DIY Thread - Let's see your "Inventions".

[DMRippy]

I do that all the time! They are great!

 

[urbanchicksfarm]

Love the bucket nests. The local bakery gives away buckets in various sizes daily.

 

[klutterer]

Like the homemade composters, but I'm wondering how the compost process is going? I have store-bought composters that I've been loading with manure, the hay I can't extract from it, kitchen greens, coffee grounds, lawn clippings, thin twigs, etc. along with some starter soil and a few earthworms.

Months later, I'm not sure the result is what you'd call "compost." It doesn't stink, but it is kinda sludge-y and I can still identify last summer's corn cobs, some eggshells, etc.

I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong -- too much nitrogen? How do you balance out the chicken poop? Advice?

 

[Doughie]

Like the homemade composters, but I'm wondering how the compost process is going? I have store-bought composters that I've been loading with manure, the hay I can't extract from it, kitchen greens, coffee grounds, lawn clippings, thin twigs, etc. along with some starter soil and a few earthworms.

Months later, I'm not sure the result is what you'd call "compost." It doesn't stink, but it is kinda sludge-y and I can still identify last summer's corn cobs, some eggshells, etc.

I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong -- too much nitrogen? How do you balance out the chicken poop? Advice?

It sounds like you have too much moisture. Does your composter have plenty of vent holes? Also, I am only using the manure of 4 chickens in mine. You need brown plant matter to balance the nitrogen...like dead leaves, wood chips etc. My homemade model is working perfectly! I keep it moist and rotate it twice daily. At 6 am this morning I saw steam rising from it.

 

[highpointfarm]

Heres my incubator

 

[Hawgon]

My cover for the water barrel......Getting closer to actually having chickens in there...lol

 

[Dukeofhawg]

Nice work Hawgon... you're rock! You do't do anything half *****....

 

[Hawgon]

Nice work Hawgon... you're rock!  You do't do anything half *****....

Thanks Duke....Dad said only build it once...Unfortanately this weekend my grand-daughter stepped on the leg of one of my four week old chicks and she is really favoring that leg now..we are hoping for the best....next is finish trim on run and the watering nipples inside the run....

 

[klutterer]

Thank you for the compost advice.Alas, I'm still muddled -- and I"m gonna have to buy compost for this year's garden! (after buying eggs for Xmas -- I am in awe of my pioneer farmer ancestors!)

I have 4 commercial tumblers (and 5 hens). Each tumbler is different. And flawed: 2 of the stands broke, so I just roll them around; 1 doesn't rotate effectively. All of them allegedly have adequate ventillation and drainage. (The best of the bunch,IMHO, is the Lifetime one I got at Costco last year -- Costco now carries a 2-barrelled version for $135)

We don't have a lot of dead leaves in these parts. I've scavenged lots of decaying wood from the lakeside, and hoped the hay would make up the difference. Tried shredded newspaper and cardboard but it got pretty clumpy -- perhaps I just need a lot more of it.... What ratio of poop to other stuff do you use?

Meanwhile, I'm just glad I don't actually have to live off the land. : )

 

[klutterer]

Good luck to your chickadee...

I tried splinting my chicken's leg last year, but couldn't find the right support structure. She healed enough, however, to hop around quite effectively. She's even managed to roost with the other girls a few times (but with only one leg I dont' think she got a lot of rest, and she sleeps in the nest box 99% of the time). Chickens are amazingly resilient!

Factoid: a Chinese version of hopscotch is called "Lame Hen." : )