minivan into coop

[mystang89]

I think taking an engine/tranny out of a vehicle and not having to worry about keeping it in good condition is one of the easiest things there is to do with cars. Thats just plain demolition. Like some posters have said, just keep them together and have a way to lift it out. Otherwise its taking the engine completely apart, which still wouldn't be that hard if your not wanting to keep anything.

 

[Hawkeye95]

You could always work on taking out the engine later? If that is going to be a big problem for you, why not just convert the inside and leave it at that for now? Lots of people have smaller coops than what a van would make and still find room to fit a couple of nest boxes in it. You could even roll a window down and make a nest box that would fit IN the window. Have you asked any of your friends if they have an engine lift? I'm a GIRL (hehe!) and I play with engines and I even have an engine lift.

So you might be surprised who has one that would let you borrow it. They are REALLY easy to use... just don't expect it to roll on the dirt ground once you lift the engine out-- it might be easier to hook the van up and move IT out of the way instead! Mine barely rolls on a nice cement floor when I have an engine on it. (of course, I could be weak..) But seriously- it's a lot of work. If I were you, I'd just forget the engine compartment for now, and get to work on the inside of the van.

 

[cassidy22]

We made a chicken coop out of an old 1970 ford truck that my husband blew up the engine. We tore the engine out to take it to a mechanic to see if they could fix it. (some background, I am a mechanical engineer with an automotive background, hubby is a software programmer - but since I am the wife, he never believes me)

When we did pull the engine out (you WILL need a hoist - we used a block and tackle, some heavy duty rope and the joists in our garage) we started taking it apart, I saw a crack in the block, the crankshaft was BENT and 3 rods had been bent, and 2 piston domes were cracked. I didn't think it was worth a repair, easier to buy a working engine.

Actually, we discovered it cost just as much to buy another running 1970 ford pick up.

Som after it sat in the driveway, we eventually pulled the tranny out, too. Well, more like we supported it with a jack, unhooked all remaining connections, dropped it to the ground, and pulled the truck away from it.

By NOT having ANY motor parts left in the truck (and draining the gas tank) we didn't have to worry about any residual fluids leaking onto our land. It provided us a truly mobile coop - we have to pull it with our other truck. But with the engine and tranny out, and the hood off, if it is sitting on flat ground, my husband and I can actually push it. But having automotive tires on it, it can move over bumps and ditches in our land, that the tires on our other coop couldn't do.

You can do it. We plan on taking the front panels off, and building another coop section on top of the front of the frame. Right now, we use the cab for feed storage, and I still use it to steer it when we move it across the pasture.

YOu can do this, but you will need a way to hoist out the engine, it is too heavy for people to lift out of the compartment.

Here are pictures of our coop built on an old truck http://kristinandlarry.blogspot.com/2010/11/chicken-house.html

Here are pictures of our first mobile coop, this is before we build the doors and nesting boxes, so we could push it ourselves. Once we finished it, it had to be towed by a truck, and would still get stuck in the mud. After two years, it started to fall apart, and is now a sheep scratching post. http://kristinandlarry.blogspot.com/2007/08/chickens-are-big-puppies-are-fun-and.html

 

[cassidy22]

PS, if you don't take the engine out now, you probably never will. Once you move it out to where you want it, are you really going to bring it back into your garage, to take the engine out? You'd have to kick out all the birds. Do it right from the start and you won't have to worry about it later. Besides, the chickens will go under for shade. Mine perch on the engine cradle, if there was an engine in it, they'd probabyl crawl all up in there to perch and then you have problems of them getting stuck, or not being able to get to them.

 

[canesisters]

Thanks for the encouragement!

That's pretty much what I'm planning - get the inside clean, insulated, 'finished' with flooring and install some roosts and a couple of the square cat litter buckets for nest boxes. Although.....

I LOVE the idea of attaching a box to the window(s).

By the way - being a girl too... it never ceases to amaze me how SUPRIZED people are to find out that I not only HAVE tools - but that I know how to USE them ... (well... most of them

) I do pretty good with the construction things... I think I'm going to learn quite a bit about the 'greasy' tools this winter. And I agree - as long as I have the whole winter... and I'm expeciting some long delays between purchases of supplys for the inside (ya know how it goes $$$$$) .. why not take a crack at removing the engine? The worst that could happen is that I bash my knuckles a few too many times and leave it there half done.