Haphazard_Hannah
Songster
Hi everyone,
I'm brand new to BYC and chicken keeping and am embarking on my first large scale DIY project to build a safe and secure walk in run and convert a shed into a chicken coop.
Now, I’m so new that I don’t actually have any chickens yet... but I’m on the waiting list with the British Hen Welfare Trust so when they next rescue end-of-commercial-viability hens from slaughter I’ll get a call about rehoming some hard working ladies. I want their home to be spacious, comfortable and stimulating as it will serve as a retirement home for these hens for the remainder of their lives, and then more after that.
Now, my dad is the local handyman in his neighbourhood, around 2 hours away, and normally he’d be excited to help with something like this but due to COVID (and being in his 70s with COPD) I’m on my own this time! I have virtual support from him when I need it but I’ll have to do the manual labour myself!
Anyway, I thought I’d start a thread for this so anyone who is interested in doing something similar can see how I’m getting on and learn from my mistakes!
So, day 1.
Before the rain set in I wanted to get the ground turned over and the lawn up. Now, this may sound weird as chickens love to search around and eat the lawn, but this area had been left in a right state by my landlord when he cut our garden in half and built a house on it. It’s basically a pile of aggregate with soil dumped on top and some grass grew horizontally over it. And my dogs crapped all over it.
So the plan is to lift the top layer so it’s some kind of level, get the rocks out as and when I come across them and ensure the finished ground sits level with the concrete under the fence line so’s the panels don’t rot. Once I’ve managed that, then I can lay a shed base and plan out the run. I should note that my garden is on a hill so it’s never going to be level, so I might need to step the ground up at certain points... but we’ll burn that bridge when we come to it!
So, here’s the space after it was all rolled and ready to dig:
Here’s my little helpers digging the ground for me:
and here’s after a couple of hours and some ever increasing rain that spoiled my fun:
It doesn’t look like much but I’m feeling it in the back, I can tell you! Hopefully the rain will hold off tomorrow and I can get some more done!
I'm brand new to BYC and chicken keeping and am embarking on my first large scale DIY project to build a safe and secure walk in run and convert a shed into a chicken coop.
Now, I’m so new that I don’t actually have any chickens yet... but I’m on the waiting list with the British Hen Welfare Trust so when they next rescue end-of-commercial-viability hens from slaughter I’ll get a call about rehoming some hard working ladies. I want their home to be spacious, comfortable and stimulating as it will serve as a retirement home for these hens for the remainder of their lives, and then more after that.
Now, my dad is the local handyman in his neighbourhood, around 2 hours away, and normally he’d be excited to help with something like this but due to COVID (and being in his 70s with COPD) I’m on my own this time! I have virtual support from him when I need it but I’ll have to do the manual labour myself!
Anyway, I thought I’d start a thread for this so anyone who is interested in doing something similar can see how I’m getting on and learn from my mistakes!
So, day 1.
Before the rain set in I wanted to get the ground turned over and the lawn up. Now, this may sound weird as chickens love to search around and eat the lawn, but this area had been left in a right state by my landlord when he cut our garden in half and built a house on it. It’s basically a pile of aggregate with soil dumped on top and some grass grew horizontally over it. And my dogs crapped all over it.
So the plan is to lift the top layer so it’s some kind of level, get the rocks out as and when I come across them and ensure the finished ground sits level with the concrete under the fence line so’s the panels don’t rot. Once I’ve managed that, then I can lay a shed base and plan out the run. I should note that my garden is on a hill so it’s never going to be level, so I might need to step the ground up at certain points... but we’ll burn that bridge when we come to it!
So, here’s the space after it was all rolled and ready to dig:
Here’s my little helpers digging the ground for me:
and here’s after a couple of hours and some ever increasing rain that spoiled my fun:
It doesn’t look like much but I’m feeling it in the back, I can tell you! Hopefully the rain will hold off tomorrow and I can get some more done!
