PVC Pigeon Return Door Pictoral How To

Post by **Greg Jennings** » Sun Mar 25, 2007 4:33 pm

This picture will, if you look close show you everything that you need for your PVC pigeon return door.

That is 1/2" PVC which measures about 13/16" outside diameter and that dowel is 3/4" diameter. I cut the bobs at 10" for a 10x10" hole.

Notice the two wood screws that serve to keep the bobs from shifting and leaving gap for the pigeons to leak out. I drilled a small guide hole for them to go in. They also serve to keep the dowel from migrating in the clamps.

Those clamps are 1" electrical conduit clamps. I bent them a little to make them hold the 3/4" dowel snugly.

The latch mounts vertically, in case anyone has trouble visualizing that.

and these are the tools that will make it go quick and easy. That clamp-looking thingie is a PVC cutter. It makes cutting PVC quick and easy. I didn't find mine till after I'd already cut the bobs the irritating way.

I'll post another couple of pictures after I install my two doors (two coops) this week.

Best regards, Greg J.

Don · Post by **Don** » Sun Mar 25, 2007 5:29 pm

Are you going to mount the trap with the hose clamp's? If not, what do they do?

Post by **Greg Jennings** » Sun Mar 25, 2007 5:49 pm

Those are conduit clamps not hose clamps. They are intended to clamp something cylindrical (e.g., electrical conduit) to something flat (e.g., a wall).

Yep, I'm using them to mount the dowel rod, and thus the whole door, to the inside of the pigeon coop wall.

Best regards, Greg J.

Post by **topher40** » Sun Mar 25, 2007 6:32 pm

Great pics Greg! I think that pretty much explains it and am glad to see a cheap way of making your own door!

AceofSpades41 · Post by **AceofSpades41** » Sun Mar 25, 2007 6:47 pm

Looks great Greg I finsihed up mine yesterday...you can't beat the cost and IMO the satisfaction of doing it yourself....

Stump · Post by **Stump** » Sun Mar 25, 2007 8:11 pm

Cool I'll get some tonight Thanks

Post by **Greg Jennings** » Mon Mar 26, 2007 6:39 am

No problem guys. I like doing things little things like this for the GDF community; just wish I had the resources to do more and bigger things.

Best regards, Greg J.

gr_elliott · Post by **gr_elliott** » Mon Mar 26, 2007 8:20 am

perfect timing on this thread, I was at Lowes this weekend getting some PVC to make a door for my piegon trap. I was trying to figure out the best way to secure the door to the cage, those clamps are perfect.

Post by **grant** » Mon Mar 26, 2007 7:23 pm

Nice post Greg...

Here's my door

Don · Post by **Don** » Mon Mar 26, 2007 7:38 pm

I like the way Grant's bob's are mounted. Notice they are mounted on the outside. Like that there is constent pressure or the bottom of the bob's.

Post by **Greg Jennings** » Mon Mar 26, 2007 8:20 pm

I put it on the coop this evening. Works great. I did have to use a wood chisel to carve out a place for the part of the latch that is on the door as it bumps the PVC T-joints and sticks up about 1/8".

I still have to grind or cut the ends of the screws for the hinges and latch where they penetrate through the door.

Sorry, no pictures. I was in a huge hurry. The kids had soccer camp 7-8PM and we had to get to Lowes in time to get the tile.

Best regards, Greg J.

RuttCrazed · Post by **RuttCrazed** » Tue Mar 27, 2007 7:58 am

Are the hinges and latch for the landing platform?

Rut

Post by **Greg Jennings** » Tue Mar 27, 2007 8:18 am

RuttCrazed wrote:Are the hinges and latch for the landing platform?

Rut

It's a combination door and landing platform. There is a block of wood screwed into the side of the coop that it rests on to hold it parallel to the ground when it's open.

A strong door is a requirement here due to the large racoon population.

I had a thought after I mounted it. I should have measured out a template to cut the hole on a piece of paper and put the marks for the hinge screw holes and holes for the mounting brackets on it. Then, I could have just tacked it on the side and started drilling. It is important for the two hinge centerlines and the door to be aligned. I used a level to do it. Would have been quicker and easier if I'd done it on a template first.

I could have had this thing installed in 10 minutes if my cordless drill hadn't run out of juice.

Best regards, Greg J.

RuttCrazed · Post by **RuttCrazed** » Tue Mar 27, 2007 8:35 am

Greg Jennings wrote: I could have had this thing installed in 10 minutes if my cordless drill hadn't run out of juice.

Best regards, Greg J.

That happens to you too?

Thanks for the explanation.

Rut

Buckeye_V · Post by **Buckeye_V** » Tue Mar 27, 2007 9:06 am

Batteries. Lots of batteries. I have a 19.2 volt and 4 battery packs. I'll never run out of juice again.......

h20fwlkillr · Post by **h20fwlkillr** » Tue Mar 27, 2007 12:46 pm

I decided building my door as a unit would make installation a little easier. It also allows it to be installed just about anywhere. One of my coups has the door installed on the wire. i made mine out of cedar, exterior siding, 1/2" pvc and use a 7/16" steel rod to run thru the pvc T's. It's hard to see, but the landing platform is what keeps the bobs from opening out.

Post by **Greg Jennings** » Tue Mar 27, 2007 12:52 pm

I've built a unit like that before and liked it a lot.

Another thing that I have done in a pinch was to use zip ties to connect a pre-made chukar-sized return funnel to the wire around the top of my johnny house and put guy-wires to hold the closeable top parallel to the ground as a landing pad and to be able to close to keep the possums out.

Any port in a storm!

Best, Greg J.

RuttCrazed · Post by **RuttCrazed** » Tue Mar 27, 2007 2:22 pm

Does a different color help the birds figure out where to go?

Rut

h20fwlkillr · Post by **h20fwlkillr** » Wed Mar 28, 2007 12:51 am

RuttCrazed wrote:Does a different color help the birds figure out where to go?

Rut

I think it does. It has been much easier to train birds to use the door since I started using the different colors for the door and bobs.

V-John · Post by **V-John** » Sat Apr 07, 2007 12:47 pm

Hey fellas, was wondering if you all could answer a quick question. I'm trying to make a set of bobs for my pigeon coop. What would you guys say should be the minimum height for a set of bobs? Will seven inches work? 8? Thanks guys!

Post by **ezzy333** » Sat Apr 07, 2007 1:09 pm

Short answer is yes. I have them coming in a 5 in opening without bobs so a couple of more inches should be great.

Ezzy

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PVC Pigeon Return Door Pictoral How To

PVC Pigeon Return Door Pictoral How To

Height of Bobs...