You didn't state how to CLOSE the door, does the power to the actuator just reverse the action? How do you know the state of the door if the last action failed? Does the door close under the weight of gravity? Has the dog learnt to jump up and pull the string to open the door?
Good questions. The combination of the actuator and the power relay in this setup just switches the action of the actuator on each activation through the smart plug. The schedule on the Alexa app or manual activations on the Alexa app actually just power on and off the actuator causing the door to open or close. You have keen insights into the physical nature of these plastic doors. They can get stuck if they are not positioned correctly. To reduce the likelihood of this happening, I sprayed the door channel with silicone. This helps it slide evenly. The door does depend on gravity to drop in my setup. I did add an extra layer of wood at the bottom of the door to give it more weight and stability. Our dog doesn’t have any interest in fiddling with the rope; however, I can see that this could be an issue with younger dogs. To address the gravity and dog meddling issues, you could install using the more typical setup - placing the actuator directly above the door and using the arm of the actuator to pull and push the door.
@@rayreitz Was a fun project to watch, thank you for sharing it :) Thank you so much for the in-depth reply, I was also wondering if you needed some kind of lubricant for the door to drop smoothly and whether the door is weighted, so thanks for mentioning. I was also wondering without knowing the layout of your house would not a simple door on an exterior wall have been easier or is that simply not possible in your home. Does your dog sleep in the tunnel at all, when you close the door remotely how do you ensure that your dog is inside the house and not in the tunnel etc. I would love to see additional functionality such as some kind of NFC on the dogs collar or motion sensor so you know for sure if the dog has passed haha.
@@markylon Glad you enjoyed the project. Most exterior walls were in areas that were not conducive to putting a hole in the wall. This dog doesn't spend any time in the tunnel. We had a previous Corgi that did like to get away from the commotion of kids and sleep in the coolness of the tunnel. Your question concerning how we would know if the dog was inside when we closed the door - This was a concern. So, we placed a Blink camera on the dog door. If we are gone, I can set this to record a short clip of her entry and exit. I can look at the last record to determine her whereabouts. You are correct in that there are many more technologically sophisticated automated dog doors that you can purchase with NFC tags and other features. If I was to start from scratch, this is the way to go. This video shows a DIY and low cost way to put some of this functionality in an existing door. 😀
![I.N "HALLUCINATION" | [Stray Kids : SKZ-PLAYER]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/n5B5q1Hwt_U/mqdefault.jpg)
Your narration style is “How it’s Made” level of mesmerizing.
You didn't state how to CLOSE the door, does the power to the actuator just reverse the action? How do you know the state of the door if the last action failed? Does the door close under the weight of gravity? Has the dog learnt to jump up and pull the string to open the door?
Good questions. The combination of the actuator and the power relay in this setup just switches the action of the actuator on each activation through the smart plug. The schedule on the Alexa app or manual activations on the Alexa app actually just power on and off the actuator causing the door to open or close. You have keen insights into the physical nature of these plastic doors. They can get stuck if they are not positioned correctly. To reduce the likelihood of this happening, I sprayed the door channel with silicone. This helps it slide evenly. The door does depend on gravity to drop in my setup. I did add an extra layer of wood at the bottom of the door to give it more weight and stability. Our dog doesn’t have any interest in fiddling with the rope; however, I can see that this could be an issue with younger dogs. To address the gravity and dog meddling issues, you could install using the more typical setup - placing the actuator directly above the door and using the arm of the actuator to pull and push the door.
@@rayreitz Was a fun project to watch, thank you for sharing it :) Thank you so much for the in-depth reply, I was also wondering if you needed some kind of lubricant for the door to drop smoothly and whether the door is weighted, so thanks for mentioning. I was also wondering without knowing the layout of your house would not a simple door on an exterior wall have been easier or is that simply not possible in your home. Does your dog sleep in the tunnel at all, when you close the door remotely how do you ensure that your dog is inside the house and not in the tunnel etc. I would love to see additional functionality such as some kind of NFC on the dogs collar or motion sensor so you know for sure if the dog has passed haha.
@@markylon Glad you enjoyed the project. Most exterior walls were in areas that were not conducive to putting a hole in the wall. This dog doesn't spend any time in the tunnel. We had a previous Corgi that did like to get away from the commotion of kids and sleep in the coolness of the tunnel. Your question concerning how we would know if the dog was inside when we closed the door - This was a concern. So, we placed a Blink camera on the dog door. If we are gone, I can set this to record a short clip of her entry and exit. I can look at the last record to determine her whereabouts. You are correct in that there are many more technologically sophisticated automated dog doors that you can purchase with NFC tags and other features. If I was to start from scratch, this is the way to go. This video shows a DIY and low cost way to put some of this functionality in an existing door. 😀
@rayreitz haha one more question did you have to train the dog to use the tunnel 😂😂
@@markylon Not much training needed. Just put a treat every foot and the dog quickly figured it out.