ADOR User's Manual

WARNING: after removing the two screws, pull the lower edge of the cover toward you 1/8” and then slide the cover straight up. Please do not snag the pushbutton actuator on the cover or you can snap the actuator off the pushbutton switch.

WARNING: When connecting the 6V lantern battery, please make certain you connect BLACK to (-) which is the MIDDLE spring terminal, and connect RED to (+) which is the CORNER spring terminal. If you connect it backwards, you may damage the electronics.

WARNING: When connecting the 6V lantern battery, please make certain that the terminals or metal parts of the alligator clips do not touch the electronics. Slide the battery away from the board sufficiently so that this does not happen. Also, if the alligator clip wires are tangled, please dress them neatly… don’t let the wires get penetrated by the sharp pins sticking up. If the battery is rotated so the corner terminal is down toward the back, this may dress the wires better than if the corner battery terminal is high inside the control box.

  1. Put the cover back and install two front screws on the cover.

WARNING: please be careful with sliding the cover on the control box so that you don’t damage the pushbutton switch actuator. The wires should route OVER the battery, not behind it. Otherwise the battery may push forward and interfere with putting the cover on.

  1. To test:
    1. Notice that the first thing ADOR1 does when connecting the battery is that it says “HI” on the buzzer in Morse Code (beep- beep- beep- beep beep- beep or …... ) and then will activate the motor to shut the door. It is now in AUTOMATIC MODE and will open the door if there is DAYLIGHT.
    2. Press the button momentarily to manually open or close the door.
    3. Press the button momentarily again to see that the door goes to the opposite state.
    4. Leave the door in the correct state according to the DAYLIGHT (ie leave OPEN if daylight or leave SHUT if no daylight). This ensures it is still in automatic mode.
    5. Walk away… it will now automatically open the door and shut the door, based on daylight it can see. Check on the door after the next sunrise or sunset to see it is working.

    WARNING: If you want to manually open/shut the door, then MOMENTARILY (meaning: press it for only about 1/3 second.). If you hold the button in too long, you are JOGGING the door and the motor runs while you press the button and stops when you release the button. Remember JOGGING takes the door out of automatic mode.

    INSTALLATION

    You can install the door inside the coop or on the outside wall – even on a fence. But if you mount it in the dark, it cannot properly see enough daylight. You can purchase an external sensor at www.AdorStore.com and aim the sensor outside. You can also purchase an External Pushbutton so you do not have to go inside the coop to manually operate the door.

    CUT OPENING : The ADOR1 frame can be used as a template to cut a 13”H x 10.5”W opening in the wall. You can remove the door or JOG it out of the way. See instructions for door removal and JOGGING. Ideally the door threshold should be placed an inch or two above the coop floor. This keeps stuff from getting in the threshold. Also, very large chickens won’t have to stoop. It is easier for them to step over a threshold than to stoop.

    HANG THE FRAME: If you first put a screw in the upper middle hole on the frame, you can more easily place it over the opening and adjust it for level when you use the frame as a template for cutting the opening. We recommend at least securing ADOR1 to the wall with five screws (provided): one in each upper corner and one in each lower corner and one in the middle bottom.

    To get to the bottom frame holes, loosen the bottom guard rail screw on one side and swing the rail out of the way so your screwdriver can get to the mounting screw, and put the rail back when done. If the wall is uneven and you warp the frame, ADOR1 may not work properly. Use shims if necessary to make sure ADOR1 is not twisted or is not straight.

    Make sure you have clearance for the open door above where the door will mount. The door panel slides up and extends above top of frame when opened so that the total height is 28.5”. You can remove the door from ADOR1 if it will make installation easier. The easiest way to do that is to open the box (two front screws) and connect the battery. Then hold the button down to JOG the door up. When the door is as high as the sprocket can lift it, the sprocket will make noise. At that point pull the door up and out of the channels and set it aside while ADOR1 is trying to lift the door when it is as high as it will go. To put the door back in the channels, push the button and hold down and insert the door from the top with sprocket holes on the left. The sprocket should re-engage as you JOG it downward.

    REMOVE COVER: Remove the two front screws that hold the cover to the box. Then pull the bottom edge of the cover toward you 1/8” and then slide the cover upward to disengage the back lip where it overhangs behind the control box.

    CONNECT BATTERY: Lay a new 6V Lantern Battery inside the box with the terminals to the right. The middle terminal is negative (-) and the corner terminal is positive(+). Rotate the battery so that the + terminal is in the back and at the bottom. Hold the battery as you come down with the RED alligator clip and clamp over the Positive (+) spring. Now with the Black alligator clip not yet connected, lay the battery in the box, and then connect the Black clip to the Negative (-) spring. Be ready for the door to start moving downward. If there is daylight, after the door shuts, ADOR1 will open the door. Make sure the motor wires are not behind the battery – dress the wires over the top of the battery; otherwise the wires will push the battery outward and make the cover not fit properly.

