ADOR1 Automatic Coop Door?

[sn0wwhite]

Hi SW ! I cut mine according to the dimensions and it fit great when the door finally arrived

Thank you! I found the guide on their website and I will do that.

 

[MoonShadows]

Thanks, Windy. If he does not reply in a day or two, I will use the "EXPEDITE" subject line. I know he puts in long days and is usually overwhelmed with work and requests.

 

[MoonShadows]

Just found an email from Rod! I'll post what he said in case anyone else is having this problem. I am super busy with my other business right now (the busy season), so I'll try these things over the next few days and let you all know.

Quote:
He included some docs too. I think they are too much to put in one post, so I'll split them up over a few posts.

 

[MoonShadows]

Rev: 9/24/13 Page 1 of 3
9/10/13
TROUBLESHOOTING DOOR THAT DOES NOT OPEN OR CLOSE ALL THE WAY
REPLACE THE BATTERY
If you have a low battery, the ADOR will say “SOS B” in Morse Code. If you replaced the battery but it
does not fix the problem or the 2nd battery works for a while and soon you have the same problem
again, then the problem is probably a mechanical one that causes it to strain and draw too much battery
energy.
RECHARGEABLE BATTERY AND AC CHARGER
If for some reason the battery appears to be going weak prematurely, there is a low cost solution by
RayoVac. This battery and charger cost about $9/ea at Walmart.
DOOR TRYING TO OVERCOME MECHANICAL OVERLOAD
The ADOR monitors electrical current to the motor, and if the current is too high, that is the same as
binding or jamming. It could be a bad motor or bad electronics causing it but most likely it is a
mechanical problem. When excessive current is detected, the electronic controller will reverse the
direction of the motor for a moment and then try again, and if still the motor current is excessive, the
controller will reverse the direction for a moment again and then reverse again and if it runs into the
obstruction a third time, it quits trying and sends the warning on the sound maker “SOS O”.
If you do not see it re-trying, then probably the battery voltage drops too low for it to try again or else
the motor shaft is turning inside the sprocket hub. If the sprocket is loose on the shaft or the sprocket
broke from the hub, then after 30 seconds it will send “SOS G”, but you won’t see it re-trying.
Rev: 9/24/13 Page 2 of 3
9/10/13
LOOSE SPROCKET
If the sprocket is not tight on the motor shaft, generally the motor will keep turning and the door does
not move. This usually only happens while opening. Remove the cover and watch to see if the motor
continues to turn. On some units we have supplied a spare 5/64” allen wrench taped to the inside of the
cover for tightening the set screw on the sprocket.
SPROCKET JAMMING TOO DEEP INTO THE DOOR
Have you noticed that the door operates better with the cover off the battery box? If the battery box is
too close to the door panel, the sprocket has too much friction and should be moved away from the
door panel a tiny amount. The quick way of learning if this is where the problem is, with the battery box
cover off, push down on the floor of the box near the motor and see if the door will open/close now
through the trouble spot. If this looks like it makes a difference, next try loosening the two locknuts on
the left side of the back of the battery box (just left of the sprocket, inside). Loosen the nuts (5/16” nut
driver) about three turns. Now stick something like the tip of a screwdriver in the gap between the
battery box and the frame, on the left side of the battery box. Try prying it out while the motor is going
to see if this relieves the straining through the bad spot.
If this appears to be where the trouble is, then you can remove the two nuts on the left side, and you
can pull the left side of the battery box away from the frame just enough to get a couple washers (#6
size or #8), one each on each stud. Note there is already a spacer on the top stud which is so that
there’s a gap for the top of the cover to lap around the back of the box. If you shim out the box too far,
then the sprocket might jump out of the holes, so don’t overdo it.
BENT OR WARPED COMPONENTS
The fore-mentioned problem of the sprocket jamming too deep into the door panel might have been
caused in shipping. Heavy shipments on top of the ADOR can press the battery box into the frame,
causing the frame to cave-in slightly and this may not be easily visible. But the shimming solution works
for that.
Other warping in shipping or in installation can cause the frame to be bent and/or the door panel to be
bent. Pull the door panel out of the top of the frame (jog it up and pull it up and out) or with battery
disconnected you can pull it out the top. Examine the door panel for dents, bends, and especially also
blisters or chaffing on the slick tape that’s on the left and right edges. Also inspect the frame for
warping.
CHAFFED OR BLISTERED SLICK TAPE
The door panel has special slick tape glued to the right and left edges of the door panel. This should be
smooth. If it is blistered or chaffed, this was probably caused by warping in the door panel or frame or
from excessive grit/dirt in the guides. The friction caused by blisters/chaffing on the slick tape is
generally worse than just metal on metal and so needs to be fixed.
Rev: 9/24/13 Page 3 of 3
9/10/13
CLEANING
Regular cleaning of the door panel and door guides, is necessary especially in a dusty environment. If
wind keeps a film of dust on everything or just the settling of dander and dirt from the coop, you should
clean the door and guides often. The cheap little foam paint brushes you can buy at the dollar store or
hardware store are good for dipping in soapy water and cleaning the guides and with an extra one, you
can use it to sponge dry the guides after rinsing with water. Pull the door up and out of the guides to
clean the panel separately if you can. You should be able to clean the panel liberally with soap and
water but do not nick the slick edges or cause the door to get bent (be careful not to drop it). After
cleaning and drying the door panel and guide channels, we recommend a dry oil lubrication.
LUBRICATION
In the dirty environment of a chicken coop, sticky lubrication should not be used. The door guides can
be kept clean with a damp cloth and if it works fine dry, then it is best to run the door dry. If you want
to try lubrication, a dry oil (such as Dupont Teflon Silicone Lubricant) can be applied to the sprocket and
sprocket holes and the left and right guides. You can put the oil directly on the slick tape so that it
smears over the surfaces and the edge where it contacts with the frame.
MAGNETS
The ADOR senses end-of-travel by sensing the two little magnets, one near the top and one near the
bottom of the sliding door panel. These magnets are shiny ¼” and glued to the door panel near the left
edge of the door panel. If a magnet comes off, the ADOR will run all the way to the end. When it runs
to the end, it draws excessive battery current and also tries three times and stops – also drawing
excessive energy out of the battery. The magnet that came off is likely behind the battery box and could
be scraping against the door. If a magnet came off, find it and glue it back in place.

