Cats have a negative energy efficiency quotient

[precaud]

In the last two years, I've recaulked all the windows, sealed anything that even remotely resembled a potential air leak source, made R8 window insulators, and put massive insulation into the ceiling. With temps dropping quickly today, I walk around and identify any remaining problems. The bloody cat door. Horrible! Cold air streaming in through the gap around the perimeter of this stupid thing. Anyone else dealt with this before?

 

[MountainStoveGuy]

install one of those heated air curtains like you see at the sams club when you walk in the door

 

[precaud]

Or... design a combined cat door / outside-air intake...

 

[MrGriz]

You could always try injecting a little lead behind the cat's ear and then replacing the door....or maybe just the heated air curtain would be a way better idea...

 

[BrotherBart]

Ya could do like my wife insists. The cat stays indoors. To that I reply that the fact that a cat will crap in a box is highly over-rated. Somebody has to haul said crap outside.

 

[DavidV]

They make a cat door that is magnetic and basicly seals flat. it requires two doors. one out, one in. Personally I would get rid of the cat.

 

[BrotherBart]

They make a cat door that is magnetic and basicly seals flat. it requires two doors. one out, one in. Personally I would get rid of the cat.

Oh I do dream of that.

 

[smirnov3]

Get rid of the cat door - there is no way to make that insulating. let the cat wait to go in & out for your conveniance. after a few weeks, it will learn. That's what we did when I was growing up & had indoor / outdoor cats (current batch are 100% indoor)

 

[Roospike]

I have a non-cat door and you have a cat door................

cat door vs non-cat door

O' Lord , here we go.

 

[kevinmoelk]

Well, no cats, but I have 4 dogs. My dog door consists of a bath mat. The bath mat is held by two piece of channel. One piece of channel is an "L" shaped channel with one of the flat sides screwed to the top of the frame. There are 4 holes in this channel. These 4 holes match the 4 holes that are on the other piece of channel which is just a flat bar. Then through the 4 holes house wingnuts. The wingnuts go through grommets that I placed into the bathmat. Hence the bathmat is sandwitched inbetween the two pieced of channel. Works great, nice and thick, heavy, water resistant, etc. A little bit of a pain to take on and off, but at least the dogs can't pull it down. However, I did have to frame the hole to actually match the bathmat.

 

[begreen]

We have a cat door on the north side of the house. Our house gets legendary north winds from the Frasier River Canyon with nothing in between us and Canada. Sometimes they blew the cat door wide open. I built a vestibule box to block the wind, which helped, but not a great fix. Then I got an inspiration and decided to double up the doors. I bought two magnetic catch doors and discarded the interior frames. I mounted one outside and one inside - double magnetic doors. It took a bit for the cats to get used to this, but they figured it out. We had a steady 20 mph north wind as the artic blast arrived on Sunday, and the cat door(s) barely leaked at all.

 

[velvetfoot]

Don't do what I did and get the kind with the flexible plastic door and aluminum door frame. The frame had frost on it, it conducts heat so well. The door isn't so flexible in the winter and the natural draft in the house (door is in basement) caused the door to stay open. I weighted down the bottom of the door with some bar stock and it closed most of the time, but the frame is still real cold. Thing is, once you cut a hole in the door, you're kind of stuck with that kitty door.

 

[Jay H]

I have a good friend in Anchorage, Alaska who has a cabin in Talkeetna and she's going to be building a "dog door" but it's going to be a double door, i.e. it'll have a foyer area and the dog will go through the inner and outer door via regular dog doors... Of course, it gets really cold up there and they're going through a coldspell right now..

Jay

 

[johnsopi]

Just let them in and out. Once there out they will stay there till you let in. It works with dogs, should work for cats too.

 

[precaud]

Great idea, BG, thanks! That's the easiest fix and yes, I'm sure they'll adapt to it.

Then I got an inspiration and decided to double up the doors. I bought two magnetic catch doors and discarded the interior frames. I mounted one outside and one inside - double magnetic doors. It took a bit for the cats to get used to this, but they figured it out. We had a steady 20 mph north wind as the artic blast arrived on Sunday, and the cat door(s) barely leaked at all.

 

[jjbaer]

In the last two years, I've recaulked all the windows, sealed anything that even remotely resembled a potential air leak source, made R8 window insulators, and put massive insulation into the ceiling. With temps dropping quickly today, I walk around and identify any remaining problems. The bloody cat door. Horrible! Cold air streaming in through the gap around the perimeter of this stupid thing. Anyone else dealt with this before?

Sounds like we're back to the old question of which is better...cat or non-cat....LOL

 

[begreen]

I think ours are the Staywell 715 model. I paid about $24 for the two of them.

 

[velvetfoot]

The one we have with the aluminum frame is the PetSafe. Our cat died not too long ago and she was an outside cat. We have a new cat who doesn't go out as much, but still managed to immediately find out how it worked when I put the extension cord through it when I was using the electric saw! That is a good idea about the double flaps and elimination of the frame, which for the PetSafe model I have is aluminum, as I said. I think the hole in the metal door is too large now though, and the edges need some smoothing. Meanwhile, I think I will cut some foam and cover over the frame and hole.

 

[DeanBrown3D]

You know, I read about the first 6 or 7 of these posts trying to decipher what a catalyst door is and how my fireplace doesn't have such a door, and how it seals just be pressing up agains some refractory walling.

Typical for me, really.

 

[DriftWood]

I guess I have a Non-Cat, The problem with my cat is its a main entry, Non Cat. The cat will not go out with the main Non Cat open if its cold. So should I go CAT?? How hard is a CAT to install? Oh yeah, I got a full view double pane, Non-Cat! I guess I got to go Non-Cat after-all.