Is traditional framing necessary?

[chfriedmam]

So I see lots of people with construction experience framing walls like they are building a house, with a sole plate and then studs perpendicular to create a space as if we were gonna be running plumbing and wiring and stuff through there. But then I see other coops on Youtube and also CarolinaCoops where they frame it not in a traditional way at all, more like run panels stuck together. Any reason I need to frame my 10ftx8ft coop like a house? attaching pics for interest and to show what I mean of the different types.

 

[DobieLover]

The Carolina coops are "framed like a house".
It has nothing to do with orienting the timbers for electrical and plumbing chases. It has to do with the load bearing ability of the structure so it doesn't matter if the structure will house chickens or people. It needs to bear the load of itself and the load of any forces acting against it (snow, wind, roofing material, etc.)
Build it correctly and it will last for decades.
Build it shoddily because you don't know any better and it will last a few years with constant maintenance to keep up with repairs.

 

[saysfaa]

There are good options other than standard stud walls...
Timber frame (two examples, in case you want to allow for chicken math - a LOT of chicken math )
Log
Cord wood
Pole barn, or post and beam (doesn't have the diagonal framing parts of timber framing, instead it relies on burying the posts to provide the stability)
Board and battan (pictures are my coop during and after construction)
Masonry, adobe, sod, and rammed earth are other possibilities.

 

[3KillerBs]

I agree with Dobie. Load-bearing is load-bearing.

My Little Monitor Coop was built traditionally -- though it's so small that it didn't need additional studs in the center of the walls.

Neuchickenstein is post-and-beam -- built as if it were a picnic pavilion with a roof more than strong enough to support the weight of several men.

The brooder, however, was converted from a structure that was NOT built in a sturdy and well-engineered fashion. It's rickety, to say the least. I wouldn't dare put even a small person on it's roof.

 

[saysfaa]

Of your examples, the first is essentiall a stud wall.

The second is really weak. I don't see any good way to strengthen it.

The third is also a stud wall.

 

[aart]

The Carolina coops are "framed like a house".
It has nothing to do with orienting the timbers for electrical and plumbing chases. It has to do with the load bearing ability of the structure so it doesn't matter if the structure will house chickens or people. It needs to bear the load of itself and the load of any forces acting against it (snow, wind, roofing material, etc.)
Build it correctly and it will last for decades.
Build it shoddily because you don't know any better and it will last a few years with constant maintenance to keep up with repairs.

Ditto Dat!

 

[Ted Brown]

The key point, as noted above, is that the structure is sufficient to support the building, snow load and the occasional person on it.

This can be accomplished WITHOUT modern stud framing.

I have a 10' by 16' Woods KD constructed as it was designed in the very early 1900s - it uses rough cut 2" by 3" pine that is attached to the outer perimeters of wall panels made of rough cut 1“ by 6" pine boards, an additional 1" by 3" is used "in the middle" to prevent lateral movement of the panel and support of drop boards (see My Coop for details). The coop is built of 13 panels that are attached together using construction screws and threaded rod to tie together the two panels used on each of the sixteen foot side walls. The diagrams below show the wall panels:

The design is less expensive AND less work that using stud walls.

I have been on the roof many times and have had 3' of ice and snow two winters running. There is no movement of the building under any of the circumstances.

 

[3KillerBs]

The key point, as noted above, is that the structure is sufficient to support the building, snow load and the occasional person on it.

This can be accomplished WITHOUT modern stud framing.

I have a 10' by 16' Woods KD constructed as it was designed in the very early 1900s - it uses rough cut 2" by 3" pine that is attached to the outer perimeters of wall panels made of rough cut 1“ by 6" pine boards, an additional 1" by 3" is used "in the middle" to prevent lateral movement of the panel and support of drop boards (see My Coop for details). The coop is built of 11 panels that are attached together using construction screws and threaded rod to tie together the two panels used on each of the sixteen foot side walls.

The design is less expensive AND less work that using stud walls.

I have been on the roof many times and have had 3' of ice and snow two winters running. There is no movement of the building under any of the circumstances.

Photos, please?

 

[Ted Brown]

@3KillerBs See "My Coop" and my build thread linked therein.

 

[chfriedmam]

Ditto Dat!

Yes i saw that now