It's been a good year for our garden and the deer damage has been minimal. We're pretty sure most of them in our area make a point to steer clear of the deterrents which keeps them away from our valuable vegetables, but we continued to have a night time nibbler that snuck in during a power outage and figured out the clanging deterrents are all bark and no bite.

Even though the damge was small, we both got a little spooked because we know how fast these animals can ruin a garden.

"Call up the Game Warden and get a special permit to kill that *#+%er!" is what Anna said after some research on the internet.

We got a special permit to kill a deer out of season, but it only lasted 10 days. Anna spent about 20 hours hunting for a chance to shoot one without any luck. Hunting may be a fun way to pass the time, but it's not very productive unless you get lucky or have years of experience. We'll continue to use these mechanical deer deterrents because they work without as much time or money invested.

These new mechanical deer deterrent motors just passed the 6 month mark with no signs of letting up.

The motors are rated at 12 volts AC, but I've been using a 9 volt adapter which makes it go even slower.

Round head screws work better for securing the motor to a board. I started out using more flat head drywall screws and lost a motor when the support arm got caught up in the space between the screw and the motor.

You'll want a screw that's long enough to bite into the wood but not too long so that it pokes through on the top. Save yourself some time looking through hardware bins and get a variety package at a Dollar General store for $1.50. It has the size you need leaving 68 various screws for any future experiments or deer deterrent projects.