Off to Lowes to buy COOP LUMBER...and it's only Feb...

[arlew0127]

Good luck on the new coop and beds... Let us know!!!

 

[Cass]

It's gonna snow again. A LOT. No building until it melts and it can't melt until it stops snowing.

 

[Cass]

Ok..Update time. Lowes again for more lumber. And hinges. And screws. And a router bit. (somehow he always manages to get a tool or two each project he does around here)

Got the lumber home and before I knew it the floor was framed. It looked a LOT big to me. Now I know what the 2x6x12' were for. Somehow, and I am not sure how, the coop grew 4 feet in length. Seems we need "storage space" on one end. Not sure what we are going to store there, but it's 4 feet longer than I thought I needed.

Now for a question for the more experienced amoung us....will the chickens roost in the rafters? Ray doesn't want poop in the rafters, so if they will roost up there he wants to know, so he can put a ceiling into the plans. We plan to put in roosts and nest boxes and maybe a chicken playground...LOL....but he doesn't want poop on the rafters. (Silly man, doesn't he know that there will be poop everywhere anyway, no matter what he plans?)

 

[catdaddy66]

I was given a list of material to get from Lowe's tomorrow so I know what you speak of. I guess it's bite-the-bullet time, but I was just hoping to use mostly my recycled stuff to save some $'s. But I guess you can't do what I want done on the cheap (or cheep!). I will post pics of the large "A" frame coop and run build! These may take a little bit to get to you guys, depending on how soon I get my helper out here. Lowe's loves our little hobby I'm sure!

 

[Cass]

Stakes in ground deliniating corners of building. Holes dug for sonotubes to hold the thing up off the WET, wet ground. Trees limbed out so we have room to move. (Still laying there, but hey, I need the coop, the trunks can wait and these trees were over 50' so it's not a "just a few minutes" job to cut them into manageable pieces)

Now he asks me where I want the run and windows and door and and and....then he totally ignores what I say or swears I didn't tell him that...

... It'll be done MY way....just as soon as I convince him it was HIS idea.

Tomorrow off to Lowes for cement or concrete, can't remember which he said. (probably concrete, cuz cement doesn't make sense for what we are doing) And tubes and the metal thingies that you put in the cement to hold the 2x12 in place to place the preframed floor on.

I hope to have the floor sitting there by the time I go to work on Monday.

 

[Cass]

Update:

2 more trips to Lowes. Man, some of their lumber stinks. Literally...had mold on it. But we got enough to build the floor and two 12 foot walls. The walls are laying on the floor, waiting for enough man power to up them upright. (I ran out of steam before the hefting of them into position)

So the posts are in the ground. The 4x4' s are on top of the posts. The preframed floor is on top of the 4x4's. The wafer board is nailed to the floor framing. ) OUCH, my arm aches. I had the honor of nailing the flooring down. I started with my SO's framing hammer. WRONG CHOICE. It pays to have your own hammer. Once I got my own hammer out of the truck (why it was there I will never know) I was able to put the nails in much faster with less wrist strain.

Then we framed the front 12' wall. Who knew windows were such a pain to frame? I didn't. That took much longer than I had planned on. Then we framed in the only solid wall in the place...well, it's going to have the pop door, but that'll fit between the 2x4's on one side.

Hopefully we can get the 2 walls in place the one of the 8' walls up to keep them in place tomorrow as my Master Builder is out of town TWICE this week...which means no building on those days because he is too tired after driving hours to get home.

Oh wait....snow tomorrow.

Maybe Wednesday then.

 

[Cass]

Walls are up. Roof thingies are hanging up there upside down. One door was framed upside down or we put the sheathing on the wrong side of the framing.

I learned a couple of things. I learned that a framing hammer is far to heavy to use for an extended period of time. That time period would be about 10 nails. Then it is time to get your own hammer for the rest. I learned that standing up 12 foot long 1/2 sheathed walls is freakin' hard work. Doing it in the wind is a suicide mission. And the most important thing I learned? When told to move the 2x4 holding up one of the 12 foot walls, wait until he asked a second time, cuz the first time he didn't really mean it. (smashed knuckles came with that lesson)

Tomorrow roof thingies nailed in place, plywood on the roof and repairing the misframed doorway.

Once I have doors and windows I can put chickens in there right?