 

[MoonShadows]

DOOR NOT CLOSING AT SUNSET BUT CLOSES MANUALLY
1. If the door is in manual mode, it will not automatically close. If you or someone has manually operated the door it is possible the door was left in manual mode.
2. The door has a delay (5 or 10 minutes) after it detects sufficient darkness before it closes. This has been requested by many customers that the door not close too soon. If you perceive that it appears sufficiently dark, and do not wait to see the door close automatically, and so you push the button to close it, you don't know if it WOULD have closed, had you waited a few more minutes. What time was it when you manually closed it?
3. If there is a source of artificial light that ADOR can see, it may not be getting dark enough for it to close the door. Maybe light shining out a window, or landscape lighting, or yard lights, porch lamp?
4. There is a little jumper on the electronic board. It is a 1/4" square piece of plastic that is plugged into pins 1 and 2 of the 6 pin header sticking upward from the board. Maybe it is making bad contact. Slide it up and down a few times to clean the pins. Bad connection here could cause the photosensor to not function. If you are using an external photosensor, same thing, possibly not a good connection to the pins so slide the connector up and down a few times. However, if it is opening every sunrise, this is not likely the problem.
5. There could be a failure in the photosensor on the board, and the board needs to be replaced. However, once again, if the door opens at sunrise then this is not likely the problem.

 

[MoonShadows]

LAST CALL TIMING
The timing is affected by your Light Sensitivity settings (Program 1 or 2 or 3).
If you have Program 1 set (factory default) or Program 3 set:
The door shuts for 5 minutes and opens again for 5 minutes before it shuts finally.
If you have Program 2 setting:
The door shuts for 5 minutes and opens again for 10 minutes before it shuts finally.
TESTING THE PHOTOSENSOR IN THE DARK
1. It must be sufficiently dark to do this test (no tungsten lights and only LED lighting or florescent if remote and not direct).
2. Interrupt battery power for 5 seconds. ADOR chirps Didididit Didit and then closes the door.
3. The door should completely close and stay closed.
4. Turn on some artificial light. This could be a flashlight or LED flashlight if you shine it up close to the photosensor.
5. The ADOR should chirp DiDAHDidit ("L" for light) and should open all the way.
6. Continue shining the light on the sensor. The door should stay open.
7. Remove the light, putting the photosensor back in darkness.
8. The door should shut.
9. You should be able to get quick response like this up to about 5 minutes after power is interrupted. After 5 minutes it still works but is very slow to react, by design.

