How reliable are automatic coop doors?

[Buffychicken62]

Ive gone back and forth about getting an automatic door for our coop. I think I may have even made a post about it a while back. We have a coop attached to a run and do not free range. The run is secure but technically something could dig under. We aren't too concerned because we are in a neighborhood, have NEVER seen a raccoon, coyote, fox or possum, never had our trash messed with, and when my husband uses his stinky fish carcass fertilizer for the garden its never tampered with. We also have a 6 foot wooden privacy fence around our entire yard and are enclosed by fences on three sides from other neighbors. we also have a large yard full of dog smells from our 4 hounds. The entire perimeter of our home has cameras and none have EVER caught an animal other than a deer and stray cat. I know there is still a risk, but for now we aren't concerned.

That being said, I have no desire to test our predator theory once the sun goes down. I go out every evening to shut the coop door (which is an extremely secure coop) and open it when the sun comes up. It's not the biggest deal in the world to do it but I wonder if Id be happier with an auto door. I know there are a bunch out there and im mostly looking at the run chicken one, but I guess my question is how many people are thrilled with their auto doors and how many regret it or hate it. I have wifi cameras inside the run so I could check to see the door is shut at night and open in the morning, but has anyone here had an incident where the auto door didn't open or close? Anyone have an incident that had them go back to a manual door?

I’ve had two of the “Run chicken” doors for 2 yrs and I love them! Very reliable! The only issue I’ve had is when we had freezing rain and the doors froze shut. I poured water over them tho and then they opened fine. There are times when I’m gone late in evenings watching my grandsons and it’s so comforting to know the coop doors will close when I’m not here.

 

[ducksatthepoint]

Ive gone back and forth about getting an automatic door for our coop. I think I may have even made a post about it a while back. We have a coop attached to a run and do not free range. The run is secure but technically something could dig under. We aren't too concerned because we are in a neighborhood, have NEVER seen a raccoon, coyote, fox or possum, never had our trash messed with, and when my husband uses his stinky fish carcass fertilizer for the garden its never tampered with. We also have a 6 foot wooden privacy fence around our entire yard and are enclosed by fences on three sides from other neighbors. we also have a large yard full of dog smells from our 4 hounds. The entire perimeter of our home has cameras and none have EVER caught an animal other than a deer and stray cat. I know there is still a risk, but for now we aren't concerned.

That being said, I have no desire to test our predator theory once the sun goes down. I go out every evening to shut the coop door (which is an extremely secure coop) and open it when the sun comes up. It's not the biggest deal in the world to do it but I wonder if Id be happier with an auto door. I know there are a bunch out there and im mostly looking at the run chicken one, but I guess my question is how many people are thrilled with their auto doors and how many regret it or hate it. I have wifi cameras inside the run so I could check to see the door is shut at night and open in the morning, but has anyone here had an incident where the auto door didn't open or close? Anyone have an incident that had them go back to a manual door?

I have been using a dawn to dust door for many years. My ducks sleep in a nice shed converted to a duck house and it has a secure run, too. My run is made out of large dog crates that were fitted together to make one long run. They are very heavy but I'm sure if something was very interested in getting to the ducks it could dig underneath the run. This has never happened. I live in a neighborhood and have a 6-ft fence. There isn't one half inch anywhere open for a animal to get in without some digging. The dawn the dusk door is very reliable. If it is going to rain I will disable the dawn to dusk door so they can play in the water throughout the night and are still safe inside the run. We have coyote, skunk, raccoon, possum, groundhog, and Fox. We did have a mink many years ago come into the yard and kill one of our hens. That is when I buttoned everything up tightly and we haven't had a problem yet. We also recently spotted bobcat here in Northern Ohio near Lake Erie! I put them to bed every night and put the door down myself or make sure that it is down. My Dawn to dusk door is mainly used so they can get out in the morning so I don't have to get up at the crack of dawn everyday. Sounds like you are pretty well covered with all the features. Being a chicken / duck caregiver is a responsibility that far too many people take lightly. It only takes one sad event to make you realize they really do rely on you to keep them safe. Always better safe than sorry I say. I wouldn't want a massacre on my conscious. Keep using your camera and your common sense. I have been a duck keeper for 11 years and we have only lost one duck to the mink.

 

[mboldi]

Ive gone back and forth about getting an automatic door for our coop. I think I may have even made a post about it a while back. We have a coop attached to a run and do not free range. The run is secure but technically something could dig under. We aren't too concerned because we are in a neighborhood, have NEVER seen a raccoon, coyote, fox or possum, never had our trash messed with, and when my husband uses his stinky fish carcass fertilizer for the garden its never tampered with. We also have a 6 foot wooden privacy fence around our entire yard and are enclosed by fences on three sides from other neighbors. we also have a large yard full of dog smells from our 4 hounds. The entire perimeter of our home has cameras and none have EVER caught an animal other than a deer and stray cat. I know there is still a risk, but for now we aren't concerned.

That being said, I have no desire to test our predator theory once the sun goes down. I go out every evening to shut the coop door (which is an extremely secure coop) and open it when the sun comes up. It's not the biggest deal in the world to do it but I wonder if Id be happier with an auto door. I know there are a bunch out there and im mostly looking at the run chicken one, but I guess my question is how many people are thrilled with their auto doors and how many regret it or hate it. I have wifi cameras inside the run so I could check to see the door is shut at night and open in the morning, but has anyone here had an incident where the auto door didn't open or close? Anyone have an incident that had them go back to a manual door?

