- Aug 22, 2008
- 16
- 0
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So, after slaving away for twice as long as it should have taken, spent twice as much as it should have cost, and hefted it (it weighed... twice as much as I anticipated!) lol...
Roughly, 5 foot wide x 6 foot long and about 6 foot high. There are two barred plymouth rocs and two (either black sex links or black australoprs... I think they are sex links tho)... Lots of red barn paint and white killz oil based primer... and copious use of zipties...
the run is about 4ft by 8ft by 4ft
The heroic saga is as follows;
Well, it was about 40 degrees out today, just warmer than water freezing temperature. It felt like it was going to snow all day. But, we persevered and got set to let the chickens out. Alexander even helped out with some crying and screaming and moaning about the cold. Come on, Alexander, we need help--not complaining!
The first step was to get the cinder blocks out for the coop to sit on.
Then Stu and I carried out the base to put on the cinder blocks.
The next step was the frame of the coop--this is the heavy part that is very awkward to lift. It's about 6.5 feet tall and lifting it above the base to get it in the right place was VERY hard!
Eventually, though, after much laughing and dropping on Joy's end, we got it up.
I took Alexander in then to warm up. It was a little cold out for him. We had lunch while Stu put the doors in place.
We tied the run to the cinder blocks to try to keep any wild animals from getting in--and the neighborhood dogs that run around all over the place
Stu put the ladder into the run and then it was done!
Stu hung the food and water until we can get hooks for them.
And after we let the chickens be inside the coop for a bit, we got them out so they could see around. They're cold and scared, but hopefully they'll snap out of it soon!
Well, it was a family effort, but, the chickens, they are out!
As an aside, it was 23F here last night... Joy was relieved to see them all alive when we peeked in the nest box and opened the hatch for the day.
It was the first time I ever really built anything, and erm.. I aint no builder! (Which explains the cost/time/wieght/everything multiplied by 2)... One thing I had to skimp on was the wire, it was not the 'good' stuff, the stronger hardware cloth, so I had to make do with what I could get
I think the nest boxes came out too small, and the run didn't get painted (at this point Joy was adamant that the chickens leave our basement bathroom they had been staying in...)..
I'd rather have unhappy cold chickens + unpainted run than angry wife with cold feet in bed!
Roughly, 5 foot wide x 6 foot long and about 6 foot high. There are two barred plymouth rocs and two (either black sex links or black australoprs... I think they are sex links tho)... Lots of red barn paint and white killz oil based primer... and copious use of zipties...
the run is about 4ft by 8ft by 4ft
The heroic saga is as follows;
Well, it was about 40 degrees out today, just warmer than water freezing temperature. It felt like it was going to snow all day. But, we persevered and got set to let the chickens out. Alexander even helped out with some crying and screaming and moaning about the cold. Come on, Alexander, we need help--not complaining!
The first step was to get the cinder blocks out for the coop to sit on.
Then Stu and I carried out the base to put on the cinder blocks.
The next step was the frame of the coop--this is the heavy part that is very awkward to lift. It's about 6.5 feet tall and lifting it above the base to get it in the right place was VERY hard!
Eventually, though, after much laughing and dropping on Joy's end, we got it up.
I took Alexander in then to warm up. It was a little cold out for him. We had lunch while Stu put the doors in place.
We tied the run to the cinder blocks to try to keep any wild animals from getting in--and the neighborhood dogs that run around all over the place
Stu put the ladder into the run and then it was done!
Stu hung the food and water until we can get hooks for them.
And after we let the chickens be inside the coop for a bit, we got them out so they could see around. They're cold and scared, but hopefully they'll snap out of it soon!
Well, it was a family effort, but, the chickens, they are out!
As an aside, it was 23F here last night... Joy was relieved to see them all alive when we peeked in the nest box and opened the hatch for the day.
It was the first time I ever really built anything, and erm.. I aint no builder! (Which explains the cost/time/wieght/everything multiplied by 2)... One thing I had to skimp on was the wire, it was not the 'good' stuff, the stronger hardware cloth, so I had to make do with what I could get
I think the nest boxes came out too small, and the run didn't get painted (at this point Joy was adamant that the chickens leave our basement bathroom they had been staying in...)..
I'd rather have unhappy cold chickens + unpainted run than angry wife with cold feet in bed!
