Technical coop building question.

[Merrymouse]

Id go 2x6x16' personally. 2x4 will bow across 16' unless it supported in the middle. I'd also not recommend butting boards for a roof line like that. Heck I am in SW MO and I wouldn't trust a 2x4 with our snow load. besides that 4x8 1/2" sheet of plywoods gonna add some weight.

Also at 200lbs I would feel safe on that roof it would move. Just a thought
if You went 5/8 osb on 2x6x16" the 2x"' cost more but the osb it almost half the cost of 1/2" ply then Id paint the underside and trim it out with roofing tar paper then the metal. that way osb is protected from moister. I also would do that for a plywood roof too.

Hopefully didn't complicate things just thought as I read threw your thread.
Scott

Hi and thank you for your suggestions. In looking at the all the other wichita coops they all used 2x4 for the roof rafters. I know 2x6 would be better. Hmmm. Are you saying this because I am building my wichita bigger than the standard wichita? I thought I read not to buy OSB for the sheathing because it breaks when you screw into it, not to mention expansion if it get wet. But then again I am a total newbie and have been reading so much I don't really know which way is up anymore.

Also on my roof I'm putting alot of rafters attached with rafter ties for the middle portion. On the outer "overhang" portion Im going to ladder frame it for more strength. The regular wichita does not have this but I planned on this because my wichita is bigger and I wanted the extra support for the roof.

The other thing is the roof will not be on 2x4's because once I put the hardware cloth on I will sister another 2x4 over the hardware cloth so essentially all my posts will be 4x4's. Do you still think the 2x6's are needed? If I did 2x6's for the rim of the roof I would then have to use 2x6 for all the rafters too right? And 2x6's to fill in the soffet etc etc etc right? I plan on doing this today hopefully and thank you again.

 

[Merrymouse]

@TalkALittle I have footers under all 4 "posts" of my coop portion and then 4 more for the run section. On the run section they are not exactly centered in the middle of the wall because of huge rock and stumps etc. My DH is going to help me today so maybe we can do the best we can to add a couple more footers. There is no way Im going to get a foundation all around the base unless I rented a back hoe or something and that is way beyond my expertise. Actually looking back to the picture I'm missing two of the footers because I put them in after. Not perfect but it was the best I could do under the circumstances. In some places there was just a few inches of soil and then a massive rock. Under one corner of my coop was a massive flat rock so I basically just wedged a paver under there with very little gravel base hoping that the massive boulder would make a good enough base. Because my land is sloped the east side (run) is very high, like 2 cinder blocks high. I am going to back fill and try to make it look better with fill once I put the hardware cloth down. Thanks for you help!

 

[aart]

Whoa!
Didn't read 'how to build a basic shed', huh?
Forget the Wichita plans, you are building a shed.

Wall studs go on top of floor sheathing(and oriented the other way),
and floor joists go under floor sheathing.
Agrees on not using 2x4 butted with 'mending plate' for rafters.

I strongly urge you to stop building and do more basic construction research before continuing.
You'll need to do some disassembly too.

 

[Merrymouse]

Whoa!
Didn't read 'how to build a basic shed', huh?
Forget the Wichita plans, you are building a shed.

Wall studs go on top of floor sheathing(and oriented the other way),
and floor joists go under floor sheathing.
Agrees on not using 2x4 butted with 'mending plate' for rafters.

I strongly urge you to stop building and do more basic construction research before continuing.
You'll need to do some disassembly too.

Aart, now you have me very confused I do not have a floor the ground is the floor so no floor joists, no sheathing on the floor just plane 'ol dirt. Maybe you think I have a floor because I may have used the word "studs" instead of what I really have that I dont know what the name is "support poles?" Why do I have to disassemble? I'm not building a shed as I dont have solid walls around the whole thing, I dont have a floor and I dont have a pitched roof etc. Please elaborate.

 

[aart]

Quote: Never mind, I misunderstood....carry on.

 

[TalkALittle]

Aart, now you have me very confused  I do not have a floor the ground is the floor so no floor joists, no sheathing on the floor just plane 'ol dirt.  Maybe you think I have a floor because I may have used the word "studs" instead of what I really have that I dont know what the name is "support poles?"  Why do I have to disassemble?  I'm not building a shed as I dont have solid walls around the whole thing, I dont have a floor and I dont have a pitched roof etc.  Please elaborate.

What caught @aart's attention and also prompted me to ask about how you will be supporting the coop is this. Your studs (or uprights) will be supporting the weight of your roof (and snow load). That weight is going to be transferred down through the uprights. If the coop was sitting on the ground like most Wichita coops are, the load would be transferred to the ground and you'd be fine. As you have it built now, the entire load is going to rely on the strength of the 2x4s at the corners as they are the only place with any real support. Any load placed on the other uprights is going to be rely on the strength of the screws or nails that hold the uprights to the horizontal base boards. They may pull out or sheer off and/or your roof may sag along the length of your coop.

Perhaps you have plans to fill in under and around this coop and you just haven't done it yet. If so, this is a very backwards way of going about things. A sounder and more sensible way to do it is to build up a level area with dirt/gravel/sand and then build the coop on it, not the other way around.

 

[Merrymouse]

Ok, I understand. I could probably do two things to fix this. 1. put some type of pillar for support under each upright. or 2. would placing an additional PT 2x6 under the length of the entire base laying flat give the added support I would need? So the uprights that are not supported with footings would rest on the 2x6 laid down flat. Make sense? I cannot believe I messed this up so royally already. All because my site is awful!

 

[TalkALittle]

Ok, I understand.  I could probably do two things to fix this.  1.  put some type of pillar for support under each upright. or 2. would placing an additional PT 2x6 under the length of the entire base laying flat give the added support I would need?  So the uprights that are not supported with footings would rest on the 2x6 laid down flat.  Make sense?  I cannot believe I messed this up so royally already.  All because my site is awful!

Construction has a steep learning curve. Don't beat yourself up about it.

 

[TalkALittle]

You don't want to lay a 2x6 flat like that. It will flex and not offer any support.

A simple fix is to get a couple pressure treated 4x6 or 6x6 landscape timbers and create another frame just like you did with the 2x6s. Set it on your blocks and put what you've already built right on top.

 

[Merrymouse]

@TalkALittle ok, sounds good but just to make sure I dont mess this up again, if I get the 4x6's I can lay that flat because it it more rigid than the 2x6 right? Ill try for the 6x6 if they have them. This will raise the height more but that just means more back filling later. Thank you. I was beginning to think I had to take the whole thing down and start over.