New tractor design questions

[jrossetti]

billybob107: I'm using Google Sketchup

MimiChick and elmo, how heavy are your tractors?

I am a bit concerned with weight, which is why I opted for a slightly smaller size. If somehow I forget to move the tractor or am not able to, I want it to be light enough that my wife can handle it (not that I expect that to ever happen...)

So here's the current revision:

-Entire roof constructed from white corrugated PVC.
-Increased the width of the tractor from 3' to 4' (so it is now 4'x7').
-I've raised the height of the henhouse so I can raise the roost (it was 4" off the floor).
-The top panels on all three of the back sides will be meshed in, with the panels hinged so I can vary the ventilation as required.
-I've lowered the floor of the henhouse by an inch or so (hopefully the hens will still be able to get under there).
-Extended the corrugated roof to cover the whole tractor (originally I was going to do a separate roof, just like the Garden Ark).
-Access door covers full wall of the henhouse.
-Panel under henhouse access door opens to allow access to outside feeder/waterer (which will be suspended below the henhouse).

What's not shown, but planned:
-Supports for the roof over the run.
-The inside wall of the henhouse will be mesh, with removable panels.
-I'm moving the nesting box to the outside of the back wall of the henhouse.
-Larger mesh will be used on the top of the run for lighter weight (and support for storing lighter items such as a broom, a folded tarp, maybe.
-An access door will be installed on the run side (mostly for access in attaching/removing panel on inside wall.)
-Outside perch.
-Chicken door.


Thanks for all the tips! You guys (and girls) are awesome.

 

[possumqueen]

I had a fairly heavy tractor some years ago, when I was younger and a LOT stronger. It was 4' by 10' by 6' high. I had it on skids, coop, yard and all, made of plywood and weld wire, and I could pick up one end and drag it. Of course, I said a lot of not nice things on moving days. When I finally put it on wheels that was an improvement, except when it was muddy, and the wheels would sink. . . had a few more things to say about that.

If your tractor is small enough it should be okay for anyone to pull. What about a hitch for a lawn tractor to pull it?

 

[jrossetti]

Quote:
What would you suggest for peckproofing the roof? layer of poulty netting, maybe?

Thanks, you're like Yoda of the chicken world.

 

[MimiChick]

Quote:
Even though mine is pretty heavy, I can move it myself (53 yr old woman with bad back and knees) using a hand truck to lift the front after I've put the wheels on the back. I think adding another set of wheels in the middle will make it even easier for me to do by myself when necessary. That being said, if we're going to move it any distance, I hook a chain in the front to our lawn tractor and move it that way.
I think your plans sound great. You're putting a lot of care and thought into this and your chickens are really going to appreciate it.

 

[elmo]

My 4 by 4 coop is a stationary, winter only coop, that I'm building primarily for night time occupancy during cold weather. I have a stationary summer coop/run (that's roofed and has windblock on one end and part of the sides, but is open air (hardware cloth) otherwise. I also have a tractor built out of a trampoline frame where my chickens spend most of their daytime, unless it's raining. Pretty soon I'm going to end up with more chicken housing than chickens!

One other thing to think about as you work up your construction plans is how you are going to get into your coop to clean it out. I like the design of these coops, with the way one entire wall opens up, and the droppings pit right there, easy to clean out:

http://www.ezcleancoops.com/

 

[patandchickens]

Quote:
FWIW, my tractor (now sold, but you can see it on a page linked from my Personal Page, link at left under my username) was 4x7 and vaguely similar construction to yours; with wheels on the house end, it was hard but not *that* hard to lift up the other end (we used a rope as a 'handle' and drag it where you wanted to go.

So I think you are in the ballpark of basic moveability.

-Increased the width of the tractor from 3' to 4' (so it is now 4'x7').
-I've raised the height of the henhouse so I can raise the roost (it was 4" off the floor).

Be aware that these two things will significantly increase weight. I'm not saying don't do them, just that the plywood of the house is a pretty large contributor to overall tractor weight.

FWIW if I were to build my tractor over again, I would make it shorter, with the roost over the (roofed) nestbox; if weight was a bigger consideration I would at least *consider* a basically floor-level roost as your original plan had, I don't think that's so terrible and does have real advantages in weight.

-The top panels on all three of the back sides will be meshed in, with the panels hinged so I can vary the ventilation as required.