TESTING THE PHOTOSENSOR IN THE DAYTIME
1. NOTE: Outside in the daylight it will be difficult to achieve sufficient darkness to cause the door to shut.
2. Interrupt battery power for 5 seconds. ADOR chirps Didididit Didit and then closes the door.
3. The door should completely close.
4. .The ADOR should chirp DiDAHDidit ("L" for light) and should open all the way.
5. The door should stay open until you can totally block daylight from the sensor.
6. Putting the photosensor back in darkness is more difficult the brighter the daylight, but you can take a 2" piece of electrical tape and pinch it around the black photosensor. (it is the black LED looking thing under the clear LED). The electrical tape alone is probably not enough. Then take a rag and drape it over the board. If that doesn't work, drape another rag. If that still doesn't make it dark enough, add a shoebox clapped over the whole battery box.
7. The ADOR should chirp DiDAHDidit ("L" for light) and should shut. But if it still doesn't shut, it may be that you should just wait till night to do this test in order to test the ADOR photosensor.
8. You should be able to get quick response up to about 5 minutes after power is interrupted. After 5 minutes it still works but is very slow to react, by design.

 

[Windy Bay Farm]

[COLOR=000000]LAST CALL TIMING
The timing is affected by your Light Sensitivity settings (Program 1 or 2 or 3).
If you have Program 1 set (factory default) or Program 3 set:
The door shuts for 5 minutes and opens again for 5 minutes before it shuts finally.
If you have Program 2 setting:
The door shuts for 5 minutes and opens again for 10 minutes before it shuts finally.
TESTING THE PHOTOSENSOR IN THE DARK
1. It must be sufficiently dark to do this test (no tungsten lights and only LED lighting or florescent if remote and not direct).
2. Interrupt battery power for 5 seconds. ADOR chirps Didididit Didit and then closes the door.
3. The door should completely close and stay closed.
4. Turn on some artificial light. This could be a flashlight or LED flashlight if you shine it up close to the photosensor.
5. The ADOR should chirp DiDAHDidit ("L" for light) and should open all the way.
6. Continue shining the light on the sensor. The door should stay open.
7. Remove the light, putting the photosensor back in darkness.
8. The door should shut.
9. You should be able to get quick response like this up to about 5 minutes after power is interrupted. After 5 minutes it still works but is very slow to react, by design.

TESTING THE PHOTOSENSOR IN THE DAYTIME
1. NOTE: Outside in the daylight it will be difficult to achieve sufficient darkness to cause the door to shut.
2. Interrupt battery power for 5 seconds. ADOR chirps Didididit Didit and then closes the door.
3. The door should completely close.
4. .The ADOR should chirp DiDAHDidit ("L" for light) and should open all the way.
5. The door should stay open until you can totally block daylight from the sensor.
6. Putting the photosensor back in darkness is more difficult the brighter the daylight, but you can take a 2" piece of electrical tape and pinch it around the black photosensor. (it is the black LED looking thing under the clear LED). The electrical tape alone is probably not enough. Then take a rag and drape it over the board. If that doesn't work, drape another rag. If that still doesn't make it dark enough, add a shoebox clapped over the whole battery box.
7. The ADOR should chirp DiDAHDidit ("L" for light) and should shut. But if it still doesn't shut, it may be that you should just wait till night to do this test in order to test the ADOR photosensor.
8. You should be able to get quick response up to about 5 minutes after power is interrupted. After 5 minutes it still works but is very slow to react, by design.[/COLOR]

Moon... Looks like he gave you a lot of valuable information. I may print this off and keep it with my other ADOR info for future reference if needed. Now that you have some things to try, let us know what makes the door work better. Thanks for sharing !

 

[MoonShadows]

Windy,

Thought the info might be of value if anyone runs into trouble. Yesterday, the door opened perfectly in the morning and closed perfectly in the evening. I'll get a chance to look at it this weekend....too busy during the week. I'll let you know.

 

[aart]

Windy,

Thought the info might be of value if anyone runs into trouble. Yesterday, the door opened perfectly in the morning and closed perfectly in the evening. I'll get a chance to look at it this weekend....too busy during the week. I'll let you know.

An intermittent problem would worry me more than something consistent.....hhhmmmmm.

 

[McKinneyMike]

Indeed. When will it work and when will it not? That would drive me insane!