Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Steve - can you remember what your next post said (now gone with server change). It responded to my question regarding reversal of motor and use of arm.

I remember I posted a response to yours asking what part of arm you were talking about and that I had just envisaged using a reel of some kind with a strong cord lifting the door at it was retracted. This seems to be how the commercial ones work.

yep, i said that my schematic included motor reversal

and that i'd have to draw a picture as its to hard for me to explain. but its gonna be crap as im no good with tech drawings

Would only put the ram in upmode on pressure and bleed on the downstroke VB with weight a fox could not lift on the door. Either that or make it very slow on up and down .
How come we don't have a smiley for squashed chicken?

That makes plenty of sense sleepe. I'd therefore need to mount the bottom of the door/entrance. Certainly doable.

nup not going to attempt to draw it i hated art and graphics...............

draw a vertically opening door (with tracks on the left and right)

fix a bolt to the centre or top centre

put the motor to the right of this bolt (fixed to the shed)

join a flat arm to the shaft with a tightend bolt and the the bolt on the door to the other side, but this bolt does not clamp down through the arm, Instead of going through a hole in the arm, it goes though a slot (and located centre of this slot).

as the motor turns 90d clockwise the arm goes from 9 o'clock to 12 o'clock, and the door is raised as the door bolt travels to the right of the slot.

if anyone can draw this feel free.

Don't tell me we've found something you're not good at

or use a level system that is used in horizontal gate openers. i've attempted to draw both

I dont think 9 o:clock 12 o:clock would be any good you need the door to open at 6am and close 6 pm

they're lazy cooks

you're a pisser, F&F

to avoid decapitating a chicken:
use a lightweight door
use a longer arm (windscreen wiper motors are capable of the torque)
instead of connecting the arm with a slotted hole (difficult to make) to a bolt in the door
mount two wheels or pulley centers on bolts to the door at a reasonable distance so that they can rotate
use the lowest speed if that is available
when the arm swings upwards it will slide against the top pulley and pull open the door
when the arm swings downwards the door will follow it by gravity
the space between the two pulleys will allow a chicken to scurry away should it risk to get trapped
when the door reaches the floor and stands on it the arm leaves the upper pulley and continues to the lower pulley to lock the door to keep foxes out

done

frank

*sigh*

my three posts have vanished too

here we go again....


VB have you thought about how to make sure the chickens actually go into their house at the end of each day? And don't end up roosting in a tree or on the roof of the house?

Also, how are you going to stop them from scratching sticks, dirt, rocks, blades of grass etc into the automatic doorway, blocking it somehow and allowing access to the predators you are worried about?

train your boys to let the birds out each morning and lock them up at night. it will teach them responsibility and good animal care

put pressure sensors under each chicken so when they`re all in the door closes

Jaymie - my birds always went home at dusk - I see no reasons why my new ones would be any different.

As for the scratching sticks thing, will just keep the doorway clear I guess, beside which when the door is open I reckon they'll be enswhere, not scratching around the door.