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NOT "engineered for a lifetime"
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We bought the large patio pet door for our cat and two labs because we were having raccoons come in our flap door and we were worried about security since an average size person could easily enter our house through the flap. Our pet door operated well initially. We've had it for about 3 years. Over time, however, the sensor sensitivity decreased until we had to have it at high sensitivity both indoors and out and even then the door wouldn't operate until our cat or dogs were standing right in front of it. Then suddenly, just before we were to go away the outside sensor quit altogether. This was a major inconvenience because we rely on it for our cat to have outdoor access while we are gone since she refuses to use a litter box. It's also extremely disappointing for such an expensive item that claims to be "engineered for a lifetime." I'm not sure what we are going to do since it'll be at least another few hundred dollars to replace it, so I think we'll investigate other options.
Some other comments that you might want to consider before purchasing this unit:
The collar sensor is really large and awkward on our 9 lb cat. I always feel bad when I look at her wearing it and scratching at it. She seems to find it uncomfortable.
It's been a very expensive proposition having this door, between the cost of the door and the rate at which our dogs go through the collars. For some reason they just don't last on our dogs longer than a couple to a few months at a time even with just brief outdoor wear. We've spent hundreds replacing collars.
The website advertises that the doors don't operate when the animal is standing or lying by the door, only as it's moving near it. We've never found this to be true. Our cat would go through and sit still just outside the door and the it would keep staying open. We'd have to go downstairs and chase her away from it. Our old flap door was much more energy conserving.
The final comment is that the motor unit is very loud. We could hear it at the opposite end of our house on the other floor. It was always disturbing to any house guests we had since it was right next to the guest bedroom and of course the cat used it at night.
Overall, I'm disappointed with my door. Despite a few faults it seemed like the best option when it was working, but I can't afford to keep spending like this when also considering it's other limitations.
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