Helpful hints for building coops

[Chinachik]

Great thread! I check in every night now. It seems we are constantly evolving our coop and run. Some of the things that have worked to make things easier for us and the flock:
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I added 4 removable for cleaning 2x3 roosing bars at 12" x 12" intervals. You could use 2x4's with larger breeds. We also use trays under roosts and hanging feeders. Trays available at
http://www.greenhousemegastore.com/category/s?keyword=garden+tray or at:
https://www.chewy.com/s?query=dog+crate+replacement+pans&nav-submit-button=

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I originally wanted plastic 2x4's but realized they would sag over a 6 ft span.
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I added window screen over the predator screen on vent holes today to keep out mosquitoes (not shown). We put vent holes along the sides and at the rooftop. I have plexiglas squares to cover the holes by the perches in cooler weather.
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Added raised bed herb boxes around the coop for nibbles and whatever benefits they may supply. Note the wire fencing arch over the bed to keep girls from tilling the bed.

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We added a 275 sq ft run made of dog run fencing (2 gates) and dried it in with 2x4 rafters and corrugated Polylite at a 7 degree pitch for runoff. Once we are finished with the adjacent garden, we open the gates and let the girls enjoy the leftovers and till in this year's compost. The compound is surrounded by an electric Premier 1 Poultry Mesh, which hasn't been breeched in the 18 months we have used it.

Like the idea of the fencing over the flowers beds around the coop and run.

 

[3KillerBs]

Who was it who talked about the DeWalt battery-powered weed whacker the other day?

After I got frustrated with dragging the cord around for the electric one we have I suggested to DH that we combine my birthday present and his Father's Day present and give one to each other.

He was tempted by the 60v but decided on the 20V after his sister said that her husband's 60V was too heavy for her to use.

It's just about time to shift the electric net and trim the grass again.

 

[Sally PB]

Who was it who talked about the DeWalt battery-powered weed whacker the other day?

After I got frustrated with dragging the cord around for the electric one we have I suggested to DH that we combine my birthday present and his Father's Day present and give one to each other.

He was tempted by the 60v but decided on the 20V after his sister said that her husband's 60V was too heavy for her to use.

I have one, and love it. However, it does have the 60v battery, I think. Well, it takes the "big" battery, not the "small" battery. That's how I can tell them apart.

Yeah, it is on the heavy side. I usually balance it against my hip when I'm using it for very long.

 

[Sally PB]

Oh, @3KillerBs, I went to Harbor Freight to get the metal shears. Their website said they had the very one you got. Except that they didn't. They had the more expensive one that takes out a kerf. I won't be using it anywhere near the chickens or their coop/run, though, so I'm ok with that.

We have some odd pieces in odd shapes of metal roofing, just scraps, really. I want to cut them into foot wide sections and use it as a weed barrier/anti-dig apron around the garden. No way we have enough, but we often get odd sheets of metal for various projects, so I'll just add pieces as I get them.

One of our projects is to replace and straighten the fence around the garden. We can't replace the whole thing, as it would cost a fortune. A 50' roll of 4' tall 2x3 welded wire fence is $100 now. I'd need 7 rolls.

It bothers DH that the garden is 25' wide on one end, 18' wide on the other. You don't realize it until you see it from up on the hill how odd it is, as it mostly follows the contour of the hill. It's 146' long, so I'm going to gain a significant amount of garden space. Or area to weed.

 

[aart]

He was tempted by the 60v but decided on the 20V after his sister said that her husband's 60V was too heavy for her to use.

I test drove a couple of friends rigs before buying.
20V Black and Decker was like a Yugo next to the 57V EGO Cadillac.
Bought the big one.
It's pretty well balanced for the weight, and the battery runs out before my arms/hands do.

 

[3KillerBs]

I test drove a couple of friends rigs before buying.
20V Black and Decker was like a Yugo next to the 57V EGO Cadillac.
Bought the big one.
It's pretty well balanced for the weight, and the battery runs out before my arms/hands do.

We have to be cautious about tools for me because I have significant arthritis in my hands and wrists. This is mainly intended to deal with grass against the house foundation, for trimming where I put the poultry netting, and a few other similarly light duties.

My damaged wrists are my main limitation for tool use.

 

[aart]

I have significant arthritis in my hands and wrists.

Same here.

 

[3KillerBs]

Same here.

It's a fine balance between not doing any additional damage (I destroyed my wrists and the bases of my thumbs sewing tactical gear in a factory), and doing the worst thing possible for arthritis -- stopping moving because of the pain.

For heavy-duty work DH has the option of borrowing a high-powered gas whacker from work.

 

[Sally PB]

We have to be cautious about tools for me because I have significant arthritis in my hands and wrists. This is mainly intended to deal with grass against the house foundation, for trimming where I put the poultry netting, and a few other similarly light duties.

My damaged wrists are my main limitation for tool use.

The weight isn't a problem for me, but the vibration gets to me after a while. Resting the string trimmer on my hip helps with that.

If I trim two batteries worth of trimming, my hands and forearms are tired. Trimming with any kind of hand powered tool is out, though. All that squeezing motion would be the end of me.

 

[3KillerBs]

The weight isn't a problem for me, but the vibration gets to me after a while. Resting the string trimmer on my hip helps with that.

If I trim two batteries worth of trimming, my hands and forearms are tired. Trimming with any kind of hand powered tool is out, though. All that squeezing motion would be the end of me.

Vibration isn't the issue for me. Weight is the problem because the specific damage messed up my grip capability.

Every now and then one of my hands, usually the left, simply refuses to grip any longer. I haven't dropped a piece of expensive lunchmeat at work yet, but I have lost a favorite coffee cup.