Ive gone back and forth about getting an automatic door for our coop. I think I may have even made a post about it a while back. We have a coop attached to a run and do not free range. The run is secure but technically something could dig under. We aren't too concerned because we are in a neighborhood, have NEVER seen a raccoon, coyote, fox or possum, never had our trash messed with, and when my husband uses his stinky fish carcass fertilizer for the garden its never tampered with. We also have a 6 foot wooden privacy fence around our entire yard and are enclosed by fences on three sides from other neighbors. we also have a large yard full of dog smells from our 4 hounds. The entire perimeter of our home has cameras and none have EVER caught an animal other than a deer and stray cat. I know there is still a risk, but for now we aren't concerned.

That being said, I have no desire to test our predator theory once the sun goes down. I go out every evening to shut the coop door (which is an extremely secure coop) and open it when the sun comes up. It's not the biggest deal in the world to do it but I wonder if Id be happier with an auto door. I know there are a bunch out there and im mostly looking at the run chicken one, but I guess my question is how many people are thrilled with their auto doors and how many regret it or hate it. I have wifi cameras inside the run so I could check to see the door is shut at night and open in the morning, but has anyone here had an incident where the auto door didn't open or close? Anyone have an incident that had them go back to a manual door?

I have a Pullet-shut automatic door that has worked flawlessly for five years. My son bought my old home and that coop has the same one and it's been in use for about 12 years. One drop of oil on the lower hinge pin is the only maintenance. That's supposed to be done every six months but we usually remember about every two years.

 

[Yvette In California]

The autodoors are so insanely nice to have. We initially thought it was a luxury item, but then when we had evenings where we would be out and about and not there to close the coop door, or if we were sleeping later due to illness, we decided to investigate our options. We've got Omlet coops/run areas, and for the Go Up, which is what we started with, we got the solar powered Hentronix, which worked like a champ. The only issue was the dust that is generated would get up in the gears and we needed to make sure we were maintaining it, of course. Now, we have a Cube (larger coop) and it came with an autodoor. It's fantastic. The only issues we've had is that, at least for the model we have, either you can rely upon the electric eye to sense morning and nighttime OR you can program in the time you want it to open and close, but not a variation of both. It would also be super cool if there was a phone app, kind of like the Ring app, but alas, not at this time. Regardless, the convenience is wonderful. I suspect the issue of chicken dust getting into the moving bits on any brand could be a maintenance concern, but over all, we're super grateful. Mind you, we live in a suburban housing tract neighborhood and can only have up to five hens, so our situation may be quite different from yours, but ultimately, I'm sure you'll make the best choice for you! Cheers!

 

[Nessa's girls]

Ive gone back and forth about getting an automatic door for our coop. I think I may have even made a post about it a while back. We have a coop attached to a run and do not free range. The run is secure but technically something could dig under. We aren't too concerned because we are in a neighborhood, have NEVER seen a raccoon, coyote, fox or possum, never had our trash messed with, and when my husband uses his stinky fish carcass fertilizer for the garden its never tampered with. We also have a 6 foot wooden privacy fence around our entire yard and are enclosed by fences on three sides from other neighbors. we also have a large yard full of dog smells from our 4 hounds. The entire perimeter of our home has cameras and none have EVER caught an animal other than a deer and stray cat. I know there is still a risk, but for now we aren't concerned.

That being said, I have no desire to test our predator theory once the sun goes down. I go out every evening to shut the coop door (which is an extremely secure coop) and open it when the sun comes up. It's not the biggest deal in the world to do it but I wonder if Id be happier with an auto door. I know there are a bunch out there and im mostly looking at the run chicken one, but I guess my question is how many people are thrilled with their auto doors and how many regret it or hate it. I have wifi cameras inside the run so I could check to see the door is shut at night and open in the morning, but has anyone here had an incident where the auto door didn't open or close? Anyone have an incident that had them go back to a manual door?

 

[Nessa's girls]

My husband put me in an automatic door and I love it. We have a remote control so I can open and close it myself. I’ve never had anything happen negatively. Hope this helps

 

[aking19]

There are so many great recommendations!! When I did my research I found that the Chicken Guard appealed to me the most. Not sure if anyone else has suggested or not. But the door actually locks as well to help keep predators with “fingers” from lifting it up. It is expensive but it was well worth it for me. You do have to set an open/close time on it. We open around 6am and close around 30 min after dark so everyone has time to get in the coop. It also did great in the freezing cold this past winter we hit about -22 for a couple days. Have had it for a year and the batteries havent needed replacing yet and no issues with it.

 

[JLoWil]

Mine has not failed yet....for the first few nights I stood out there to make sure it closed, then I would go out before I go to bed to see that it closed....now, I have no reason to go out to check on it. It just works...I have mine on the timed setting so I know what time it is supposed to close and open

One thing I don’t understand about automatic doors is who’s to say all the chickens went inside before the door closes? What if the door closes and a few weren’t ready to go inside? They’re stuck outside ?

 

[ForFlocksSake]

I’ve had two of the “Run chicken” doors for 2 yrs and I love them! Very reliable! The only issue I’ve had is when we had freezing rain and the doors froze shut. I poured water over them tho and then they opened fine. There are times when I’m gone late in evenings watching my grandsons and it’s so comforting to know the coop doors will close when I’m not here.

My Run Chicken door got here today! Can’t wait to get it installed. I’m Happy to read yet another good review. I’m in Florida so I don’t need to worry about freezing rain. It gets cold in the winter (north Florida) and though we often get close to freezing temps, actual freezes are very uncommon.

 

[ForFlocksSake]

One thing I don’t understand about automatic doors is who’s to say all the chickens went inside before the door closes? What if the door closes and a few weren’t ready to go inside? They’re stuck outside ?

Mine are kept in a large run so I would see on our cameras if one got left out. But so far they all follow each other into the coop at exactly 845 every night.