a ladder to change batteries if I can make an antenna work.

Here is another idea.
Put the transmitter in the tree, run two wires up the tree with a red wire soldered to one of the post on the + side and a black wire soldered to a post on the the - side.
Mount the batteries in a waterproof box at the base of the tree with thee batteries in a standalone battery holder. No need to climb the tree to change batteries. Amazon has a 3 battery cr123 battery holder with wires fo4 $8.23.
Depending on the distance 16 gauge wire should be OK.

ON EDIT:

The batteries in your unit are in parallel (3VDC) the holder mentioned above may be configured in series (9VDC) and need to be reconfigured to parallel or buy 3 single holders and Velcro them together.

 

[jk96]

In talking to Dakota support again today I found out that the wire from probe to transmitter can be run up to 2k feet. I think I'm going to try the cheaper antenna on the receiver and if that doesn't work then will just run additional wire to the top of the hill that is causing me issues once the ground unfreezes. I'll update on the antenna once I give it a shot.

 

[ponytug]

Hardwiring it does sound like a good solution. Good luck.

All the best,

Peter

 

[jk96]

Hardwiring it does sound like a good solution. Good luck.

All the best,

Peter

I think this is the route I'm going to take. I raised the transmitter today about 12 feet and am still having issues. I initually tested it before burying the line and worked perfect. My problems started after last Sunday after the snow. Ground was bare at testing but now we have about 14" of snow on the ground. It makes me wonder if the snow cover could be causing some reflection issues with the signal at that distance.

 

[jk96]

I ran a scab wire above ground 500ft closer and over the hill that was blocking my signal. Everything works perfect now. I will still try adding an antenna before taking the time to bury the line.

Also for anyone with this system or who may end up with one in the future the back of the reciever that sits in the house has a couple of relays as well as a 2 wire 12v dc output that is triggered when the reciever goes off. Dakota alert does not have a good option for additional alarms for other rooms such as a garage or basement, just a hardwired bell. After some searching I found this wireless doorbell extender that will work with DC and can be ordered with up to 4 remote chimes.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0CLV356K9?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title&th=1

It works perfect with this receiver. The transmitter is small enough it can be hidden inside the dakota alert reciever with only the antenna sticking out.

We added a chime to our bedroom to wake us if anyone comes in at night and also one for the basement where we watch most of our movies. Being a half mile away and with a 1 mile drive it's very unlikely anyone is going to come in on foot. We now get plenty of warning someone is coming in and no false alarms from wildlife. The dogs after 2 days have already started barking and looking out the front door when it goes off.