How to notch a 2x4 as a roof stud or perch

[Smuvers Farm]

@rjohns39

 

[rjohns39]

Lots of great ideas and approaches, so I'll just hang around to see how it turns out.

 

[HenOnAJuneBug]

I use a skil saw to notch 2x4s and greater all of the time. Make multiple slices about 1/8" apart, remove remaining wood by prying off with a flat screwdriver or chisel, then smoothing the bottom of notch by running the skil saw back and forth.

 

[Sunshine Flock]

I'm watching this thread, but I don't seem to be receiving notifications anymore.

The problem I've encountered with the roost is a very out of plumb shed. I converted an old shed to a chicken coop. I would have been better off knocking it down, salvaging the materials, and rebuilding from scratch. I replaced termite eaten, double stacked 2x4s on the front corners of the shed with 4x4 posts. Nothing was square, so I fudged and fiddled and basically had a pretty frustrating summer. The shed itself isn't level, so I discovered early on I can't use a level at all; I have to eyeball everything.

The shed consists of studs and siding. The siding has vertical grooves, so try to plumb a window or door cutout and it looks totally crooked. I ended up basing all cuts off of the vertical grooves to trick the brain into thinking everything is perfectly level.

The chickens don't care, but the coop is right off our back deck. I have property value and resale to think about. I ended up surrendering a bit to this process and went with a rustic theme to justify the totally out of whack already rustic shed. A new roof in the spring will compensate for a lot and give the chickens a nice overhang for rain and sun protection.

As for the dang roost, just a couple of quick cuts and some screws and the stupid thing should be done, right? Nope. The cement floor is unlevel and the repairs I did on cracks and filling in the old water well pipe made sure it stayed unlevel. (Spell checker keeps autocorrecting unlevel to unloved.)

And not having a way to make a nice straight cut, I spent an entire day cutting pieces just for the first level of the roost platform. Grrr. With the photo posted above I now see there are options for a nice straight cut. The circular saw is heavy and requires two hands, but maybe with clamps and a my right angle ruler thing I can start making straight edges.

Anyway, by the end of day two I had the platform done, sure everything was just right (but totally not plumb), and when I did pocket holes on a cross support and then carried the whole thing into the coop and rested the side arms on the back rest I screwed into the studs, the right arm was hovering about three inches in midair.

More finagling with the drill this time, lots of cussing, and a shimmed leg later and the dumb thing is done. Not pretty at all, which annoys me. I like nice, clean cuts and seams. But the chickens roosted just fine on the frame, and today I'm sawing auxiliary branches off of the manzanita branch for the lower level and sawing the ends decently straight.

Manzanita is extremely hard wood, but it saws and sands nicely. It's enjoyable to work with. I had to sand off lots of insect eaten bark. I used 60 grit sandpaper. Even 60 grit makes for a smooth surface, smoother than a clean piece of lumber you'd bring home from the lumber yard. I'm thinking it's now too slippery for roosting.

The door handle to the coop is manzanita, not yet installed. I coated it with clear Hemp Shield and noticed it was kind of tacky. Not sticky but not smooth either. Walnut oil on manzanita with lots of sanding is beautiful and buttery smooth at higher grits. So I'll do a test spot with the hemp oil. I've also contemplated soaking it in water, but manzanita is different than other woods and doesn't quite have a grain that would raise up when wet.

Any suggestions? The branch is pretty wide, so their feet should tuck underneath without any problems. But what about a smooth surface? People sand their 2x4 roosts to remove splinters, right? So they're doing the same thing as me?

I think dust and use will roughen up the surface over time. Manzanita is super hard, though, and less prone to changes in the surface texture.