Large elevated pole coop build

[ewerbos]

It's not done, but done enough to put the chickens in--Except we need to cover the windows, we thought we'd have a little time on that but it's an incredibly windy day today.

You can see the lame little feeder that we got for them as chicks... we have a better feeder, a big box metal one, but my husband never liked it in the small temporary coop. He used it to prop up an end of their perch which fell down... We'll clean it off and replace the tiny feeder later today.

Egg boxes are 12" H x 13.5" W x 17" D, with 8.5" H x 10.75" W openings.

The perches are all removable for cleaning.

 

[ewerbos]

We *still* haven't painted the coop (it keeps slipping... too cold, then garden and rabbits etc), but with new chicks this year, we finally decided to make the attached run we always planned. It's 16'x16', with the opening in the middle of the picture being where we'll build a door:

It'll be covered top and sides with 1/2" hardware cloth (plus a 2' horizontal skirt). The door is the open area in the center of the pic.

 

[aart]

Nice job dealing with the slope!

 

[ewerbos]

It's a perfect site, except for that slope! Most annoying thing was the uneven lengths of posts. I dug them all in 2' (less than for the coop, but hopefully enough to be moderately stable--No walls to take wind). It would have been easier without the slope, but this was still easier than leveling!

 

[aart]

It would have been easier without the slope, but this was still easier than leveling!

Still needed to level the roof, no?

Most annoying thing was the uneven lengths of posts.

BTDT.
I used Tposts and a water tube level, I knew there was some slope, but didn't really account for it much. Glad I started low, due to attachment to coop, and was able to work it out down the line using longer posts.
Had about 8-10" over 30'.

 

[ewerbos]

Still needed to level the roof, no?


BTDT.
I used Tposts and a water tube level, I knew there was some slope, but didn't really account for it much. Glad I started low, due to attachment to coop, and was able to work it out down the line using longer posts.
Had about 8-10" over 30'.

Yes, I certainly leveled the structure! I meant vs leveling the ground. I laid out the footprint with batter boards and a line level, posts with a post level, and used a 4' level along the crossbeams at the "bottom" (lowest level crossing all posts) and top. There was probably some cumulative error on the roof--I went from corner to corner, didn't level the beams that were across from each other. It doesn't need to be super sturdy; the only reason I made close rafters was so that the hardware cloth wouldn't be hideously saggy, as it would be otherwise.

The 2x4s along the ground were just the last step, to have something to attach the hardware cloth to.

My drop is much more extreme than yours--2'+ across 16'. I can't tell from your picture that yours is different heights at all. I think my husband had something more like yours in mind, but I like the look of the lumber (and I think it will be pretty strong, also).

 

[ewerbos]

Finally finished the run! The chickens love it. Good thing they can't tell the coop is still unpainted...

This is probably one of the longest coop/run builds ever, and it's still not done. Definitely functional, though. My husband will be covering it with a 1/2" hardware cloth skirt this weekend, and then we'll be letting them have run access 24/7.