MURS Alert Transmitter

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Customer Reviews:

Average Customer Review: 4.0

( 10 customer reviews )
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 found the following review helpful:

Good idea, poor implementation Sep 03, 2009
By Eustis
Dakota has a good concept here, but has not provided the quality needed. Having used these for three years in Northern NH, I have had to send all four units back to the factory for repair or replacement, some more than once, in the warranty period. And they are very sensitive to weather. Foggy and rainy weather cuts the effective distance down considerably and has caused water penetration around the antenna. Cold weather will sometimes kill a unit. To Dakota's credit, they repair or replace with no questions asked if the unit is in the warranty period. Personally, I would prefer a higher quality unit the works without any problems.

9 of 9 found the following review helpful:

Excellant New, Deteriorates Rapidly Oct 08, 2010
By bobf "bobf"
Over the last couple of years I have bought quite a few Dakota Alert sensors (4 regular, 4 MURS, 2 buried sensors for cars). These units all worked VERY, VERY well when purchased. Their original range is excellent and it seems even better with the MURS units. I also bought a hand-held radio to receive alerts from this PIR transmitter and can receive alerts from 500 to 700 feet with at least one hillside in between (line of sight is about 30 to 40 feet into the hillside). I have set these units as far away as 2500 feet without a clear line of sight (going through a fair number of deciduous trees and a few firs to reach the house), although they only transmit through one wall of the house.

As mentioned in the title, their long term reliability has been a problem for me. Each unit usually lasts 8 to 12 months without a problem then goes downhill very fast. I live in the PNW where it is VERY wet during the winter (though temps stay moderate). Earlier units constantly had moisture inside when they failed. Newer units have a vent hole yet still have condensation and eventually rusting inside. I have tried covering units with plastic bags and duct tape to no avail. Also, the antenna (which telescopes) tends to fill with water when it rains as well.

The most common failure mode is a constant repeated alert (drives you crazy till you disconnect it). Often, I have brought the offending unit indoors for several days to dry out and was able to put it back into service for up to several weeks before it died again with the same problem. I have returned at least 4 units within their one year warranty for this problem and the new units act the same - good for 8-12 months depending on the weather, then recurring problems until they die completely.

I have also tried spraying the interior of one unit with Corrosion-X (reputed to work to waterproof electronics without damaging the circuitry by ham operators). The unit has not worked since I sprayed it :).

If you need reliable SHORT-TERM sensors, these are awesome. If you can't afford the $80 to $200 a year to replace them, then you may want to reconsider. I have not yet found any other sensor that works as well as these - when they work. Indoor use, or a method to waterproof the sensors, may also alleviate these problems.

bobf

6 of 6 found the following review helpful:

MURS Alert Transmitter Nov 11, 2010
By TimberrockRanch
Previously I had purchased an MURS transmitter and receiver kit from a different source and have just now purchased an additional transmitter through Amazon. I may have been less inclined to purchase a Dakota device based on some of the poor performance reviews, especially ingress of water. But, my own experience has been fine so far. After reading a couple of reviews I decided to look into the case of the first transmitter and inspect for water. We have had nearly 5" of rain in the last few weeks, the unit is exposed on a tree, and there was no water inside. I believe my success is attributed to the one thing I did before I mounted it. Right from the start, I did not like the telescoping antenna, so I replaced it with a cut piece of coax (shield removed for the same length as the extended antenna that came with the unit and leaving the insulation around the center conductor) that is terminated with a male BNC connector. I had put a small amount of silicone caulk around the base of the antenna/center conductor and BNC connector. The coax is not real rigid and sort of flops around, but I like that better than the rigid antenna. My range from transmitter to receiver is about 1400'. Hope this helps others that may have a water problem.

1 of 1 found the following review helpful:

Very Satisfied Apr 02, 2011
By Tom/MO
This is the second unit we've purchased, to add to the original for coverage in a different direction. In the past we have tried other systems, both expensive and cheap. Our first unit is about 9 months old, and performing perfectly. The new unit is facing directly west, and we were concerned that we would get false alerts caused by the afternoon sun as with previous systems. No problem. I painted it to match the building it's mounted on and although it's a large unit it blends in great. After several years of trial and error we finally found a system that does everything we wanted.

1 of 1 found the following review helpful:

Driveway Alarm Dec 04, 2010
By poco
I already had one receiver and one transmitter. This was just an add on transmitter to my driveway alarm system. My driveway is very long (over a half mile)and this alarm has a long range of transmission. It works very well for me. Windy days can be a problem, you don't want to set it up in an area where there is something swaying such as tall weeds or other tree limbs, across the road. May take some trial and error finding the right spot but when you do it works just as described. I would recommend this to anyone who has a long driveway.

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