    PUT THE COVER ON: The cover slides straight down onto the box with the back tab or lip securing behind the box. Then screw in the two #6 sheet metal screws on the front of the cover. Be careful to not scoop/snag the pushbutton switch actuator on the electronic board with the cover.

    AUTOMATIC OPERATION: With the battery connected, the ADOR1 is ready for automatic operation. First you should test it by momentarily pressing the button once to manually open/shut the door a few times (See MANUAL OPERATION). Then leave the door in the state that matches daylight conditions. If it is night, leave the door closed and it will open in the morning; if during the day, leave the door open and it will close at night. REMEMBER THAT JOGGING THE DOOR CAUSES ADOR TO NOT OBEY DAYLIGHT.

    MANUAL OPERATION: If you try to operate the door by physically moving the door panel with force, doing it too fast might damage the motor’s gearbox. It is OK to move the panel but disconnect power first, or connect the battery and operate it electronically. There are two ways to command the door with the button. Press the button momentarily (about 1/3 second) and it will open the door or close the door. The other way to command the door with the button is called “JOGGING”. To JOG the door, you hold the button down and the motor will turn while you hold the button down. Release to stop and then you can JOG in the opposite direction. After JOGGING the ADOR1 is in MANUAL mode and will not automatically open/close based on daylight. To go back to AUTOMATIC mode, press the button momentarily and leave the door in the state that corresponds to the daylight condition.

    STOP THE DOOR: If you want to make ADOR1 stop controlling the door, you can remove the battery connection or you can put it in a halted manual mode with the battery installed and connected. To halt the door in a desired state you hold down the button and the motor will turn (See MANUAL OPERATION notes above on JOGGING). To reverse, let go and hold down the button again. As long as you hold the button, the motor turns. The ADOR1 will stop automatic operation which will stop the door in the state that you leave it. If you leave it stopped in manual mode, remember that since it is flashing the LED more, it will also be drawing down the battery capacity more, so it is better to remove power for a long term disabling of automatic mode.

    REINSTATE AUTOMATIC OPERATION: If you stopped the door by JOGGING, you can either disconnect /reconnect the battery, or you can just press the button momentarily, and ADOR will be automatic again.

    NOTE: If the LED is flashing once per ~17 seconds, then ADOR is in AUTOMATIC MODE and status is NORMAL.

    FAQs AND TROUBLESHOOTING

    When I momentarily press the button for a second, the door only moves for one second and stops, instead of moving the door all the way open or shut.

    The door opens too late or closes too early.

    Doesn’t always close at night or never closes at night.

    Rule out a motion problem first. See topic below to rule out warped unit or bad motor.

    Door Struggles to open/shut and fails.

    Door re-tries. When you press the button momentarily , the door must completely open or shut without reversing and re-trying. Could be a bad motor (see below).

    It acts like the motor might not be working.

    Door does not Automatically open or close, but Manually opens and closes.

    I want to test the ADOR1 to see if it reacts to light. How can I do that?

    WE HIGHLY ENCOURAGE YOU TO WAIT TILL NIGHT TO TEST THE LIGHT SENSING BECAUSE ADOR IS BLINDED BY DAYLIGHT AND VERY DIFFICULT TO BLOCK OUT LIGHT IN BRIGHT DAYLIGHT. PLEASE READ THIS AND TEST CAREFULLY BEFORE CALLING US TO SAY IT DOES NOT WORK.

    Immediately after the battery is connected, and for the next 5 minutes, the ADOR reacts quickly to light, so before testing, restart ADOR by interrupting power, otherwise you will have to be patient and wait a minute or more for ADOR to react.

    DAYTIME TESTING: Often it is impossible to block light from the “eye” in bright daylight. You may need to remove ADOR and take it indoors inside a dark closet. A piece of black electrical tape over the “eye” usually will NOT work. It is much easier to test at night.

    NIGHTTIME TESTING: At night, even indirect light from a tungsten bulb flashlight is sufficient to open the door. For immediate reaction to light, disconnect and reconnect the battery and you have 5 minutes during which ADOR1 reacts within a few seconds to light/dark.

    EXTERNAL PHOTOSENSOR: Test just like the internal built in sensor, except in bright DAYLIGHT you can clutch the sensor inside your hand and put your hand in a dark place. But still, remember the sensor may be able to see sunshine THROUGH YOUR HAND!

    The ADOR1 does not respond to my pushing on the green button.

    BATTERY QUESTIONS:

    What is the yellow tape for on the ADOR1 control box?

    The door won’t go down and won’t go up, but sounds like the motor is running.

    When the motor turns, the sprocket does not fully engage and it goes “pop” “pop” “pop”. It does not operate the door.

    Can I delay the opening in the morning?

    I want to manually open the door but I want it to automatically shut in the evening. Can ADOR do that?

    My battery is not lasting for more than a couple months. I thought it should last at least a year.