Does anyone know of an automated pet feeder that will distribute food or turn an auger when it has power connected and stop when it does not so that I can plug it into a Z-wave appliance outlet?
I have a theory about the the laziness of cats infecting their owners. Anecdotal evidence suggests that the power of the effect is a linear function based on the number of cats owned…
Here’s what you’ll need:
[ul][li]Crestuff Automatic Portion Control Dog and Cat Pet Feeder (45 Cups) with LCD Screen and Meal Time Message Recorder.[/li]
[li]Stanley 60-060 Standard Fluted Screwdriver Set.[/li]
[li]Workshop Yellow Handle Diagonal Pliers Side Cutter Cutting Tool.[/li]
[li]Irwin Industrial Tools 2078309 8-Inch Multi Tool Stripper, Cutter and Crimper with ProTouch Grips. – ProTouch grips!!![/li]
[li]Elenco Electronics ST-12 Soldering Tool Kit.[/li]
[li]PowerLine 90367 PowerLine 1300 mAh Universal Power Adapter with USB.[/li][/ul]
;D
I don’t have any cats (wife’s allergic) but do have three chickens that I would like to feed more intermittently during the day to decrease feeding all the neighborhood birds as well, and while on vacation. So I have all of that except the feeder and the universal power adapter, but limited knowledge of electronics. Will it be obvious or could you tell me what to cut and what to solder? Thanks.
Would this work?
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=sr_1_1_hso_sc_smartcategory_1?rh=n%3A2975260011%2Ck%3Apet+feeder&keywords=pet+feeder&ie=UTF8&qid=1408241260&sr=8-1-acs
U/agilehumor
Probably on it’s own, but from what I can tell from the descriptions they are programmed and self-contained. I would really like it tied into Vera so that I can have a notification that they got fed, be able to do it on demand if I see that they need food out the window and perhaps play a sound or something to signal the chickens.
I have two feeders from http://www.super-feeder.com/ attached to appliance modules. When power is applied to the feeder it drops food for the time you have programmed on the feeder – ie 30 seconds. I control the feeding times through the timers on the Vera. Just set the script to power on the feeder and then two minutes later turn it off. Within the script you could have it send you a message, etc. I have been using these for several years and they have been working great.
Scott
My post was mostly sarcastic humor. It would be a ridiculously over engineered cat feeder, but I suspect some cat owners would do it.
Chickens are another matter. I don’t usually regard poultry as pets, so I hadn’t made the connection. I’m unaware of any small scale automated systems. Most are industrial farm type stuff that moves a few hundred pounds of feed per hour.
Here’s a home made automatic feeder that you could use as a example for your own auger.
Interestingly, the most impressive and automated backyard chicken coop that I’ve ever seen, chose to keep feeding as a manual operation.
I like things simple.
+1 for Super-Feeder. It was designed to be able to be integrated with HA…
Thanks for the suggestions about superfeeder. Unfortunately my timing is just off and they left for vacation on Friday the 15th and won’t be back until 9/4. I have some questions that I was wondering if you could answer with your experience. Thanks.
I can’t find the prices for any of the feeders. This might be because the storefront is closed, but if you know the prices listed, that would be appreciated.
What is the volume of feed it will hold in both the basic model and with the XL donut top?
I am concerned about rats and mice trying to get into their food. How small and/or tight of opening is there to access the food when it is not actively dispensing?
The “most impressive coop” really is quite outstanding. I’m curious to hear how it goes once the chickens are living in it, but it seems excellent.
The bucket with the PVC elbow looks nice and straightforward, but wouldn’t work to keep rats and mice out I don’t think.
I bought my Super Feeder via Amazon, but not available there either right now… I got the CSF-3XL combo which was $186.99 shipped.
XL is listed at 1.8 gallon capacity, and it will load most of a medium (5 lbs?) bag of cat food… We only have to fill it every few weeks with two cats.
As to using it outdoors - one of its designed uses is as a pond feeder for stocked fish or koi ponds, so it is designed to be able to be used outdoors. If it were me I would still want it covered out of the rain, but otherwise should be OK being outside. Now as to mice or rats, the Super-Feeder is pretty well closed up, but I would guess a rat can get into anything if given time.
Recently I bought an automatic fish feeder, which is very useful for my fishes in my absent. I am very happy with this device. I got this device from https://fishboxpro.com/best-automatic-fish-feeder-reviews, hope this article will help others to pick up the best devices.
Wow, the comments are so old. Hope I didn’t bother you guys. Now, I think it would be much better for us to get ourselves an automatic feeder. It would be much more convenient for us to feed our cats this way. Not to mention, you can control the diet and amount of food intake. If your cats have diabetes or similar conditions, getting an automatic feeder will help to improve their health a lot. You check all the important factors before buying it too. Cheers.