More chunneling fodder!

[2ndChanceRanch]

Hey folks - I'm struggling with the best chunnel design. Just saw the 5-foot bent conduit chunnel, which seems too expensive for this budget. I have some pvc piping I can flex to shape, but it seems sort of wimpy. What are you using for your arches, assuming you have an arched design as opposed to a square/box design? I really want portable sections so I can move pieces out if necessary for repairs, rearranging, etc. Thanks!

 

[Kettle Ridge]

My chunnel design uses:
(1) 5 ft wide welded wire fencing - 100 ft roll for about $80.
(2) 10 ft long white pvc pipe cut into 2 foot lengths - pretty cheap.
(3) a bunch of zip ties - really cheap.
I cut about 50 inches off the wire roll for each section, leaving wire prongs on both sides to grab the ground.Then I attach two of the pvc pieces to each of the sections using zip ties, one at the end and the other about in the middle. This way I can easily overlap the sections. Then I simply lay them out with a bit of overlap (more on the bends) and attach the sections to each other with a zip tie or two. This may not be the most secure chunnel design, but it is quick (in a couple of hours I made a 100 foot long chunnel) and it is easily moved around. I love watching the chickens race through it. Hope this helps.

Joe

 

[Kettle Ridge]

I forgot to mention that I have to drill through each end of the pvc pipe sections so the zip ties can go through the holes when attaching them to the wire fencing. Takes just a couple of seconds to do.

Joe

 

[2ndChanceRanch]

This is great! I'm glad you followed up with the drill info - I assumed that's what you must have done. I am considering a really similar design, only the bottom will be made of the fencing as well. I'm banking on grass or weeds aiding to nail the chunnel down, as long as the chickens don't eat the weeds!
Thanks for your input!

 

[aart]

Joe...do you have a pic of one chunnel section where we can see the construction clearly?

Where does it join up to your run or coop or.....?

 

[yolksonus]

Love this! Can't wait for our chicks to be old enough to let outside and make a Chunnel

 

[Kettle Ridge]

I will take more photos tomorrow and post one to show the construction clearly. I also made a video and hope to have that up on youtube soon.

Joe

 

[Kettle Ridge]

Here are some more photos that I hope will provide more clarity. The first two just show chickens in the chunnel, which is about 100 feet long and circles around back up towards the chicken coop. The third photo shows attachment of the pvc "rib" to the wire fencing using a plastic zip tie (I bend the prong on the wire fence inwards and insert into the pipe). There are two ribs for each five-foot section of chunnel - one rib at the end and the other in the middle. The fourth photo shows attachment to the coop. This part took me forever because I am no carpenter and I was working with uneven ground and lots of framing on the coop. I wanted to give the chickens access to the space under the coop because they love to hang out there when it is hot and sunny. I had to convert the door from a hinged drawbridge to a lift door with pulley. There is a cover over the steps to prevent them from rotting out. Hope this helps.

Joe

 

[aart]

Great pics, thank you....so is this a permanent installation, or do you move it to different locations or directions from where it joins the coop?

 

[Kettle Ridge]

It is flexible and easy to move. I moved half of the chunnel a couple of feet over today just to provide some fresh turf to the chickens. If the ground is not too rocky or messy it is possible to jam the wire prongs into the ground for extra stability but I don't bother too much with that.

Joe