What did you use on your pop door?

[Hokum Coco]

Found another person who did the same thing basically.... @aart I'm trying to get a parts list... mainly for the large round part in the middle.. around the main bolt. Also, how do you keep yours from pulling straight up and through when you open it?
Thank you for sharing good idea.
More than one way to skin a cat as the old adage goes.

 

[aart]

Found another person who did the same thing basically.... @aart I'm trying to get a parts list... mainly for the large round part in the middle.. around the main bolt. Also, how do you keep yours from pulling straight up and through when you open it?

The round white thing is just a piece of 1 1/2" pvc pipe.
The cam locks hit the top frame to keep the door from coming out.
You can see the frame pieces better in the first pop door build on My Coop page.
I would suggest you that you might want make the whole thing taller so the opening is taller when the door is open,
Tho it hasn't really been a problem but I had a DOH! moment when I built the frame same as other pop door without taking into consideration the cam lock block reducing the open door size.

 

[bigoledude]

Try this...

We built a door exactly like this one on an old coop/tractor we're fixing to put pullets in a few weeks from now. Our place sits right on the edge of a gorgeous vast brackish marsh that reaches all the way from my backyard to the Gulf of Mexico. We trapped 4 adult coons, 2 large boars and 2 younger ones. We put them in the run. We baited inside the coop with some fish guts. We waited a full day while they tried furiously to get in the pop door and everywhere else on the coop. They also tried maniacally to get out of the run that had hardware cloth laid along the ground about 2 feet inside the run. On day two, we opened the pop door and allowed them in the coop. They ate everything in there and drank like drunken sailors.

We scared them back into the run, closed the door again. Now, they knew how the door opened and that there was food in the coop. Two days no food no water. They worked themselves to a frazzle and couldn't manipulate the door mechanism! So much for the genius of coons. We will try different doors on our other coops as we slowly upgrade them. The door on this coop is not yet automated. We will add electric door openers as finances allow. Right now we are focusing on keeping the coops secure, cool and bug free in anticipation of the brutal cauldron-like summers we have here.

We know full well how smart coons are. We have had to trap and kill many to protect ours and our neighbor's chickens! But, to equate their prowess with that of humans is taking it a little too far. It get's tiresome to constantly see people's good ideas shot down with opinions based on no experience. We are located in a place with a crazy abundance of coons and possums. We will have the opportunity to catch "test subjects" at will, practically in our backyards.

The grandkids wanted to keep the coons. They think the coons are hilarious! They really are fascinating animals. Even the daughter's-in-law were amazed at these crafty suckers.

 

[bigoledude]

Correction; We did add a weight to make the hinge fall on the inside every time.

 

[DreamsInPink]

We built a door exactly like this one on an old coop/tractor we're fixing to put pullets in a few weeks from now.  Our place sits right on the edge of a gorgeous vast brackish marsh that reaches all the way from my backyard to the Gulf of Mexico.   We trapped 4 adult coons, 2 large boars and 2 younger ones.  We put them in the run.  We baited inside the coop with some fish guts.  We waited a full day while they tried furiously to get in the pop door and everywhere else on the coop.  They also tried maniacally to get out of the run that had hardware cloth laid along the ground about 2 feet inside the run.  On day two, we opened the pop door and allowed them in the coop.  They ate everything in there and drank like drunken sailors. 

We scared them back into the run, closed the door again.  Now, they knew how the door opened and that there was food in the coop.  Two days no food no water.  They worked themselves to a frazzle and couldn't manipulate the door mechanism!  So much for the genius of coons.  We will try different doors on our other coops as we slowly upgrade them.  The door on this coop is not yet automated.  We will add electric door openers as finances allow.  Right now we are focusing on keeping the coops secure, cool and bug free in anticipation of the brutal cauldron-like summers we have here. 

We know full well how smart coons are.  We have had to trap and kill many to protect ours and our neighbor's chickens!  But, to equate their prowess with that of humans is taking it a little too far.  It get's tiresome to constantly see people's good ideas shot down with opinions based on no experience.  We are located in a place with a crazy abundance of coons and possums.  We will have the opportunity to catch "test subjects" at will, practically in our backyards.  

The grandkids wanted to keep the coons.  They think the coons are hilarious!  They really are fascinating animals.  Even the daughter's-in-law were amazed at these crafty suckers. 

I had considered this method as well. The only reason I don't like it is because there has to be a bit of an opening for the hinge to clear. I don't want any openings.

 

[DreamsInPink]

The round white thing is just a piece of 1 1/2" pvc pipe.
The cam locks hit the top frame to keep the door from coming out.
You can see the frame pieces better in the first pop door build on My Coop page.
I would suggest you that you might want make the whole thing taller so the opening is taller when the door is open,
Tho it hasn't really been a problem but I had a DOH! moment when I built the frame same as other pop door without taking into consideration the cam lock block reducing the open door size.

Thank you very much! Yes, I do see what you mean about it not being quite tall enough. We've already cut our pop door out. I suppose we could use a different door if the one we have isn't tall enough...

 

[bigoledude]

With the hinge only falling to the inside, there is no need for an opening facing outward. There is no place for a coon or human for that matter, to reach an opening. The bottom of my pop door falls into a groove that is countersunk into a 2 X 4 that runs along the floor. And, because the hinge falls the same way each time, I could button-up the top as tight as Dick's hat band.

I think the door you are planning on using is fabulous! I am not trying to sway your decision into the style we went with. I am just giving the details for those who might be interested or, who don't have the tools to make the parts for the other one.

And, I must admit, I was eager to prove that a coon, or 4 coons working in unison, couldn't open this door. It took me, all 4 of my grown sons and a couple of grandsons, sloshing in the marsh, to trap these coons this fast.

 

[aart]

We trapped 4 adult coons, 2 large boars and 2 younger ones. We put them in the run. We baited inside the coop with some fish guts. We waited a full day while they tried furiously to get in the pop door and everywhere else on the coop. They also tried maniacally to get out of the run that had hardware cloth laid along the ground about 2 feet inside the run. On day two, we opened the pop door and allowed them in the coop. They ate everything in there and drank like drunken sailors.

We scared them back into the run, closed the door again. Now, they knew how the door opened and that there was food in the coop. Two days no food no water. They worked themselves to a frazzle and couldn't manipulate the door mechanism! So much for the genius of coons. We will try different doors on our other coops as we slowly upgrade them. The door on this coop is not yet automated. We will add electric door openers as finances allow. Right now we are focusing on keeping the coops secure, cool and bug free in anticipation of the brutal cauldron-like summers we have here.

No video?!

 

[yellowchicks]

I used two small blocks of plastic chopping board with a hole drilled through each block, lined up to the hole in the coop wall, put a small section of a plastic tube through the coop wall and connect the two blocks on either side. This serves as an alternate to a pulley system which works with any angle and any direction of the pull line, thus eliminated the need to review my physics.










On the outside, there are two hooks for the pull line for the open or close position. The line is marked with an orange fishing floater so we can see from afar if the door is open or closed.