Give Me Ideas! *Pic Heavy* Updated 5/8/11

[Connorrm]

Quote:
You beat me to it KansasBoy.....I work with stainless steel every day, and uhhhh, unless you have access to industrial type cutting machines, you're gonna have a chore ahead of you. Stainless is extremely tough to cut.
I don't mean to bust your chops, and make you feel like you've made a poor decision because it's a great idea to use re-puropsed materials....I just hope you're able to find a way to cut through it.

It's really easy to cut with my sawz-all. That's how I got that window. Took about 5 minutes. They aren't solid stainless steel! That would be awful! The inside is a heavy duty foam about the density of a birch wood or other "soft wood". They are all linked together by cams. All said and done that building took about one hour to put together. It just pops together. I can walk across the roof, lean against it...totally sturdy (it's a walk in cooler haha).

The only thing that stinks is once you cut there's no going back!

 

[Ms.Frizzle]

I assume rats would be the same as mice with how to get rid of them. Find the holes in the walls, and get some steal wool with peanut butter on it. Fill up the holes, and the rats will chew on the steal wool=bleed to death since they cut their gums so bad/go out some other way. If you don't have a rat problem, i'd doubt you'd get one. We used to have them when we had calves (larger scale). My dad says the best way to not have rats is to make it so they can't get an edge to start chewing on. Pretty hard to do/nearly impossible w/o special materials. Otherwise, the chickens will eat mice, so as long as the feed is stored somewhere else, it shouldn't be a problem.

I know you have a light somewhere, if its a heat lamp you want it away sort of away from the feeder, so that they don't perch on that instead of the perches. Thats just my opinon.

It looks like you still have a crack running down the side next to the house, idk if thats light, but the foam filler should work just fine to fix that. Just make sure that any insulation stuff is covered, because the chickens will peck & ingest it otherwise.

Have you decided what you're going to cover the floor with?

 

[Connorrm]

I see what you're talking about by the "gap" it's actually a piece of aluminum flashing I made to cover a gap. So no hole there

As far as floor substrate....I think I'm leaning towards shavings. That is what most people have suggested. It's a concrete floor, so I'm guessing about six inches worth should do the trick. I'm open to any suggestions.

I'd really like to try DLM but I'm not sure if it would work.

 

[CCourson05]

You will want to put some sand in there somewhere so they can take baths. That's only if you get really harsh, snowy winters though...

 

[Connorrm]

I'm in NY. I get lots of harsh, snowy winters

How big of a sand area do they need....and what kind of sand? Playground sand?

 

[P-Funk]

My girls love the rubber padding on the floor. It's warmer and softer than concrete.

 

[Connorrm]

Rubber padding?