What May Cause Signal Interference?
Wireless dog fences are almost perfect. They have so many advantages which are the main reasons why so many people chose them as their new methods to protect dogs. The only concern is with signal interference. Some of you may believe that this is a permanent issue, but it actually isn’t. In a matter of fact, you can easily solve the problem with simple tricks.
If you get a GPS wireless dog fence, you won’t have any signal interference at all. They don’t have close to the ground transmitters which may lose the signal strength. However, they are very expensive, so don’t expect to get one for a small amount of money.
Why signal interference occurs?
In order to be safe for your dog and to your household, wireless dog fences use a low-frequency signal. It is perfectly capable of meeting all your demands, but it is easily affected by obstacles.
This issue occurs when a large object is placed between the transmitter and a collar. Because a signal cannot stay persistent and it loses its frequency, a collar won’t be able to acquire accurate readings from the transmitter. In simple words, it won’t get an accurate signal. Once an obstacle is removed, the signal will be fully restored.
Side effects of this issue include unwanted correction or lack of it when a dog passes the boundary. In rare cases, it may occur that a dog refuses to leave the house, simply because he feels punished when he did.
There are a few common reasons why this occur. We will list them and tell you how to solve the issue.
Metal objects
Metal objects such appliances affect the signal strength and the consistency. It occurs in most cases that a metal refrigerator blocks the signal from the transmitter. You may know that this happens because homeowners place transmitter unit far away from the outer wall.
The solution is very simple. All you have to do is to move the transmitter on the wall closest to the yard or the invisible boundary. We will recommend you to place it close to the boundary. If you still have to place a transmitter close to a metal appliance, make sure it is 3 feet away from it.
Thick walls
If your home is built from thick, usually concrete walls and you place a transmitter in a wrong place, the same issue may occur. In general, this occurs due to the same reason as in the previous case.
The solution is to move transmitter closer to the window. Literally, signals will be easier to penetrate a window than a concrete wall. Check out the manual of your wireless dog fence. Most of them come with attachments and alternatives that can solve this problem.
Large trees or high number of bushes
Bushes and trees normally don’t affect the signal consistency. After all, there are no so many trees to cause this issue. On the other hand, we have situations in which homeowners are surrounded by trees and bushes, which causes mentioned issues.
The issue occurs only when a visibility between the transmitter and an invisible boundary is compromised. Keep in mind that rain and the wind, or anything that can cause trees to move can make the situation even worse.
Slopes
Slopes across your backyard can affect the signal. However, this occurs rarely and most people never have even experienced the problem. It is almost impossible to have a backyard with so pronounced slopes that they cause signal interference.
If you still experience the issue, try to mount a transmitter higher above the floor. By doing so, the signal will travel above the slopes. You may need to conduct a few experiments in order to see which position works the best.
Conclusion
At the end, we must repeat that these issues rarely occur, but they are possible. Luckily, you can easily solve any cause with the mentioned, simple tricks. Obviously, wireless dog fences are capable of operating when there are obstacles between the transmitter and a collar, so chances are high you would never experience signal interference. New models are also more advanced in the terms of signal, so they have additional features which completely eliminate the problem.
