Service & Repairs
Our traps are highly effective at attracting and killing pests and build for the tough rugged conditions but they will require some care and attention to keep them in good working order and to extend their life.
Servicing your trap at home
Here are some recommended tasks to keep your trap running sweet!
Warning: be sure to deactivate the trap and remove the battery before transporting or performing maintenance work near the kill bar!
Clean eyes: With an old toothbrush, clean any grime away from eye sensors. (CAUTION: Deactivate trap!)
Degrease: The gear mechanism will collect grime and guts that may eventually affect the efficient running, it is ok to use soap and domestic high-pressure water blasters around the mesh and gears.
Flush pump and bottle: A common issue, especially in hot areas or when the trap is positioned in direct sunlight, is for the lure to thicken or congeal. This issue can be mitigated by flushing the bottle and pump with warm soapy water, before topping up the lure.
Some users have found it useful to have spare lure systems on hand, to swap over in the field. Enquire below if you are interested in purchasing one.
If you have identified a problem and know the part you need contact our service team by filling out the form below. Lure and replacement batteries can be purchased from here.
Send to our Service Department
We offer a one-year return to base service warranty.
Our traps are designed with replaceable parts for inexpensive repair
Built to be repairable
If the trap is outside the warranty period we promise to repair the fault at the lowest possible cost, including parts, labour and freight.
We are constantly improving the materials and design of the AT220 trap, therefore we will sometimes replace or supply (at no charge) parts that weren't fit for purpose in early models.
Trouble shooting guide
Trap not resetting
Trap not resetting
The battery is well charged and plugged in, the light goes green when I press the button but nothing happens.
Contact service department
Trap keeps going off
Trap keeps going off
First off... The trap when first activated may fire a few times before calibrating If it fires more than 4 times you have a problem!
1. The trap frame may need straightening contact the service department
2. Microswitches are bent or damaged they should look like this..
This could be a number of things
Blocked lure pump
Blocked lure pump
Our most significant issue has the thickening of the lure usualy when the trap is positioned in hot climates or direct sun and when the trap has been inactive for some time. This can result in blocked tubes or pumps.
New lure formula has improved the issue but we susspect it still occurs in some conditions.
Take the oportunity to rinse out theold lure and flush with warm/soapy water.
If blocked (usualy at the elbow in bottom of trap) try this..
Kinked tube
If the lure is fresh and you can see the pump is turning with no obvious obstruction check the tube is not kinked. twist the purple seethrough end of the pump anti clockwise and inspect for any kinks in the white tube.
Battery issues
Battery issues
Our rechargeable nickel metal hydride batteries are designed to operate the trap for up to 6 months or 100 catches before needing recharging We are finding that most of the rechargeable batteries we provided are still good after 3 years but a small proportion have failed or fallen bellow a useful level of capacity,
As this is new Technology it is difficult to say when the right time to replace your battery.
Unfortunately, we don't have a test for measuring battery capacity at this stage. Regular observation and monitoring trap activity is currently the best indication.
Batteries have a 1-year warranty from the date of purchase.
New batteries can be purchased here..Battery Replacement – NZ AutoTraps
Feel free to return your old battery for recycling.
Blinking red light
Blinking red light
The Led light is located underneath the lid of the trap next to the small button. If the button is pressed and the led blinks red it is indicating either...
-An eye sensor fault. (constant on-off blink)
clean eye and retest
-A battery fault (one blink)
charge/replace the battery
-Kill bar jammed (3 blinks)
check/clear obstruction, and contact the service department.
Possum stuck in trap
Possum stuck in trap
Animal carcasses can get stuck in the trap if the battery is too flat to turn the motor or the mechanism has a fault during a kill.
The powerful spring makes it difficult to remove manually.
Replace the battery: Press the button and wait for 2 minutes for the trap to open. If the trap is jammed or had a fault other than a flat battery you will need to pry the trap open.
Prying the trap..
Lay the trap flat the ground or bench, Hold trapdown securely, insert a large screwdriver or thin pry bar (minimum 300mm long) over the spring end and under the opposite end of the kill bar.
This should give enough leverage to pry the trap easily. a 3rd hand can be helpful!
