Guide · · 2 min read
Through-wall dog door: tunnel models, wall thickness and how to line the hole
When the door is glass you would rather not cut, or you want the pet door somewhere else, go through the wall. Here is what fits, and how the hole is made and lined.
By the Pet-Tek International team, Auckland — designers of Catwalk® and Dogwalk® since 1999.
Three reasons people go through the wall instead of the door: the only door is glass they do not want cut, the door is the wrong place for the pet to come in, or there is no door at all on that side. The wall works, with a bit of framing.
What reaches through
- Dogwalk® Small Tunnel (W-SDDT) — dogs to about 360 mm at the shoulder, 180 × 227 mm opening, tunnel to 52 mm.
- Catwalk® Cat Door Tunnel (W-CDT) — cats, 155 × 157 mm, tunnel to 52 mm.
- Dogwalk® Wood-Fitting Medium (W-DD) — big dogs, panels 5–36 mm; in a wall it fits a lined opening rather than reaching through on its own.
Walls up to 52 mm
A sheet-clad garage wall, a sleep-out, a weatherboard-over-ply wall: cut the template through both skins, push the tunnel through from outside, screw the inner frame on. Same as a thick door.
Thicker walls: line the opening
A framed house wall is 90–140 mm; brick veneer and block are more. The method is the same one builders use for a cat door in a wall: cut the opening between two studs, frame it with timber top and bottom, line it with 12–18 mm ply or dressed timber to make a smooth box through the wall, and fit the pet door to the inside end of that lining. The tunnel then meets the lining and the pet walks through a finished timber tunnel. A builder does the framing in an hour; the door itself you fit.
Flash the top of the outside opening on an exterior wall, slope the bottom of the lining a degree or two outward so water runs out, and silicone under the outer frame.
Where in the wall
Bottom of the opening at the pet’s belly height, between studs (a stud finder saves a lot of plaster), away from pipes and wiring, and on the side of the house out of the prevailing wind if you can choose.
Weather and draughts
The flap seals on a brush and magnets; the frames clamp the lining; the lock shuts it at night. In a Wellington or Canterbury wind, face it east or north and it will behave.
Not sure the wall will work? Email a photo and the wall thickness to info@petnest.co.nz. Sizing: measure your dog.
Quick answers
Can you put a dog door through a wall?
Yes. The Dogwalk Small Tunnel reaches through solid doors and walls up to 52 mm; thicker walls get a timber-lined opening between studs that the tunnel then fits into. A builder frames the opening in an hour.
What size hole for a through-wall dog door?
Use the template in the box: the Small Tunnel's cut-out suits its 180 × 227 mm opening. For a lined wall opening, frame the hole to the template size plus the lining thickness.
Is a through-wall pet door weatherproof?
The two frames clamp the lining either side and the flap seals on a brush and magnets; flash the top of the opening on an exterior wall and run silicone under the outer frame.
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