Coop finished (pic heavy on post #14, w/ run attached #24)

[GardeNerd]

Hi,

I finally started to work on the coop this weekend. I had been gathering stuff for awhile and planned it out over vacation.

All of the wood came from either my garage or my neighbors backyard. They had planned on building a tree house and never did. I also demolished a redwood pergola (patio cover) with my husband a couple of weekends ago. I have used some of the 2x4's out of that that did not have any termites. The frame for the run is an old work bench that I added a back to so far.


The size of the coop is planned out at 4' x 4' footprint. 6 feet tall in the middle. The attached run will be 3 1/2' by 9. I know its small, but I live in the city. Any longer in length and we would be in violation of the distance restrictions to the neighbors or our dewelling.

I hope to use a recycled dog door for the coop door. I will cut the opening bigger to fit it. George is demonstrating that it needs to be bigger. He still thinks I am designing the dog house of his dreams.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/uploads/20741_100_1340.jpg

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/uploads/20741_100_1345.jpg

I am not much of a carpenter, so please understand about any boo boos in construction. My husband is working on earning his masters and wouldn't have time to help until August.

I did have to buy hardware cloth. I only had a small amount around the garage. I picked up cabinet doors/ door and paint at Habitat for Humanity's restore.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/uploads/20741_100_1348.jpg

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/uploads/20741_100_1357.jpg

 

[sandyj]

George is adorable!!!

sandyj

 

[jforsness]

Good luck, can't wait to see it when done!

 

[Stumpy]

Hey, I think you're doing great! It looks nice and sturdy to me, and you have a handsome helper.

Is that an orange tree in the background?

 

[GardeNerd]

There is an Owari/ Satsuma Mandrine orange tree, but that is the dwarf Meyer Lemon you can see at the end of the run. The Lemons are almost ready to pick. I am a gardener. My front yard is all the pretty stuff. The backyard is about 15 dwarf and semi dwarf fruit trees, an enclosed veggie garden, and some drought tolerant shade plants.

 

[Omran]

Looking good

omran

 

[GardeNerd]

I got some siding, well actually individual bead boards, turned around on the back side from Habitat for Humanity Restore. $17.00 for it all. Restore is a retail store that sells donated new and used construction supplies they don't use on their projects. The proceeds go to the charity. I added the roof, but I paid retail for the shingles, I wasn't having any luck with a recycled source. I am hoping to finish the windows and door this week and start painting on Saturday with paint left over from other projects around the yard/ house. I have lots of exterior white and yellow currently. I got some laminate flooring on trash day that someone put out at the curb. They were short pieces but big enough to fit the coop. The pieces look like wood. Will that work for a coop floor as good as vinyl? I won't do the finished flooring until after the painting is done.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/uploads/20741_100_1763.jpg
Here is the progress as of yesterday.

 

[Suburban chick farmer 09]

Great job. It doesnt look like you'll have any complaints from the neighbors.

 

[ozzie]

I got some laminate flooring on trash day that someone put out at the curb. They were short pieces but big enough to fit the coop. The pieces look like wood. Will that work for a coop floor as good as vinyl?

Should do - and probably scratch proof too. The only thing is that you need to keep it dry - the odd spill here and there wouldn't matter but you need to mop it up - you want to stop moisture from getting under the top laminate layer and into that mdf (?) layer underneath because that will swell and cause the floor to warp if it's constantly moist. I have laminate flooring through the house and it works great - easy to clean but I am diligent in mopping up spills.

It looks fantastic by the way - a work of art! Great recycling!

ozzie​

 

[Lobzi]

I did the same... all recycled materials except the wire for the sides and top. I would like a better roof over the who thing for next winter but for this year the large piece of recycled visqueen has worked pretty well to keep the whole thing dry.