Money poorly spent?

Beekissed · Feb 11, 2014

GentFarmer said:
Like not a single right angle anywhere in my coop! lol Fortunately, none of my chickens came with drafting or carpentry skills. And I did end up with a coop that does exactly what I wanted while giving me room to add just about as many chickens as I want over time.

Also, I'm a great liar, and just tell everyone that I was going for whimsy when I built it all off kilter.

Same here!!! I tell folks it isn't quite on the bubble but you'd have a dickens of a time tearing that thing apart. It's sturdy and has withstood some incredibly high winds here that took whole, green trees down like matchsticks...and it didn't even move my tarps.

GentFarmer · Feb 11, 2014

Beekissed said:
Same here!!! I tell folks it isn't quite on the bubble but you'd have a dickens of a time tearing that thing apart. It's sturdy and has withstood some incredibly high winds here that took whole, green trees down like matchsticks...and it didn't even move my tarps.

I just got back from a trip to Belize. Upon returning, one of my friends pointed out that my coop was sturdier than half the houses there! I'm pretty sure my coop can withstand seismic activity in the hills. I also may be guilty of putting a lawn chair or two on the roof and enjoying my breaks up there. The chickens are so confused.

GentFarmer · Mar 10, 2014

Adding to the construction fun, I decided to tackle a combination duck house/hay manger. The straw/hay bales will actually sit on top of the house, forming the roof. I used 4 wood pallets and connected them with 8' lengths of 2x4. The end result gives me a house/run/manger that is 16' long and 4' deep. I'll post pics when it's done (I'm about 3/4 there after 8 hours of work). But total cost is under $150, which will bump up another $50 with the hardware (hardware cloth, hinges, handles, latches, etc.). Still, given its sturdiness and the satisfaction of self-construction, It's a bargain.

And somehow, I managed to hit this one on the level! Right angles and everything. It *almost* looks like I knew what I was doing on this one. lol

nathana1984 · May 4, 2014

Its been a while but thought i would share what money spent on materials got me. Still have to build nesting boxes and roosting bars. But finished last night and chickens seem to enjoy it out there. This might be a lot of pics. But here we go.
But before that thanks for all the advice i recieved here.