(caution keep hands away from keyhole)
Trap fell off tree
Trap fell off tree
A possum when caught will kick off the tree with extraordinary force. The wire hangers on the screw mount are designed to reduce the force the possum can exert.
Ensure your trap is screwed to a solid tree.
If your trap has fallen
Check for visible damage
Re-attach trap to a solid tree without rot.
if hangers are damaged or broken you can reattach temporarily with wire or strong cable ties. we can provide you with a permanent fix
Reactivate the trap by attaching battery and press button once, wait to ensure its sets successfully. If it doesn't calibrate it may need straightening please contact the service department via the form below.
Rats stuck in trap
Rats stuck in trap
Rats and mice will often get hung up or stuck in trap mechanism.
This doesn't seem to deter animal engagement (and may even attract pests)
In most cases, the trap will clear itself.
If the eye sensor is blocked by the obstruction the trap will activate once per day until the obstruction is cleared.
The trap can be cleared manually with plyers, a stick or a rat clearing tool (fish hook removing tool.)
Caution keep your hands well clear.
Can't connect to app
Can't connect to app
The trap connects to your phone via Wifi and will display the trap kill data and other vital statistics via the trap app.
No network coverage or wifi signal is needed this is a link between your trap and phone only.
To connect.. ensure you have downloaded the app to your android phone (sorry no iPhone at this stage)
- Press button once to wake the trap.
-Open wifi setting on the phone
-Click on wifi network ESPxxxx
-Go to Trap app on your phone and press the green "GO" button.
Some phones have a frustrating habbit of dropping the connection with the trap, This can sometime be remedied by turning off other networks in your phones wifi settings.
Read more about using the app...
Trap wont trigger
Trap wont trigger
To test the eye function in daytime/manual mode
- Press the button once
- Wait 10 sec
- Wave a 30cm piece of cardboard in front of the "trigger eye" with hands well clear.
Note: bright sunlight can also confuse the trigger eye even when in manual mode.
To test night time trigger function.
Use cardboard strip in front of trigger eye between hrs.. 1hr after dark and 1hr before dawn.
Note; the trap may take 24 hrs before calibrating to the day/night times
If you can't trigger the trap eye, it may be either:
- Dirty, Clean the eye with old toothbrush ( caution ensure the trap is deactivated with the battery removed)
-It is too close to dawn or dusk.
- Malfunctioning.. contact service department
Trouble shoot with the app
Trouble shoot with the app
The android Trap app can be very helpful when troubleshooting your AT220 here are a few tips
Is the trap catching
Often the carcases are scavenged before you see them and therefore it can be impossible to tell how active your trap has been , The App will keep a fairly accurate count of triggers and possums (aka large animals)
Compare triggers with cycles to see if your trap is struggling to calibrate your trap may have an issue. You can reset this log if you want to start a fresh count by selecting "reset" and "confirm"on the trap tab.
Light level sensors: an easy test to determine if your eye sensors are ok
- Connect to trap and open app
- Trap tab
- Check Eye1and Eye 2 if they have a red bar they are obscured or you have a fault.
Micro switch function
Check bar and cam status
When the kill bar is up/set, it will depress the microswitches, this is how the motor knows when to stop, if the micro switches are broken or bent the trap may not be set sucessfully.
when the trap is not set these check for bar and cam status on app gently hold down microswitches on trap to test the signal.
(CAUTION: If trap is powered on, it will reset and become dangerous)
Contact our service team
Please complete the form below and let us know about the problems you are experiencing. Following that, we may organise the return of your Trap to our workshop located in Whakatane where it will be investigated further by our repair team.
Returns procedure
Once you have submitted the service request above, please send your Trap to
NZ AutoTraps Unit 5,143 Commerce Street, Whakatane 3120
Our team will be in touch with you to discuss the next steps.
Get in touch
Sales: info@nzautotraps.com
Technical Support:
workshop@nzautotraps.com
Address:
Unit 5, 143 Commerce St, Whakatane, 3120
About us
Empowering all New Zealanders with a smart, hard-working tool that effectively and safely catches our invasive predators.