Recent content by pleasantfiction

I made some compost bins from pallets and put the "poo-hay" in one of those. Eventually that makes it to the garden.

I tried placing a scrap piece of hardware cloth across a post and it actually doesn't look too bad. The turned portion isn't recessed as much as I thought so I think putting up the hw cloth won't be as much of a pain as I thought. EDIT: Just thought - I should look at the outside corners, too...

I do like the idea about selling them on CL - worth looking into at least! We have some other things that need to go anyway.

Why would I use turned porch posts for a chicken run? Same as for everything else -- because we already have them laying around. :) They were taken from an old family home that was being torn down many years ago. The intent was to use them to build a gazebo or something, but 25+ years later...

They were one of those things we decided to use because they were sitting around, but we love how they turned out! Nice to have during heavy storms when it's raining sideways. I'm not sure if we really need to close them at night. The windows are totally secure with the hw cloth on the inside...

Thanks! I'm more of a computer guy than a construction guy and I'm working by myself, so it has been challenging. Just have to keep reminding myself the chickens don't care if it's crooked!

I'm nearly finished with a 5' W x 7' L x 5' H coop made mostly from reclaimed materials. The siding is from an old corn crib that was falling down in the back yard. There are two windows about 41"x28" with 1/2" hardware cloth inside and working wood shutters on the outside. I...

Thanks for the input -- I'm feeling confident about using the expanded metal now. Also the tip re: the skirting. Not looking forward to digging 20' or so of trenches in this hard soil. Time to start building walls on fort knox now!

I'm in the process of building our first chicken coop & run and of course I'm trying to spend as little as possible while keeping it secure. We're in an area where there are lots of predators -- blacksnakes, copperheads, foxes, possums, raccoon, bobcats, hawks, coyotes ... you name it we...

Hi all -- new here, from NC, and first time raising chickens. Just went out to the barn to check on our chicks and found a 4'-5' long black rat snake on the brooder box! Fortunately the box is sealed well with a heavy wooden lid and 1/2" hardware cloth on the floor; 1/4" on the window. The...