2020 UPDATE: We still have this insert and it is a permanent fixture of our window. We now have a full screened in patio (with the pet/trampoline screen) for the cats to go in and out of and we also added two cats. Highly recommend this. We also added a door insert in our sliding door that goes out to the patio, but we have left this in so that the cats have multiple ways to get in and out of the patio in case one fails or just to keep the peace between them.

Wow, what a project it was installing this window sash cat door! But already it is worth it, and the cats love it. We used ours to put in our bedroom window which leads to a small "catio" that we built outside. We did not want to have to create any big holes in our doors or walls, so this Ideal Pets Sash - Chubby Kat is perfect.

Our cats are not fat, but they are tall, so we wanted to make it comfortable for them to get in and out of their catio. They learned very quickly how to use the cat door (same day) and did not want to leave their catio until we finally made them come in at 1 a.m.

We live in Florida, and it is so hot right now that we cannot supervise our cats in the back yard as often as we normally would - we have to wait for it to cool down. So this cat flap gives them the freedom to go outside and inside as they please, and it still keeps them safe from traffic and other potential dangers outside.

Anyway, back to the PROJECT of getting this installed. It took a lot of tweaking to finally get this to fit the way we wanted, especially to be able to make it as weatherproof as possible. Our window is about 35 inches wide. This window sash has springs on each side so that you can push the sides in to get the sash into your window frame, and then when you let it go they stretch back out and are tight in your window. The small silver knobs are basically just used to tighten that mechanism so that once the window sash is in place, you secure them and they will no longer be able to be moved. This sounds very simple, and for the most part, it was, but I am here to explain just a couple of things we had to do to get ours to work.

Although the sash fits width wise into the window frame and weather stripping is provided, we ended up using about 7 feet of our own weather stripping to secure this thing. It comes with black weather stripping, which would have looked terrible all around the window and sash. We had to line the bottom of our window, the bottom of the window frame (tracking), both sides of the sash, in between any holes that were exposed between the window and top of sash. Also, we had to weather strip the sash itself from left to right all along the front below the cat door flap and silver knobs, as well as much more behind the sash to fill in any spaces created near the bottom window tracking.

It takes a little bit of work to get the sides where you want them and to tighten the flexible side mechanisms just right as well as getting the sash at the height you want it. If you take a close look at the item you will see that the plastic cat door in the center has a white plastic frame around it. This will have to sit above your window tracking or else you will create a huge gap, letting air in and out, etc.

In short, just be prepared with your own weather stripping (I suggest white colored), and I mean many feet of it, in different widths and also in different thicknesses (yes we had to choose different widths and thicknesses for our weather stripping.)

It was a lot of careful and detailed work, but it really only took about 3 hours to complete - and that is definitely worth it for the amazing outcome! We are so happy with how this turned out and our cats are too.

A couple of other things to note: despite all the work on the weather proofing, the product itself has a few features that will make it unable to be perfectly fully weatherproofed. As other reviewers mentioned, this is a cat door. The swinging door is surrounded with gray bristles that act as its own little weather strip, but those definitely let some air in and out. I believe the door is magnetic so that it should close behind your cats automatically, but since they have to make that magnet weak enough for a cat to get in and out of the door, it doesn't always fully close. We have only noticed this a couple of times. For the most part. it does close all the way. Above the swinging cat door is also a little bit of space that is not weatherproof. These are just small considerations to be aware of.

In all, the small amount of air that may get in and out is probably much less than when you are opening and closing the doors to your house.

I hope this information helps. We love this product and our cats do too!

If this review helped you please feel free to select "helpful" and/or leave a comment.

We have two Pekingese. For the uninitiated, they're dogs. Small dogs. Very small dogs, in fact. They both love going out on the porch. To bark. At squirrels. And anything else that moves. The problem is, more often than not, they want to come back into the house right after they've gone out. It's a rule. And after they've come back in, they want to go right back out. That's also a rule. They're ridiculous beasts, to say the least. But also cute.

During the warmer months, we will leave the porch door open to help the hell beasts move between realms. We have a door screen that self-closes in the center with magnets so that the dogs can push their way out and push their way in as they see fit. It works great and they both make liberal (oh stop, this is about dogs, not politics) use of it.

During the colder months, however, we are at the mercy of their whim, letting them out while keeping the door open just enough that they can push their way back in. The drafts are annoying, and once they've pushed the door open to come in, we have to get up to go close it again...or to let them back out. This would go on all night. Because we have no willpower. And because the annoyance of getting up to open and close the door was still less annoying than having a dog pawing at our legs all night, wanting to go out.

Then we got an idea: what if there was a pet door that could be installed in a window...like one of those dual fans? If I've learned anything over the past 15 years, it's that if you can imagine it, someone is already selling it on Amazon. So, I confidently searched on Amazon. I don't think it took me even 30 seconds to find what I was looking for: a pet door that was mostly designed for cats but also works perfectly for the tiny Pekingese dog breed.

I wouldn't say this pet door is perfect, but it is well made, with a strong frame and side panels. The door itself is perhaps a little flimsy, but as long as it is not abused, it should last a long time.

One feature I did not realize the door offered when I ordered it is a one-way setting. Meaning when you feel that your dog or cat has had enough outside time for the night, you can set the latch all the way to the left, which will allow the door to open inward but not outward.

