Automatic coop doors: I'd love your input

[Lils Roost]

I have 2 omelets. LOVE them. Tested on my own hand and arm AND caught a girl in it when trying to close her out using the manual feature. I'm fine, girl is fine. The only issue I had has been my fault. The run door was not closing all the way but it had debris in the track.

How long is the wire from the door to the control panel?

 

[KyCoop]

I don't know for sure but it's not short. Had no issues getting either mounted.

I would like to add that we don't use the light option for opening and closing the doors. # 1 because one is facing North and the other is under a roof. We use the time setting. Works out well. We change the time with the seasons.

 

[BrickCoop15]

Check out the Pullet Shut door. I have had my first one for over 8 years and it has never failed to open or close the entire time I have owned it. It is a well made, dependable door that you will get many years of use out of.

 

[Alv401]

I'm having a new coop built for my ladies and was thinking of an automatic door. But, I'm seeing mixed reviews from doors made of plastic, to doors made with metal; doors that close on items they hit, to the point of a review that one decapitated a bird; doors with nice sensitive stops that won't crack an egg. All of this is leaving my head spinning. I live in CT near a large plot of wetlands; predators abound outside of my fenced yard. These include a pack of coyotes, fox, bob cats and coy wolves. I haven't seen any inside my fenced yard. I want a nice strong door for protection but I don't want one with a closure so strong it can seriously hurt my ladies. I'm new to BYC, new to chicken land and I'd really value any and all input. Thanks in advance.

We have the brand Run Chicken and have used it for the past month. Love it so far but the only thing giving me some pause is the button the manually open the door is outside the coop. I do worry a predator could accidentally knock the button and get inside. Anybody found a guard for that yet?

 

[perkolator]

We have the brand Run Chicken and have used it for the past month. Love it so far but the only thing giving me some pause is the button the manually open the door is outside the coop. I do worry a predator could accidentally knock the button and get inside. Anybody found a guard for that yet?

I cant find the pics but I saw someone 3d print a button cover, that basically just made it recessed. To replicate that for near free I'd just glue a washer or two over the button so it's recessed. Or block it off by duct taping a coin over it. I hardly ever push the button on mine.

 

[Alv401]

I cant find the pics but I saw someone 3d print a button cover, that basically just made it recessed. To replicate that for near free I'd just glue a washer or two over the button so it's recessed. Or block it off by duct taping a coin over it. I hardly ever push the button on mine.

Thanks for the great idea!

 

[RojoMarz]

I was looking at these actually and spoke to Rod. Even from what he said it sounded like one way or the other the door was going to close. :/. If you have your hand in it when its closing does it hurt when it hits your hand?

I just tested...I put my hand in the middle of the opening. The door had enough power to push my hand down. The door does move slowly, so that is good. I then put my hand on the ”floor”, but in the opening. I will say it hurt when it shut on it and it did reverse when it pushed back (resistance to the closing.). This is the line it made on my hand.

 

[kristinxyz]

Just adding a vote for the Omlet doors. We installed one on our pop door in Central VT 2 years ago and it’s been fantastic so far. Edited to add that it opens into a contained run; the door to their outdoor fenced-in yard is still manual.

Our control panel faces NNE with a fairly clear view of the sky, and the light sensor works great for us even through the peak of winter when our property is in shadow by 1pm. It’s even been fine through a couple of days with -20 to -40F wind chill.

(The one I linked to is app-controlable, which I guess ours is too? Smart home stuff is kinda useless when you don’t get cell service, so I can’t speak to that feature but I haven’t missed it.)

 

[Foxinthehenhouse]

I'm having a new coop built for my ladies and was thinking of an automatic door. But, I'm seeing mixed reviews from doors made of plastic, to doors made with metal; doors that close on items they hit, to the point of a review that one decapitated a bird; doors with nice sensitive stops that won't crack an egg. All of this is leaving my head spinning. I live in CT near a large plot of wetlands; predators abound outside of my fenced yard. These include a pack of coyotes, fox, bob cats and coy wolves. I haven't seen any inside my fenced yard. I want a nice strong door for protection but I don't want one with a closure so strong it can seriously hurt my ladies. I'm new to BYC, new to chicken land and I'd really value any and all input. Thanks in advance.

I’ve had an automatic door for years and never had a problem. The door is plastic and goes down very slow. There is no way the a chicken could get caught. Mine locks also, which is important, raccoons could possibly lift the door. I couldn’t have chickens if I didn’t have it. I never have to worry about letting them out or in.

 

[teach1rusl]

We put together our own auto doors. We have a total of 6 (in 5 different coops). We made our own tracks, some using metal extrusion my spouse got as scrap at work, and some made of wood (the ones I’ve built). Either way, they’re recessed at the bottom, so wouldn’t be easy for something to grab below to lift. But all of our doors open into contained runs, so that’s never been a real concern for us. What use to be sold as drapery motors when we got chickens 15 yrs ago now are sold as pop door motors on amazon. For the doors themselves, we use thick plexiglass.

Ours all run on digital timers…