I like that; in combination with the run-facing wall being all mesh, you will have great breeze during summertime but can winterize it well too.

-I've lowered the floor of the henhouse by an inch or so (hopefully the hens will still be able to get under there).

They will wedge themselves in even if it's just 12", tho 14" is better and with 16" they barely need to duck.

-Panel under henhouse access door opens to allow access to outside feeder/waterer (which will be suspended below the henhouse).

Is this to be a solid panel, or mesh? Mesh would be better as it will weigh less. If you want a windbreak you can make a separate one that bungees on, then its weight doesn't matter when moving tractor.

Good luck, have fun,

Pat​

 

[jrossetti]

I feel like I'm spamming the forum with all my pics.

Go ahead and flame me if that's the case, I don't mind. I'm just excited, and want to share my nearing-final revision of my tractor design for everyone's critical eyes.

So, first is the general view with a man-prop for size comparison:

You can see I've framed the spot for the henhouse door, and raised the roost. It's now 10" above the floor, I'm afraid to go any higher for fear of the chickens sleeping in possible draft-space from all the venting up above.

Here's a closer view of the inside:

Underneath the henhouse, from ground level to floor of the henhouse is just over 17", with 15" at the point where the crossbeams are. I'll be hanging the water and oystershell under the henhouse along the side where the full-side access panel is, so I still need to design the mesh door for that spot. It'll probably fold down.

I built a pipe feeder based on the cool designs I've seen elsewhere in the forums, and I will mount it to the side of the run, right next to the henhouse access panels. Unfortunately, the main pipe is only 2' tall, so I'll have to see how long that lasts before making that permanent.

Third pic:

Back view, you can see how I've attached the nesting box to the upper side of the rear wall. It's got a 2" sill in front of it. I read that they prefer it up high, so that's where I put it. Of course, if you guys and gals have a better suggestion, I'm all ears!

Also of note is that I've split the rear-side upper panels, so I can close one side (such as the side adjacent to the roost). I'm thinking this might help for creating some good cross-breezes in the summer.

So this gives me plenty of room on the inside to put a heater if I really need it and water.

Under consideration are an access door in the run, to make it easier to install a panel on the inside wall in case I need it, and for opening/closing the henhouse door, and general maintenance of course.

How does it look? Thoughts on improvements?

Thanks!

 

[patandchickens]

Looks good to me!

If you're using something other than chickenwire (and you prolly should -- hardwarecloth, or at least 1x1 welded wire mesh of reasonable gauge) then you probably do not need that extra horizontal crossbrace on the end of the run. *possibly* not the other horiztonal crossbraces in the run either, or at least just make them out of 1x2 on edge. Save you a little weight.

Unless you want to make the whole thing much more aggravating to build by building angles into things, you will probably want to add some metal angle braces to reduce racking.

If you're going to put the water inside the house portion, put it where you can reach it very easily, not just for refilling but b/c you will want to remove it before moving the tractor (otherwise it spills all over, ask me how I know

)

Going to be a good tractor there

Have fun,

Pat

 

[elmo]

Just wondering, does your roof have any slope to it? The directions for those corrugated panels (at least the ones I bought) suggested a minimum roof slope of 1 inch per one foot of length. Otherwise, rain could pool up on your roof, which could make it sag and/or leak.

The other thing I realized from building my stationary coop is that on a small coop, rain blows in from the sides and pretty much wets the whole inside area unless you have roof overhangs. Of course, your chickens can avoid getting wet by roosting up nearer to the roof.

And as far as the hardware cloth goes, I'd suggest you go with wire openings no larger than 1/2" by 1/2". Predators can reach in, grab your birds, and pull out pieces of them if you use wire with larger openings.

 

[jrossetti]

Quote:
Oh no... I forgot about that! Back to the drawing board..

One possibility is reducing the height of the inside wall, and angling the roof down over the run.

Oh, one thing I forgot to add to my drawing is what that crossbeam is for on the far run wall - it's for a perch attached to that crossbeam, and the base of the henhouse across from it. I'm toying with the idea of adding another higher up.

We don't normally have a problem with wind. In the winter, I was planning on wrapping the lower half of one side of the tractor with a blue tarp if there's much wind, and positioning it a bit if I need to, but that's not so much of a concern, since we have a nice big row of older trees on two sides of the property, the wind goes right over the top.

I will be using the 1/2" hardware cloth - I've heard poultry netting has next to zero effect on most predators.