The latching mechanism is a bit of an annoyance in one way, though: the door simply does not settle back into the right position for the latch to do what it needs to do and there is no easy way to get it there, since the door has nothing to grab on to. We arrived at a simple solution for that, though: we attached a 1-inch suction cup to the lower right corner of the door so that we can pull the door inward to the right position for latching. Easy Peasy. Ideal Pet Products would do well to include a suction cup for this reason. Hopefully they read these reviews.

The side panels are spring-loaded, so you won't have to hold them in place while you tighten the knobs. Just squeeze the panels inward so that the unit is narrower than the window opening; tighten the knobs; set the unit in place; loosen the knobs; let the side panels settle into the sash; then tighten the knobs again.

Amazon will recommend that you buy foam weather stripping. Don't do it; the door comes with some. Now I have some weather stripping that I will likely never use. Will I be initiating a return for a $7 package of weather stripping? Nah. And in fact, I have not yet added the weather stripping that came with it. It just doesn't get cold enough here for me to feel all that motivated to add it. But I will. Eventually.

Regarding the width: My window is just about 28" wide and this product was JUST wide enough. So when they say 23"-28", they mean it. Could you rig up some expansion panels from some other material, like plywood or something? Sure. But just be aware that if you buy the 23"-28" version of this product and your window is wider than that, you *will* need to come up with a way to adapt it.

You might consider adding some sliding window locks if you live in an area where break-ins are a problem. Obviously, if a thief wants in badly enough, they're going to get in, but deterrence measures may slow them down enough that they either give up or get caught in the process. Many people forget that there are many types of thieves: professional thieves, determined thieves, desperate thieves, and casual thieves. The latter will try a window or door and only enter if that window or door opens easily. A little resistance and they give up. The other three groups are unlikely to be deterred, but if you can reduce risk by 25%, isn't it worth it to spend a few dollars for a little added security? I think so.

But back to the dogs. One is a bit of a wild child. She loves to play. She takes risks. She throws her weight around. And she steals treats. She got used to the door over the course of one day. She goes out and comes back in several times per night as if she was raised from birth with pet door opening as her purpose in life. Two weeks later, however, we still have to push the other dog - a prissy, prancing little wuss (unless the wild child steals her treats, in which case it's a Battle Royale) - out the little door because she typically won't go through on her own. And when she's ready to come back in? She looks at us through the transparent door and whines to get us to help her come back in. That being said, she has gone out and come back in a few times on her own. She will get used to it. We went through the same thing when we installed the screen on the door. She is simply slow to adapt. But again, she'll get it. Eventually. It's something you should keep in mind for your own beasts. Work with them. Show them how to use it. If they stare at you from outside, use your willpower and don't let them in. Wait them out. Offer them treats to entice them to come back in on their own. Eventually, if they want in bad enough, they will use the door.

Overall, I am happy with my purchase. And at least one of my dogs is also happy with my purchase. The other dog thinks it is a gateway to hell. Maybe she's right.

Why did I wait so long?!!! Our family has been the door openers for 14 years. The cat meows and looks at the door and we obey, Open, close, open, close, open close aaaaaaalllll day! I put this in the window showed the furballs how to use it and wham! I've either tricked them into being their own doormen or they finally realized they don't need me and are free to go outside. Now a fun game one cat has invented is to run outside and jump on Dad's window while he's working and beg for food, attention, and attention. Yes I wrote that twice. It's just really nice to not have to wake up at 2 or 3 am to open the window or door for the cats. There is a large shelf outside my bedroom window for the furballs and they know it. We all love the new chubby kat largest sash window opening available. It was super easy to install and worth the price I paid. The one thing I did do was go a clear command hook and put it on the cat door so I would have a handle to pull it closed as someone else mentioned in another review. Very helpful advice as there is no way to pull it closed. There is a little breeze that comes through but my window is wide enough (old) that I have room to have the cat door in place and close my window all the way down. I love the convenience.

I measured my window at 32" so got the one that expands to 32", but it doesn't quite fit snug on both sides. However, it works and I'm afraid the size up wouldn't fit. I like the different in/out options the door gives.

The media could not be loaded. Install was very easy! Hardest part was keeping kitty out of the way while I was doing it. Just didn't want him discouraged so left him as part of the process. I actually unboxed it and sat with him as we played with the door part together before we installed. I really think this is how he took to using it quickly once installed.

Just glad got the chubby version cause he's only 9 months old and it won't be long before he will need to squeeze through. Lol

My only complaint but not a deal breaker is the weather stripping provided. It is so narrow it doesn't even cover the top of the frame. I was thinking about just putting two strips side by side but they didn't provide enough. This seems to be a real duh moment since they know their measurements and can at least make the strip wide enough (in both directions). So I'll just need to pay and order some additional stripping to have a good seal.

I'll have to go buy some PVC pipe for track (or another locking way) to secure window since it cannot be locked now (which already figured). In meantime I'll just move my Ring sensor so I'll at least be notified. Install is so easy I can easily remove when go out of town.

Product is pretty good quality and will probably last. Think the door (and locking mechanism) may need replacing at some point though depending on how much he uses it. Hoping it will stop "sticking" once it is used a little more. I did read you can loosen a screw to help relieve some of the pressure. I will try that as well.