- Oct 19, 2010
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I'm new to chickendom. I bought my first day-old chicks last June. I got my first egg in October. I never thought I would enjoy the time I spend with my chickens nearly as much. I'm in the heart of predator country, located 13 miles west of Utopia and 13 miles southwest of Tarpley--that's pretty-much in the middle of no-where.
I'm sending out a request to the engineers and tinkerers in the group for someone to PLEASE invent a secure automatic door. I envision a tiny garage door opener that uses similar technology with some kind of bar that locks the door down and will not allow it to be opened from the outside. Also important is a photo eye safety beam like what is used with garage doors that prevents one from closing if there is an obstruction in its path. My vision includes a battery-powered timer with a solar charger that offers a dusk-till-dawn or manual open and close times. Another important feature is to continue to re-close after each obstructed attempt until the door is securely closed for the night. I recently heard of a prototype that has a reopen feature that waits 5 minutes after the first close, then reopens for 5 minutes before closing for the night. This is to let late arrivals come in to roost. That seems to be a nice feature also. Such a door would be worth at least $200 to me, maybe more. I hope I've inspired someone to go to work on it. You certainly have an eager market with the forum.
I'm sending out a request to the engineers and tinkerers in the group for someone to PLEASE invent a secure automatic door. I envision a tiny garage door opener that uses similar technology with some kind of bar that locks the door down and will not allow it to be opened from the outside. Also important is a photo eye safety beam like what is used with garage doors that prevents one from closing if there is an obstruction in its path. My vision includes a battery-powered timer with a solar charger that offers a dusk-till-dawn or manual open and close times. Another important feature is to continue to re-close after each obstructed attempt until the door is securely closed for the night. I recently heard of a prototype that has a reopen feature that waits 5 minutes after the first close, then reopens for 5 minutes before closing for the night. This is to let late arrivals come in to roost. That seems to be a nice feature also. Such a door would be worth at least $200 to me, maybe more. I hope I've inspired someone to go to work on it. You certainly have an eager market with the forum.
