Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

The litter tray

Join our community of cat lovers on the Mumsnet Cat forum for kitten advice and help with cat behaviour.

Flip

1 2

Original poster

Best place for cat door in new house: is a wall tunnel to the outside bonkers?

41 replies

GrouchyKiwi · 01/11/2022 16:47

We've recently moved into a new house and are trying to work out the best way to include a cat flap for our two roamers.

Our initial plan was to put one in the side door, but this is a panelled UPVC door, which makes it incredibly awkward to cut out and reseal around a cat flap as the panels have quite substantial ridges.

We're tossing up between getting a cat flap installed in a window, which would mean the cats would have to learn to climb up and through, or finding a builder to remove a couple of bricks and make a tunnel through an external wall.

Has anyone made a tunnel through a wall? It would be at the back of the house in a very sheltered spot.

OP posts:

Thread gallery

Smidge001 · 01/11/2022 19:36

My parents have a flap in the external wall. Works really well. They just have a flap on the inside but you can have one on each side if you like. The outside of theirs is next to a flower bed so not very obvious and the cat learnt to use it same day it was installed

HappyBackHome · 01/11/2022 20:11

We're in the process of building an extension built and had a tunnel for our cats built in the wall, which we fitted a cat flap to, and they got used to using it very quickly.

I think they quite like it now, one of them likes to lay in the tunnel glaring out of the cat flap when it rains !

Best place for cat door in new house: is a wall tunnel to the outside bonkers?

Elpheba · 01/11/2022 20:16

We’ve got a tunnel one- DH fitted it himself so wasn’t too tricky. Nice to place it tucked away, so it comes out under our breakfast bar and isn’t too visible. She has a step to get down when outside and despite being v timid she took to it very quickly- agree it’s probably nicer in some ways for nervous cats because she can loiter in the tunnel and check the coast is clear before she emerges!

Bestcatmum · 01/11/2022 20:18

I had a wall tunnel in my last house and it was great, not nearly as drafty as a door flap. Took the male cat a few tries to get used to it but he got there eventually. My girl cat did it straight away, she was a clever girl.

bellac11 · 01/11/2022 20:20

My parents have a tunnel in their conservatory wall, much better than through a door or window

bellocchild · 01/11/2022 20:20

Friends had a tunnel for 3 cats. Very successful except for the one cat who used to sleep in it and refuse to let the other two past...

Original poster

GrouchyKiwi · 01/11/2022 20:24

bellocchild · 01/11/2022 20:20

Friends had a tunnel for 3 cats. Very successful except for the one cat who used to sleep in it and refuse to let the other two past...

I'm sure one of our cats would do this. He's a lazy bugger.

Any wall tunnel would be in the utility room, so not a problem visually. We'd quite like that as we'd be able to have their food etc in there away from the dog. Currently they have it upstairs, which isn't my favourite.

Am going to see if I can find builders to quote for it. Assume it doesn't need any warrants or anything like that?

OP posts:

maddy68 · 01/11/2022 20:27

It's easy to put one in a pvc door. We actually asked a glaziers to do it. Was really quite cheap

Mostmarriedcouple · 01/11/2022 20:36

Yes my fil made a tunnel through the wall for his cat. For a while the cat didn’t really like coming back in through the tunnel but got there in the end.

Dilbertian · 01/11/2022 20:54

lannistunut · 01/11/2022 17:33

I think a window or door would be better from a resale POV, if that bothers you, because it sounds a PITA having to fill a large hole through a brick wall?

We did not have a cat when we bought this house, and had no plans to get one. The catflap did not bother us.

ShelaghsCottage · 01/11/2022 20:58

Would one of these work OP?

catoutofglass.com/

ReviewingTheSituation · 02/11/2022 00:22

GrouchyKiwi · 01/11/2022 20:24

I'm sure one of our cats would do this. He's a lazy bugger.

Am going to see if I can find builders to quote for it. Assume it doesn't need any warrants or anything like that?

Show quote history

It's a very easy DIY job. We used a drill bit, drilled lots of holes to form the shape of the opening and then just knocked it out. We lined it with something- I cave remember what, but maybe roofing felt. Then the chip flap on the inside and the outer part of the flap on the outside.

Babyroobs · 02/11/2022 00:24

My friend has a wall tunnel for her 3 cats. Our builder friend sorted it it very easily and it sems to work well. She has a terraced house and it just goes out to the back yard.

MarthanotMarfa · 02/11/2022 00:30

We fitted a tunnel in our last house. The sure cat flap people make segments you clip together to make the tunnel the length you need. I only had a car flat on the outside. It was excellent and easy to fit. You have to train your cat. We are in Europe half the year now and many of my friends have tunnel ones in their utility rooms.

Smidge001 · 02/11/2022 01:11

No special building regs or anything. My brother did ours. As a previous poster said, it's just a case of drilling through the bricks and knocking them out. Definitely fine for a handiman.

Snailsaresweet · 03/11/2022 14:43

I had a tunnel in my last house, and it worked really well. It was installed by a slightly bemused local handyman. We didn't bother with the plastic tunnel but did spend time getting the interior of the tunnel smoothed down and checking that the swing-y bit of the catflap went both ways - eg back inside the tunnel.

Flip

1 2