Review on Mighty Mule Wireless Driveway FM231 by Vincent Blitz

For 10 years I've struggled with two different models of STI driveway monitors (Mighty Mule's main competitor). Due to its construction, the first STI monitor constantly had problems with moisture penetration until it was put into practical use. The exchange, for unknown reasons, drained batteries at a tremendous rate and suffered from repeated false alarms only during sudden temperature changes. I had to keep resetting the sensitivity setting to combat the latter. When STI tech support didn't respond to my phone and email requests for help with a "less than a year" replacement, I decided to scrap STI and give the Mighty Mule a try. Retailing at $59 at Revain, the Mighty Mule FM231 was a good buy and less than either of the previous two STIs. The Mule looks great right out of the box, and the quality of materials is above average (considering the quality of most products today). I've read a lot of feedback from others and paid particular attention to the individual comments on placement and installation methods (all of which are mentioned in the Mule guide, by the way, so pay attention. Below are some of the comments that I got information about my installation and ( if the Mighty Mule is listening) have suggestions for improvement. My first observation was that the "electromagnetic sensor rod" should be more convincingly sealed at both ends, particularly where the cable connects to the rod. The rod should be buried in the ground. Directly in the ground needs to be They need to be protected from water ingress as much as possible, so prior to installation I sealed both ends with 100% pure silicone sealant and allowed it to dry completely before proceeding Sensor and transmitter to protect against rodent ingress, roots, shovels, etc The exit point of the PVC cable leading to the sensor, I attached the sensor to the P VC hole and filled the remaining air gap with silicone to prevent water from entering the PVC. Where the cable exited the PVC at the end of the transmitter I used various PVC fittings to adapt it to the mule mount. (The mule is custom sized, so you'll have to play around with it a bit.) The end of the sensor cable is too inflexible to make a 1" or 3/4" 90 degree turn in the PVC fitting. Mullel's instructions advise you to leave some slack on the end of the sensor cable as you push it down into the mounting post. to make it easier to disconnect/connect the cable from the transmitter. However, following this advice I have found that trying to slide the cable into the mounting post is not possible as the inside diameter of the post is too small to twist the cable in it. To solve this problem and give the cable the slack it needed, I installed a PVC junction box (with silicone gasket) between the end of my PVC section and the Mules mounting post where the transmitter cable loop could be stored. This allows a slack cable to be easily pulled out and put back in the box if the transmitter head needs to be removed for service. In my setup, the sensor was 175 feet from my house, in sight, with no obstructions. I used the full length of the cable, which allowed the transmitter to be placed about 165 feet (165 feet) away. I used lithium batteries in the transmitter and the alarm worked great after setting it to factory sensitivity settings. My 4 star rating for this product is based on the fact that the sensor needs to be sealed more effectively, the length of the included transmitter cable is limited and the receiver alarm can be more manageable as it is not loud enough. I would suggest Mighty Mule: - Apply good quality industrial grade sealant to both ends of the electromagnet. - Offer optional 10ft and 20ft transmitters. cable extension. Change the design of the receiver so that the user can choose from at least three different sound settings with different durations and increased volume. Overall I find this product well made and very reliable to date. , it worked exceptionally well, with no false alarms and no timely crashes. This winter we have had heavy rains and the ground has been soaked with water for several months. The construction of the ground transmitter is well preserved with no sign of moisture penetration or corrosion and presumably the buried electromagnetic rod (which I sealed with silicone) did the same.