Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Dicko - openning is plenty big enough for a chook to get through. The buggers can get through my dog wire fence .

As for mice etc - they can get through the wire of my chookpen, so no issues there.

I don't think the door will be dangerous as is, after all, by the time it closes the idea is that the chooks are all inside perching - otherwise my problem would be the ones left outside getting eaten by foxes, dogs etc.

The Mrs is just ill informed

Cool
I recon I'm As excited as you are!

Now to excite others - well maybe not everybody

Given that I will probably want to start putting it all together as soon as F&F's components arrive, I probably should ask some questions now.

How am I going to work the switching on this thing. As I understand it, I'm supplying air to open the door (into one end of the ram) and then exhausting that air and adding air to the other end when I want it to close. The solenoid that F&F has donated will be able to do this for me. Now how is the switching working. If I'm using a timer - will it just work through the on/off switching. For example, if I want the door to open at 2pm, I have the timer set to go on at 2pm. If I then want it to close at 7pm, then I have the timer switch to off at 7pm. Between 2pm and 7pm the switching remains on???

I see there are 2 wires on the solenoid (from the picture). To connect to a standard 240 volt timer, so I just wire those 2 wires to a plug and then plug into the timer?

The Valve that is on its way will do only 2 things.
Open the door ,and hold it there,
& Close the door and hold it there.

The Valve wires in the pic are + & - for a coil.
Power them up, and the valve will shift position. (Open to Closed, or Vise versa)
Remove the power and the valve will return back to its original position.(As will the door)

All you need to do is provide power to the coil via a timer. Power on, Door opens,(or closes) Power off, Door goes the other way.
If you're using 240v the easiest way is to use a simple on off timer from "B"
Red /Brown = Match, Black / blue = Match.
If you're not sure, Get an electrician to do it for you!!!!

On the valve is an adjustable flow control! This sets the speed of the travel

Love the Camera angles
Make my crappy welds look good, And you cant tell that it's made from leftovers!

Sounds easy - though if I'm not sure re: the 240V, I will certainly consult a sparky. No probs there - neighbours on either side are both sparkies .

Regarding the timer - being of AP mind I had in my head the type that we always use that have the 15 minute increment switches over 24 hours. Are you talking about the same sort - or something else?

Jeez - I'd be happy to be able to weld aluminum at all, let alone as well as you do.

Welding is something I love to do, but only started a couple of years back (first project being my first grow-bed stand) and I have a very basic arc welder and little skill

In Theory....
you should be able to just cut down an extension chord and terminate it to the coil!

If F&F supplies you with a 240v coil, one would assume that it is AC, but get them to check, ( Can't imagine it not being, He seems Pretty smart)

Plug the chord into whatever timer you have on hand with a plug socket, and you're set!

I might even want to invest in a switch that keeps time regardless of power outages (ie has a battery to run the timing). Otherwise a power outage may cause me all sorts of pain with the timing (eg door may close way late and it might be like F&F's story of the door openning in the morning and the fat fox wandering out ).

With the 70 metrerun of 1/4 pipe it will be slow anyhow

Am I right in saying that if the power goes out while the timer switch is on, then the door will close (if I have it sequenced so that the door is open when on and closed when off). I guess it's no biggy in that the door will then open again once the power comes back on, unless the timer switch has moved on to the off position (which is why I should get a switch that keeps time without the need for the 240Volts to be supplied).

I won't run the door while we are away on holidays or anything, so should not be a big deal - but just conceptualising what will happen in power outs.

Set it the other way no power door open power on door closed[just a matter of changing pipes] then if the power goes off overnight yes the door will open the chooks will be on there perch and asleep [and you would have to be unlucky for a fox to be there when the power goes off] the other way is a second timer you only need air at the moment the door opens and closes [5 min before 5 min after]

Cool pictures. I always wanted a guillotine.