Interplex Solar Nite Eyes: < click to see their complete list of predators
When I first heard of the Solar Nite Eyes, I was pretty skeptical, but after finding many customers who had success with them with very serious predator problems I decided to give them a try. Their website suggests that you order 4 of them to protect all 4 sides. I ordered 4 of them in early July of this year. When I received the package, they appeared to be solid but very simple and I questioned whether or not they would work. The concept is that at night, these red "eyes" flash over and over all night are supposed to look (to an animal) that they are the eyes of another animal watching them. They in turn feel threatened and stay away. They do not require any batteries, have been tested in a variety of extreme weather areas, and require no maintenance. The reference sheet that came in the package gave instructions as to how high they needed to be placed depending on the predator you're trying most to keep out. After a whole summer trapping raccoons (one of Ohio's worst chicken predators) I really hoped these would work. It turns out they did work! They began to work the first night after they were placed outside. They received literally no more than 4 hours of sunlight that day and they flashed until the sun came up. They shut off automatically when the sun comes up and turn back on automatically when the sun goes down. I've been using them since July and have had no problems with them staying charged and we have a lot of cloudy days here in Ohio, as well as that a couple of them aren't placed in direct sunlight. I have also not had ANY evidence that any predators have even tried to get into the chicken house. No areas where it looks like it has been dug up or anything. One of my favorite features of these (and I wasn't aware of this when I ordered them) they have a magnetic back....so you don't even have to nail them to anything. Which is great for quick removal if you want to move them to a new location OR if you do need to charge them up. The magnet is pretty strong and the only thing I've noticed is that during high winds, one of them did fall off....but that was no problem, I just reattached it and it kept working fine. I cannot recommend these enough! In fact I was prompted to write this review because this morning, one of mine came up missing!! I have no idea what happened to it but once I realized I couldn't find it I immediately knew I would be ordering some more of them! Depending on where you buy them the price ranges from I think $17 to $25. It sounds like a lot to spend when you buy 4, but its cheaper than electric fencing, and also cheaper than replacing your flock if something does get in. This was money well spent in my opinion and I'd spend it again in a heartbeat! Thank you for reading and go out and buy some Solar Nite Eyes!
