I am beginning to build my very first chicken coop, and took a leaf out of an ice fisherman's book. I know plenty of people don't just transport their ice shacks on a trailer, but mount it completely on the trailer. Why not do that with a chicken coop? The finished coop will be 6ft wide by 10ft long, on the trailer which is large enough to accommodate that.
My trailer is being built from scratch, with the components being mostly recycled. The only new part of it thus far is just the axle and spindles. I spent today measuring and cutting up old steel pallet racking, which became the frame of the trailer. A lot of welding later, and a gorgeous trailer emerged from the metal dust. Not only is it incredibly solid, it was perfectly balanced too. It isn't totally finished yet, still need to weld on the tongue, wire the lights, and then protect the newly exposed metal to prevent any rust from setting in. It will be street legal, I definitely don't feel like getting pulled over and dealing with that problem!
The coop will be a relatively easy build after the metalworking! At least I think so, wood is more forgiving. The floor has already been built, and will be bolted to the trailer once we are done with it. I was fortunate to be offered an entire shed roof that is in great condition. A friend replaced his shed, and for some reason decided to save the roof even though the rest of it was deconstructed. He offered it to me, and it will work perfectly with the shed dimensions. A few shingles need replaced, but it is durably built and leak free. Essentially, once most of the woodworking begins, really the walls are the biggest job, and with my friends helping out, we can bust that out in one afternoon!
I am going to bring my camera to the shop tomorrow to take pictures. It will start looking like a coop soon, hopefully. Right now it looks like a floor leaned up against a wall, a disembodied roof, a trailer, and a lot of 2x4s, plywood, and insulation.
My trailer is being built from scratch, with the components being mostly recycled. The only new part of it thus far is just the axle and spindles. I spent today measuring and cutting up old steel pallet racking, which became the frame of the trailer. A lot of welding later, and a gorgeous trailer emerged from the metal dust. Not only is it incredibly solid, it was perfectly balanced too. It isn't totally finished yet, still need to weld on the tongue, wire the lights, and then protect the newly exposed metal to prevent any rust from setting in. It will be street legal, I definitely don't feel like getting pulled over and dealing with that problem!
The coop will be a relatively easy build after the metalworking! At least I think so, wood is more forgiving. The floor has already been built, and will be bolted to the trailer once we are done with it. I was fortunate to be offered an entire shed roof that is in great condition. A friend replaced his shed, and for some reason decided to save the roof even though the rest of it was deconstructed. He offered it to me, and it will work perfectly with the shed dimensions. A few shingles need replaced, but it is durably built and leak free. Essentially, once most of the woodworking begins, really the walls are the biggest job, and with my friends helping out, we can bust that out in one afternoon!
I am going to bring my camera to the shop tomorrow to take pictures. It will start looking like a coop soon, hopefully. Right now it looks like a floor leaned up against a wall, a disembodied roof, a trailer, and a lot of 2x4s, plywood, and insulation.
