Perfect Pet The All-Weather Energy Efficient Dog Door, Medium, 7.25" x 13" Flap Size

I installed one of these last week for our one-year old Border Collie, and for sure, she goes through both flaps at full speed! Because of this, It IS important to get thedoor height matched to the height of your dog (height at shoulders plus 2 inches), so don't blow this measurement off!!Generally, I would say these are well-made, extruded plastic parts. I do like how well the "blanking" door slides downand latches closed. It would be difficult for a child to open on his own as long as the latch is secured, however, won't really stop an intruder if determined to get it. Plastic doesn'thold up very well against a crowbar! This door can either go on the inside or on the outside.In regards to installing this door, I found it to be quite an involved process. If you're just installing in the lower portion of an actual door, then it is pretty clear-cut and easy to do. But if you are going in-between framing joists (sheetrock on inside and siding on the outside), then it can get well past what a typical homeowner wants to tackle. Personally, I think I do well at most DIY projects as I have all the necessary tools and know how to use them. The template that came with the door was pretty accurate for all practical purposes, and cutting out the large panels is really best done with one of those new "vibrating" multi-tools. Mine is a Makita, and I love it. You can get them at Amazon here:http://www.amazon.com/Makita-TM3000CX5-Multi-Tool-Set/dp/B00836IWD0/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1395090234&sr=8-2&keywords=Makita+Multi-ToolBack to the installation, my house was built in the seventy's, and the framing joists are on 12" centers, not 16" as in newer construction. What this meant is that the door itself fits fine between the joists, but the screws that pull the two halves together are located further out, meaning that I was having to drill through the framing 2x4's themselves. (The outer door has captured internal thread pieces moulded into the plastic (14/-20). and the inside door has thru holes for the bolts). To make a long story short, I had to make my own custom ¼-20 bolts out of all-thread rod, with a length of about 7.5". I suspect these custom bolts will have to be longer yet if the exterior is brick....which, by the way, would be a bad idea to mess up brick work for the sake of a door like this. I didn't buy the kit with the middle "surround" piece, and wish I had. I had to add a small length of board across the bottom so that a little paw wouldn't get caught. In all, took most of the day to install, but that's only becuase this was my first.So for that reason, unless you (or your mate) is really, really good at building things and has lots of tools, you might want to get this installed by a pro. My 2 cents.PS: After having the door installed now for a week or so, I can say it works very well and sure saves us the headache of getting up every 30 minutes to let the dog out. The only real problem is that of dirty paws tracking in dirt, or even mud.To help prevent this, especially on wet days, is to lay a large, wet beach towel at the exterior entrance to the door, and another at the entrance in the home, followed by a spare bedspread sheet or two. This way, the paws are pretty much cleaned off by the timethey get to the carpet. But you need to keep up with the wet towels by either turning them over or replacing with others....or just keep the door closed. (Don't blame the dog, they dont know they're making a mess!).

It's up and working great. Here's what we learned.1. Know what your door is made out of and use the proper tools for it. Our door is metal over foam. We didn't know this when we started, so we tried using a regular drill bit. Don't, unless you like heating up your drill, acrid smoke, and terrible smells.Once we got a jigsaw blade and drill bits for metal, installation went a lot smoother.2. You can install the dog door without removing the door from the hinges first. We have pets, so it was easier for us to leave it hanging during the install.3. You can install the dog door on a raised panel door. Just fill in the gaps with silicon caulk to seal it once it's in place. There is also already a silicon seal on the exterior of the dog door which works great.The angled edges of the raised panels are tricky but not impossible to drill through. Mark well and take your time.The included cutting template worked really well. We attached it with painter's tape as we used it on both sides of the door. We marked the inside of the door with the template, removed the template, drilled through the door, made the cuts on the inside with the jigsaw, repositioned the template on the outside using the drilled holes as references, marked the cutout for the template on the outside, removed the template, and cut the outside.4. Lay out all your tools and safety equipment first so you don't have to stop partway through to go find anything. For metal skin doors, we used a long sleeve shirt, long pants, boots, gloves, and safety goggles that cover around your eyes too, and a face mask. The flying bits of metal are no joke.If your door is metal skinned, hearing protection is another must. The sound of metal cutting through metal is very loud and painful.5. You can use a skill saw or a jigsaw for the cutout. We used a jigsaw with a blade for cutting metal.6. Clean as you go. We used the nozzle attachment on an upright vacuum and a soft, fine bristled broom and dustpan. A shop vac would also work.We're entirely on hard surfaces and those worked, but wouldn't be enough over carpet so please put down a dropcloth first. You don't want your pet to get into any insulation and metal bits.7. Take your time. Despite what you may see on YouTube, this will take more than 20 minutes, especially if you clean up afterward.Overall installation went well but was challenging, and that's our fault because we were not using the right tools at the beginning. The door works great and is really well made. We're looking forward to it lasting for years.

I did my research on many different dog doors before deciding on this one. I even bought 3 different ones to try: https://a.co/d/0VfbzvYhttps://a.co/d/76wSXqOAnd the large at hitecpet.comI first went with the most expensive one and it was great, also customer service was amazing, but ultimately I needed something better suited for 2 dogs that don’t like to wear collars. If your dog can then that might be the one for you.I chose this door because it is heavy duty and well made. It has 2 SEPARATE flaps for weather. It has a decent locking door for when needed. Also, the flaps are clear which apparently some dogs need. We have 1 dog and foster dogs constantly. So I’d say the door gets used at least 50 times a day. I waited 7 months to write this review so I could attest to its longevity. I will update at a year or so. This has got to be the best moderately priced dog door on the market right now. It keeps weather and wind out. It can lock. And it’s sturdy with heavy duty thick flaps. The only modification I did to it(after reading some other reviews) is painters tape the space between the flaps to keep dirt out. Works like a charm.

Sehr gute Qualität und es funktioniert genau so, wie es soll.

Great pet door.Prevents both dust or cold air gets in.Easy to install.

I really like this product. Worked great on first try for installation. Followed the instructions to a T and used the template that came with it.. Made the holes at the right size and after twenty minutes, (mostly of cutting the metal door) this pet door installed in a flash.I have a large Main Coon cat and after taping the flaps open for a few minutes, the cat started using the door right away.I closed the flaps and when he wanted to come through but was intimidated, I opened the flaps just enough to show him my fingers and he understood to push the flaps was OK.He was using it on a regular basis about three hours after installation.My cat is a long hair cat and the door has two brushes for the flaps on each side. Every time he uses the door, his coat brushes on the sides and leaves some loose pet hair clumps that I pick up at the end of the day. It's like he gets a good brushing every time he uses the door. I did notice that he seems to be smoother to the touch after a week's use.The door is well made. You can use the sliding trap from the inside or out position. The two flaps do their work just fine so I don't use the sliding trap as of now. May be in the coldest of winter months.Very happy.

I've had a number of pet doors over the last 25 years, this is the noticeably the best one yet as far as construction and insulating ability are concerned. Hopefully the long term durability is as good as its overall construction initially indicate. It's so superior to the Pet Safe doors that I am almost embarrassed that I did not try one sooner. The XL is a little taller than a Large Pet Safe door but is the pretty much the same width, so opening modification was easy.

Great product, tough, and keeps wind and cold out.