- Smart Version (Chicken)

I initially didn’t buy this door because a couple reviews said it closed anytime power was lost, and that was a deal breaker for me since I don’t want my ducks locked out if we lost power during the day. But after trying other doors that just didn’t cut it, I contacted the company and asked about this issue. They told me I could go in the settings and choose what I wanted to happen to the door in a power outage: Open, Close, or just stay however it is. Perfect! So, I bought it and replaced my Vevor auto door, which opened great, but the light sensor always closed it a bit too early so ducks would get locked out. I manually tuck mine in anyway, but still… it was a pain. So, here are all my findings with this new door!Installation: I used my existing Vevor door and just swapped the motor and box, but installing this type of door is very easy. Just cut out your hole, pop in the tracks, slide the door in, plug it in and voila. Installed.Programming: So very easy. I downloaded the app and hooked it up to WiFi. The instructions were great and within 5 minutes I had it set how I wanted it.Programming options: Here is where this thing really shines. Lots of us want the door to open but our naughty flocks need to be manually put in at night because they don’t make it back in time. So like me, you buy the timer door, however sunset is always changing so you’re constantly reprogramming it. And most make you open the box and use those weird little buttons. PIA. Or you get the auto sensor one, but it closes too soon.This door allows you to 1) Set it to only open at a certain time you choose 2) Set it to only open off sunrise and you say how many minutes before or after 3) Set it to both open and close off set times 4) Set it to open and close at a set time before or after sunset 5) Set it to open or close at a set time then open or close based on sunset. 6) No timer and you use your phone to open or close whenever you want wherever you want. The open/close app works from anywhere your phone has internet. It’s brilliant and covers any way you could possibly want to put your flock away and let them out. I’ve got mine set to open 45 minutes after sunrise and then an hour and fifteen minutes after sunset. I have cameras in my coop and they’ve been in 30 minutes after sunset, so I just count heads on my camera, open the app and push the button and voila. Door goes down.Safety: This kind of door can’t be pushed or pulled open by predators. The safety sensor works great and stops if anyone tries to run in when it’s closing. The big bonus of this door vs my other doors is if the safety sensor is triggered, it stops until it’s clear, then it keeps closing. My other door would go up and stay up if anything triggered the sensor. So that meant if anyone hurried in late, the door wouldn’t close all night. This one will close as soon as it’s clear. I’m still wildly paranoid about a duck getting killed, so that’s why I set mine to auto close only well after I know they are in safe. But I also like to do a head count then just close it myself with the app.Reliability: So far it’s working perfect. I get a notification anytime it opens or closes, which is awesome. The first night I had manually closed it with my phone, then 20 minutes later it opened. My phone notified me, I had a heart attack then barely slept all night worried it was going to randomly open again and something would slaughter my kids. However, it turned out when I chose to have it close an hour and fifteen minutes after sunset, I had selected ON. On actually means open and OFF means closed, so I fixed it with a click and now it’s perfect. I run mine off an extension cord I sometimes need to unplug and it stays in whatever position it was in when it loses power, and when I plug it back in, nothing is lost. No reprogramming. Easy peasy. I haven’t run it in freezing temps yet, but since I live in the frozen tundra, I installed it inside the coop so it wouldn’t get covered in ice and freeze open or shut. It also has a remote that works about 75 feet out that I *think* still works if the WiFi goes out. I tried it and it worked great, but my WiFi was working, but it’s on my todo list to test that just in case a big storm knocks out the internet. I still need to be able to get them out.Size: Plenty big for my big Muscovy ducks. They’ve got room to spare.All in all, these designers thought of everything. I’m incredibly picky and can’t find a single thing this door is lacking. I can’t testify to longevity since I’ve only had it a couple weeks, but it it goes wonky too soon, I’ll be sure to update this review. Highly recommend this door if you’re looking for lots of flexibility and the ability to control your door from anywhere, or program it so you can sleep in and the flock can get out without you!

The JVR WiFi enabled smart control automatic door is so much more than a chicken coop door. It actually fills a missing niche in pet smart products that customers are looking for. The JVR Chicken/Pet Automatic Door.Customers like me are looking for an Alexa or Google controlled door that can be used for dogs. Now there are doors currently available for hundreds more but these usually require the dog to wear an ultrasonic collar. This means the dog collar will have a signal box on the collar with a battery to monitor, recharge, or replace.I just wanted a door that I could open or close via Alexa, either by voice or by schedule. No collar additions and batteries to monitor. I set the door to open at 7:30am, close at 10:00pm, and when the dogs, yes we have two, need to be kept inside or out I can control the door by simply saying “Alexa, close dog door.”I had earlier hacked a different light activated chicken coop door to be controlled by an Alexa smart plug. I placed this in front of our double-flapped, through-the-wall, dog door. (I have included one picture of the hacked door as info.) This hack worked pretty well but sometimes the door would lose its current position and that resulted in an operation malfunction. This would require personal interaction to reset and it happened too often for me. So I started looking for a better, higher priced, similar chicken door but then I saw JVR’s smart door.This door has everything worked out. WiFi functionality with both a stand alone WiFi app and Alexa link in control. It also comes with two handheld RF remotes if Alexa is having trouble understanding right now. The power failure fallback is like Alexa controlled lighting. When power is restored, the door can be open, closed, or remain in the same position it was in when the power failed. Better if you set it up with a 12v DC power backup.The linear actuator movement is much smoother and quieter than the gear drive of my hacked coop door. The door includes a sensor that prevents it from closing (actually pauses the closing) if something is seen in the doorway. It will resume closing once the doorway is cleared. There has been a few commented issues where the sensor has not seen a chicken but with the size of our dogs, (26 pounds) that has not been a problem.To install, I just removed the old smart door and installed the new JVR door in front of the double-flapped door and it is inside the house so the cold and snow of Montana does not affect the operation. This thing has worked flawlessly – very pleased.My only complaint and not really a complaint but a suggestion. JVR should offer the package with the option of various linear actuator strokes and the option of with or without the door panel. Our dogs are taller than chickens and our dog door flaps are 18 inches high. I actually needed a 16 inch stroke actuator and a larger door panel. The JVR kit only offers a 12 inch panel and a 12 inch stroke. The key advantage of the JVR chicken coop door is the full smart control integration – excellent job.So I used my old solid door panel placed in a centered position so it opens high enough for the dogs and “effectively” closes the door. It leaves a 2 inch gap at the bottom but as far as the dogs are concerned, the door is closed.Excellent product. Good job JVR.

Awesome for maybe a year. This coop door worked phenomenally and was easy to install, until it started glitching and then the power pack completely stopped working. We had actually purchased a second one with intention to install it and never got around to it, so we were able to test the new power pack to confirm the original had gone kaput. After installing the newer power pack, it worked until it didn’t, which was actually less time— maybe 4-6 months after installing. We won’t be buying this one again.