more questions for building my own coop (from a n00b)

[manderzpants]

so i have little to none construction experience and i plan to attempt to build my own coop. what i don't have in experience, i will make up in stubbornness to complete my goal!

anyway, as far as securing hardware cloth in the coop, can i use a staple gun? or will predators tear right though that and i'll need to nail/screw the cloth to the frame???

thank you in advance!!! everyone here has been soooo helpful and i really appreciate that!!

 

[mboreham1]

i would use nails, the U shaped ones, in fact that is exactly what i used!

Remember measure twice cut once......!!!!!

 

[WV_Hillbilly70]

I wouldn't use staple gun staples, they won't hold well. At a minimum use poultry staples that you drive in with a hammer, or screws with washers (best method/most expensive). I used ALOT of poultry staples on mine. I actually got a piece of hardware cloth crooked and had to take it back off.....it was h*ll getting them suckers out!!! Tou can buy poultry staples at most hardware stores and they are fairly cheap, probably cheaper that gun staples.

Good luck on your build!!

WV Hillbilly

 

[Hugerat]

You could also use a strip of wood/lathe and screw it in.

 

[manderzpants]

thank you everyone for your advice! the u shaped nails sound like a good idea, and i think i will use those to secure the hardware cloth. i have begun drawing out my plans w/ step by step instructions and drawings so i will minimize error when i finally put it up.

 

[sydney13]

i used a staple gun on my guinea pigs house (they only go in it for the day time so it didn't have to make it very predator proof) and after a few weeks the staples started falling out on their own

 

[columbiacritter]

I use screws and bottle caps to hold my wire down! Someone here on BYC showed how he used bottle caps instead of washers and it's great. Not only are they basically free but they hold a lot better than washers and are easier to put in than staples if you use self tapping screws. My husband loves it when I say, "Drink more beer honey, I need to build another chicken tractor!"

The only downside is you need to pop a hole in each cap with a nail, but it's not hard, just time consuming if you're using a lot all at once.

It's also really decorative if you use a variety of bottle caps.

 

[andythescot]

We used a staple gun and then hammered in the staples... I myself tried to pull it off and where I could, I stapled some more%2Pr

 

[CompostQueen]

Quote:
Do you use the bottle caps with the flat part laying against the wood, silver inside part exposed?

 

[sunflowerenvy]

Quote:
could u take a picture and post it so we know what it looks like too thanks