Chicken Coops Direct

 

How To Fit An Automatic Door Opener To A Devon Hen House With Run

 

Before you begin you are going to need the following tools for the job:

  • A suitable Philips screw driver.
  • An adjustable spanner or pair of pliers.
  • A thick piece of cloth or towel to cover the VBS unit box to simulate night.
  • An optional drill or very thin screwdriver
  • Scissors
  • Felt tip pen or something to make a mark.

If you are attaching a door opener to the Devon without any run attached to the front then you'll need to follow these instructions here.

Step 1. Positioning the VBS box.

The position of the main unit is important if you plan to use it with a Devon Run attached to the hen house.

You will need to make sure there is enough space between the top of the run, the VBS unit and the top pulley.

We recommend that you position the unit as shown in the image below.

 

Step 2. Position the pulleys.

The screws for the pulleys supplied are quite thick and will be need to be screwed in using a spanner or a pair of pliers.

We recommend that you either drill a small guide hole to help you get started or you use a very thin screwdriver to create a small pilot hole.

The screws for the Pulleys 1 and 2 shown in the image above should not be over tightened as they will poke through the wood panel on the other side and may pose a potential danger to your hens, so we do recommend you take care here.

Pulley 3 is positioned to the side of the pop hole door so as not to obstruct the door while it is being opened. Pulley 4 needs to be screwed in fully, allowing just a small gap for the white wheel to move without catching.

Step 3. Secure the supplied screw eye hook to the pop hole door.

You can secure the screw eye hook in two ways.

Or

Just remember to take extra care to ensure that the hook is straight, in the middle of the door and in the middle of the wood if you are choosing to secure it to the top of the actual door and not the handle.

Step 4. Unwind the cord so it is fully extended.

Attach the batteries supplied, then cover the entire unit with a heavy duty peice of cloth to simulate darkness and then pulling very lightly on the cord to simulate the weight of the door.

(You have to pull lighly to simulate gravity in order to activate the motor.)

If you don't have a thick cloth then you can override the light sensor by ‘connecting’ pins 3 and 4 with something metallic, a screw driver or coin while at the same time pulling gently on the cord.

With the cord fully unwound the motor will cut off automatically. Once the cord is totally unwound and the motor has cut off remove one of the batteries.

Next carefully remove the little bead by cutting above the little looped end of the cord.

Be carefull not to loose the tiny bead!

 

Step 5. Attach the extra piece of cord supplied.

We have supplied you with an extra piece of cord.

This needs to be secured to the end of the cord that comes with the door opener to increase the overall length in order to allow you to pass it around all 4 pullies.

I personally recommend using a loop to loop connection. Here's a video on YouTube to explain the concept but you can secure this extra piece of line/cord however you like.

Next carefully loop the cord around the pulleys and attach it to the eye hook in the door.

 

PLEASE NOTE : The next step is very important and care needs to be taken. The VBS unit uses a small bead held in place by a knot to activate a little cut off lever.

Step 6. Create a little ‘cut off’ mark in the cord.

Take a look at the video below of how the door opener uses a tiny bead to activate the motor cut out lever.

 

How The AXT Door Opener Works

 

Next you need to create a little knot in the cord. It has to be in the correct position in order to ‘cut out’ the motor at the right point. For this you will need to have a marker pen to hand so you can make a mark on the cord so you know where to tie the knot.

With the pop hole door closed, the cord attached to the door and around the pulleys the next thing is to insert the missing battery. Assuming you are doing this during the day or in a bright place the motor will kick in, take up any slack on the cord and door will begin to open.

Be ready to stop the door by removing one of the batteries as soon as the door is almost fully opened. You want to stop the motor when the top of the door is no less than 2 cm from the pulley 4.

Failure to do so will result in the pop-up door or hook eye screw hittng the pulley causing the motor to cut out because the motor cannot physically wind the door up any more.

You do not want this to happen, it can cause the motor to burn out and at the same time you'll drain your batteries thinking the door opener is working as it should.

Make sure that the little bead moving the lever as shown in the video above is what cuts out the motor and not the door hitting up against something!

So with a battery removed and the door stopped just below the pully, take your felt pen or something similar and make a mark on the cord just below the little hole.

This will indicate where to tie your knot later.

 

Step 7. Tie your cut off knot.

Attach the batteries supplied, and then unwind the cord so it is fully extended the same way you did in Step 4.

Once there is enough slack in the cord to play with you can stop the motor and tie your knot making sure that you replace the little bead and that it is above this knot.

This knot is what is going to stop the bead from sliding down the cord so make sure it's a double knot.

 

Step 8. Attach the face of the VBS box and test the door.

With the batteries connected, the VBS unit fully secured and closed up tight use a towel or thick cloth to block out the light and test the opening and closing of the door.

 

Final Important Points:

You can adjust the light sensor if you find that the door is closing too early or too late. It has been factory set in such a way so that the pop up hole closes as soon as it starts to get dark.

If you find that your hens are getting locked out then using a screwdriver, gently turn the white arrow controller clockwise.

This will make the VSB close when it's darker and open when lighter.

Don't forget that nearby foreign lighting sources can interfere with the door opener's light sensor so make sure your coop is free from any other light sorces.

We recommend that on a regular basis you check that the pop hole door is free from debris and that it runs smoothly.

Remember to make sure that the screws that are used to secure the door handle to the pop hole door are countersunk on the back so as not to obstruct the door in any way as this will prevent it from opening smoothly and may damage the motor.

Please bear in mind that during wet weather wood typically absorbs the moisture in the air and expands. This may temporarily effect the opening and closing of your a pop hole door. So too on frosty mornings.

And finally while it is great to be able to have a lie in over the weekend or not have to worry about your chickens before you leave for work please remember that the onus is on you as their keeper to make sure that they are safe and that the door opener is working at all times.