Building New Coop/Barn...Phase 5 Great Barn Build, OCCUPIED! 3/6/16

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I have a thing for pens, yours are really looking good.

 

[speckledhen]

I have a thing for pens, yours are really looking good.

Thanks! The next session should see more done but today, we were framing out the three doors so that slowed us down. We have one door already for the other side that came from Deacon's old coop, just need to add a panel to the bottom and re-secure or replace the chicken wire on it. Then, we'll have the remaining two doors to build and, of course, the two remaining pens on the back side, one large one and another 5x8 as the extra pen.

We ran into a tiny issue on the back 5x8 with the slant framing support not allowing the wall to be 100% level unless we put it on the inside of that slant member, making the pen a tad too small, so we put it on the outside, pushed up against it as far as it would go. That will be a slight issue with covering the pen-necessary with bantams who will fly up into the box trim, like Aimee who sails over anything if it isn't covered. I could put the bantams in the front pen we did the floor for first rather than Xander's non-flying small group, the one next to the main door. That slant framing support is at the outer edge of the pen so it won't be as much in the way when we go to cover the pen as the one at the back pen. Hope that makes sense. So, the D'Anvers may end up at the front 5x8 and Xander with his 3 large fowl hens in the back pen, which won't actually have to be covered since none of them can fly up 7'. I do intend to cover all of them in some way or another, but changing those two groups' locations will help at the outset. There are only 7 D'Anvers and if you know them, they're super tiny, much smaller than bantam Cochin, Xander, even.

 

[speckledhen]

See what I mean-by the main door, check out the slant steel support and its location, then the one at the back by the roll-up door.

The only way the front wall of that back 5x8 would be perfectly level would be coming up directly underneath the slant support or coming inside it and cutting off some of the pen width, not something I wanted to do. This way, the pen is actually a full 5' wide and larger than either the bantams or Xander have now.

 

[1muttsfan]

Heavy duty Poultry netting would be flexible enough for any pen, you could string wires across the top of the pens to support it.

 

[speckledhen]

Heavy duty Poultry netting would be flexible enough for any pen, you could string wires across the top of the pens to support it.

Most pens, if not all, will eventually have plywood across them to form the loft floor, but I definitely must cover the D'Anvers' pen right away, even if just with garden fencing or chicken wire, to keep those little imps inside or Aimee will be all over that barn visiting other groups that may not be so happy to see her. I can see her up in the loft, too, trying to hatch babies if she ever sees the opportunity.

Seems we're only good for about 4-5 hours work a day now. Used to be, we could hoof it all day long doing construction, but not anymore. And I have to get these birds in their new barn ASAP, even if the aisle floors are not finished, because I need to drive south to my late father's house to help my sister finish up that basement in order to get it on the market. That drive alone is taxing, even though it's only just under 3 hours down there. I'd love for them to be all safe in the new barn, with locks on the doors. So far, during this gentle rain, it has not leaked, but I'm sure it will again. Crazy how it does at times and others, I don't see a drop. I do have a can of rubberized spray sealant to spray up there if they don't get out to fix it so I can move my birds into the barn and not have to keep waiting on them.

 

[1muttsfan]

I could see a flock of littles roosting in the rafters and giving the others ideas!

 

[speckledhen]

I could see a flock of littles roosting in the rafters and giving the others ideas!

Me, too! Aimee's covered pen right now is about 8' high and when she's excited, she flies up and hits the top of it. She could easily clear that 7' wall and so could the other hens, but Aimee is very hyper compared to them and just flies at the drop of a hat.

 

[speckledhen]

Progress today. Saturday, we start on the other side, but we have to dismantle a wall in the other building to scavenge some lumber first. We have some but want to stretch our new lumber by using the old stuff under the floors if we can do that. No work on Friday as DH has his violin lesson and he doesn't work construction before that so he can actually move by the afternoon lesson.
Sorry it's difficult to see. I was out cleaning up the work zone and was going to take photos when I was finished, but DH unexpectedly came back out to help and I didn't want to stop him moving the stack of our remaining plywood to take pictures.

 

[aart]

Sweet Stuff...even the construction jumble!!

 

[speckledhen]

Sweet Stuff...even the construction jumble!!

Yup, I think it will be very functional and actually, a luxury. I found that many more studs were twisted than I originally thought, so working with uneven ground plus twisted lumber plus DH just becoming tired and starting at certain points to not care if it's exactly right, adds up to it not being a perfect structure, however, I must keep reminding myself, IT'S A CHICKEN COOP, NOT MY HOUSE! lol. I tend to be too much of a perfectionist and I keep trying to let that go a little. We both like symmetry and order but we can't drive ourselves nuts in this process. It will work beautifully, I'm sure. And the chickens, well, they are spoiled rotten anyway, or so I'm told by folks who come here and see what they live in now and tell me, "well, I don't have nice buildings like you do". Chickens just want a dry place with food and water and protection from predators and they don't care if it has pretty little shelves with antique cutesy signs and gingham curtains (no, I don't have those).