If you are planning to build a chicken coop, you will also need to build a chicken coop door. What is so important about the door you might ask. Well, a door isn’t an option you can choose to have or not, but a must for all coop. Having a door will help keep your chicken safe from danger such as predators and mother nature. Building a door for your coop isn’t hard, and it’s really simple. Probably one of the simplest items for the chicken coop.
Why Do Chicken Coop Need Doors?
Chicken coop door is a must-have item if you are raising chickens. Doors help keep them safe from predators and provide shelter for them from the rain, snow, and sun. Mother nature can be mean sometimes and that’s why you should be prepared. The door for your chicken coop doesn’t have to be fancy, but it needs to be sturdy and strong enough to prevent foxes and other predators from knocking it down and getting to your chickens.
The chicken coop door is nothing more than a couple of pieces of wood nailed together and attached to the opening of the chicken coop. Depending on the size of your coup, you might have one or more doors. A small coop with one door will be sufficient. A large coop will require at least two doors, so it will be easy for the chickens to get in and out off. Also, if there is danger nearby, the chickens can get into the coop quickly.
For anyone who keeps chickens as a pet or raises them for meats and eggs, you know how important the chickens are to you. That’s why it is very important to keep them safe at night when predators like foxes and owls hunt. For some people, it can be a tedious job coming out every morning opening and every night closing the door for the chicken coop and looking for an easier way to handle that task. Well, you’re in luck because there’s an automatic chicken coop door that can do the job for you.
Types Of Chicken Coop Doors
Doors come in the option of being manual or automatic. Most doors will be manually open and close. That means you will have to open and close the door yourself. Manual doors are easier to fix and maintenance if they should need repair. On the other hand, the automatic door will make your life easier as it will open and close by itself. However, it will cost money if it needs to be repaired.
Automatic Chicken Coop Door
If you are in the market for automatic doors, there are many places you can buy from. Before buying one, make sure to do your research to see what’s included, the size of it, and the quality of it. I recommend not choosing any that are cheap because they will cost more in the long run. Most automatic door openers will be anywhere from $50 to $300. Here’s a link to buy one from Amazon: Automatic Chicken Coop Door Opener.
When it comes to automatic doors, you can build them yourself or buy one already made. That depends on your expertise in building an automated door. If you are looking to build an automatic chicken coop door, click here to see the article to learn how to build one. Building one is fairly simple and requires locks, timers, ropes or chains, and patient. In addition, building an automatic door will depend on how your coop is set up. Some chicken coop has doors that swing back and forth, while others have doors that go up and down. So it will require some knowledge of how timers and locks work if you want to build one yourself.
If you rather not build one yourself, you can buy an automatic door online. Most local home improvement stores won’t have these in stock, but they might have them online. You can buy them as a Whole Assembly Automatic Chicken Coop Door Opener or just Chicken Coop Door Motor. Buying the whole assembly or just the door motor will depend on your preferences and expertise. For the whole assembly, all you need to do is cut the coop to make room for the door, and you’re done. If you’re buying just the motor, you will need to do some work to make the door work. Usually, for both products, there will be instructions for you to follow.
If you are building one yourself or buying one, make sure the locking mechanism works flawlessly. If the locks don’t lock, what’s the point of having a door. So make sure to test it out a couple of times before leaving it to do its job on its own. Another thing with automatic doors is that the lock is controlled by a timer. A timer is a device that is set manually to tell what time the door should be locked and unlocked. When buying a timer, don’t go for the cheap one because they tend to work and last for only a short period of time. If the timer stop working, that means the door isn’t locked and that can pose a threat to your chicken at night. That’s why you want to choose a quality timer to prevent something like that from happening.
An automatic chicken coop door is a great feature to have for your chicken coop. You won’t have to worry about coming out at night to lock the door or come in the early morning to open the door for the chickens. Also, you can go on a vacation for a couple of days without worrying about your chicken. The automatic door will keep them safe at night, and you won’t have to worry about your chicken being eaten.
Manual Chicken Coop Door
Manual chicken coop doors are simply doors that don’t have any mechanism that closes or opens the door automatically.
It could be a door that opens in and out or slides up and down. The manual chicken coop door will need to be closed by a person each evening after all the chickens are in the coop, and open in the morning to let them out.
Chicken Coop Door Features
When it comes to the chicken coop door, it will have features to secure the door to the wall of the coop. Below are some of the features a chicken coop door will have:
Chicken Coop Door Lock
Another important feature of the door is the door lock. You need a lock to keep your chicken safe inside the coop. Some predators like a fox know how to open a door to the chicken coop. A lock doesn’t cost much, and you can buy a simple one from any home improvement store. If you have an automatic door opener, most doors will come with a lock already installed. If it doesn’t, you will need to get the lock from the company that manufactured the door.
The chicken coop door doesn’t have to be pretty, but it needs to be sturdy enough to handle the loads from being opened and closed every day. Using high-quality woods will be sturdy enough for everyday uses. When using nails to hold the woods together, use high-quality nails, preferable stainless steel nails to prevent rust. Screws can also be used to hold the woods together.
Chicken Coop Door Size
The size of the door will need to be considered as well. The size of the door will be up to you. You can make the door as small or large as you want, but keep in mind the chickens are going in and out of it every day so make sure the door is large enough for them to go in and out of. Some people like to build a door that is large enough where they can stick their bodies into it. This will help cleaning and maintenance inside the chicken coop much easier than just being able to reach with just your arms.
Chicken Coop Door Latch
The latch is the mechanism that slides into the edge of the door. Its main purpose is to secure the door, so it will not open or close on its own.
For manual opening doors, a latch is a must to secure the chickens inside. Some predators are smart and able to open the chicken coop door.
However, if you’re using an automatic chicken coop door, a latch is not necessary. The door will be powered by a motor, which will usually not open or close unless the motor is running.
Chicken Coop Door Timer
The timer is simply a piece of device that controls when the chicken coop door will close or open. It’s usually wired to a motor where it will send a signal at a certain time to control the door.
The door timer comes as digital or analog, but I recommend you get the digital timer as it makes it easy to set up the time.
Conclusion
As you can see, the door for the chicken coop is very important when building a chicken coop. So keep that in mind, and you will never have to worry about your chickens being eaten by predators.
