magnetic cat door?

[paulney]

I want to buy electromagnetic door for my cat (because other cats in the vicinity seem to think we are a charity with free food), but I don't know which brand to buy.

There's electromagnetic kind and an infrared type of door. I've heard mixed reviews about electromagnetic kind, but in most cases it seems, the owners did not adjust the height of the magnetic lock properly. As for the infrared type, it receives glorious reviews, but the transmitter that the cat has to wear seems kind of bulky, and needs batteries. Also, the infrared door is much more expensive.

Any advice?
Thanks

 

[HomeBrewerDude]

installing them can be a pain. consider easy installation to be worth something in your decision making. Also, noise might be a factor.

 

[So]

Originally posted by: HomeBrewerDude
installing them can be a pain. consider easy installation to be worth something in your decision making. Also, noise might be a factor.

comedy too. I expect pics and a 'installing the kitty door' thread. Plus a thread about butter your cat's neck in preperation for EM collar application.

 

[Mandos]

This sounds like a very cool project.

 

[paulney]

So, I did my research, and here's what I found:

There are basically 3 types of doors on the market. All of them work 4-way: free entry/exit, total lock, only exit, only entry.

- Magnetic lock door. Door is powered by a battery/AC, and runs a circuit that is triggered by a magnetic chip on cat's collar. Chip is very light and small, since it has no circuitry inside - just a magnet.

Pros: cheap, extremely reliable. Chip suitable for any cat.
Cons: any cat with a magnetic chip can open the door. No way to selectively grant/deny access to cats

- Magnetic lock door with powered keys. Door is powered by a battery/AC, and the cat's chip is powered by battery. Chip is somewhat bulky. Chips are preprogrammed and distinguished by color: as you add cats, you buy more keys and add them to the door's memory.

Pros: better selection on grant/deny access
Cons: chip is bulkier. Batteries in the chip run out in about 6 months. Cat with the same color chip that is in you door's memory can enter the house.

- Infrared lock: your cat carries a bulky chip which emits an infrared signal. Door's receptor triggers the lock

Pros: individual chips. No other cat can enter the house.
Cons: chip's batteries run out really fast. Poor design: an active cat can break the chip while jumping/running around.

All doors have a design flaw: smart racoons claw the flap and pull it out (as opposed to cats who push the flap in). Magnetic lock fails, and racoons enter the house. Also, a particularly strong cat can brute-force the lock.

 

[dighn]

n/m

 

[paulney]

I actually came up with an idea of making a cat door with 801.11b receiver/transmitter 🙂

- your door becomes another host in your home network
- extremely programmable: access per individual cat, by date and time
- your cat keys are one of a kind: no other cat can enter
- door is remote controlled
- you can hook up a camera to a door and run image recognition on it 🙂 Violators will be shot 🙂

 

[aircooled]

Collars and cats are a bad mix. Cats get into low brush and shrubbery that can catch onto the collar, plus most cats will work hard at removing the collar.

 

[bonkers325]

most adult cats are pretty strong, so a magnetic lock might not be the best option

 

[paulney]

Originally posted by: aircooled
Collars and cats are a bad mix. Cats get into low brush and shrubbery that can catch onto the collar, plus most cats will work hard at removing the collar.

Implanting an id-chip is another option 🙂
A lot of cat owners do that, so that if their cat is found by an animal service, they can contact the owner. A 801.11b programmable door could use that identifier. The only problem is, it's implanted in the neck, right behind cat's head. Can be tough to sense the info in it.

 

[ElFenix]

Originally posted by: aircooled
Collars and cats are a bad mix. Cats get into low brush and shrubbery that can catch onto the collar, plus most cats will work hard at removing the collar.

my cat hated her collar. indoor cat so she pretty much never wore one

dog loved his collar. he'd carry it around if he wasn't wearing it.