Omak Chicken Coop by Dave

[DaveOmak]

Oooohhhh gotcha....

.......I'm kind of electric fence stupid, just no experience.

So metal mesh run wall and metal roof will be ground for high hot wire.

Grounded so there is somewhere to complete the circuit..... You can touch the "HOT" wire and not feel anything if the circuit is not complete... that would include very dry ground.... Sooooooooo, I have some cedars nearby that are watered for 24 hours, once per week so the roots get deep watered... I will install a ground rod at those trees.... then run a wire to the metal on the cage etc. and to the ground lug on the charger.... then if a critter touches any of the hot wires and simultaneously touches any of the metal........ ZAP.... with a pulsed charge... Pulsed, so they can get away without any permanent damage... It is not a continuous voltage...... AND..... there is no amperage... or very little.... not enough amperage to kill or harm.... only enough to make sure critters get the message.....
It is said, once a pig gets "bit" by an electric fence, they won't go near that spot again.... fence or no fence....

 

[DaveOmak]

Evening folks...... Well....... another day building the run and waiting for more news of the fires.... ain't got here yet.... thank goodness....

Run is getting close.... all the wire and metal is on..... man door is done.... BIG "clean out run" door is done.... Roof is sheeted but I haven't plugged the holes from when it was on the house..... Scrap piles are about as small as they will get now.....

Too much other stuff has to be done now.... cut and bale alfalfa, trip to Costco.... (Once a year trip)... wiring the chicken abode... build the heated, pumped water system.... https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/summer-winter-chicken-nipple-waterer ....... Gonna be darn close to this rig.... I saw it several months ago and said, "I gotta do this..."..... Ice the water in the summer.... heat in the winter.... PVC tubes for oyster shells, egg shells, grit, feed... Staple wire around the bottom of everything.... Install the electric fence...

I'm thinking I like the coop and run.... run is 12 x 20.... NOT QUITE 6' clearance in the run....

.... That's what I been doing.... BANGING my head....

I'll be back...... sometime.......

 

[6of6chicks]

Yay! You're almost done! So you're coming to my house next, right?

Seriously - that is an impressive build! It has been so much fun to watch this take shape. There is so much I like about this that I don't even know where to start! I think my favorite is the big "clean out" door. I'm going to have to borrow that idea for my next build.

I had a lovely 4 inch clearance on the door to my run - never once hit my head. Then I had drainage issues and had to raise the floor of the run. Now it's about 6 inches higher. Fixed the drainage problem, but I lost my clearance. Now it's just high enough for me to smack my head every time I go in and out! You'd think my hard head would eventually learn, but nope!!

 

[aart]

....build the heated, pumped water system.... https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/summer-winter-chicken-nipple-waterer ....... Gonna be darn close to this rig.... I saw it several months ago and said, "I gotta do this..."..... ....

Oh, Yeah!! That's a nice design, gonna have to see if that internal supply hose will work with the Horizontal Nipples.

 

[DaveOmak]

Oh, Yeah!! That's a nice design, gonna have to see if that internal supply hose will work with the Horizontal Nipples.

I'm planning on installing "T's" in the line for the horizontal nipples to tap into.... that should leave room for everything in the pipe... I'm thinking about 1" PVC pipe..... wrap with thick weather stripping and again with PVC tape to secure from chickens pecking at the foam.... For the 90 degree bends, I'm thinking sweep 90's from electrical conduit PVC.... Don't know for sure yet.... gotta go look at stuff.... stuff that suits my fancy...

 

[aart]

Quote:
Weeeelll.... this got me thinking....and then fired up enough to get downstairs to my shop and my many semi modified 1/2 pvc parts...I do a lot with ponds, aquariums and large and table top fountains...so....
......did a bit more modification on a T and a threaded cap and came up with this...and ....I had a tiny 40gpm 12V pump and some hose.
Maybe I shouldn't clog your build thread with waterer stuff....I can delete this post if you want me to, no problem - just say the just say the word.

 

[DaveOmak]

Exactly what I was going to do..... The moving water should not freeze, especially with heat....... You've got the design down perfect.... You see any problems with it....

And BTW.... that pump looks exactly like the ones I bought.... one for a spare.... $7 each.....

 

[DaveOmak]

Evening.... well, now was the time to get ready for wire around the outer perimeter of the coop and run...... My trusty Mantis Tiller did a good job of chewing up the sod so I could remove it..... Wire will be coming in a few days..... More to follow soon.....

Somehow, I think I am getting stuff "out of order".... This "AS BUILT" process, without any plans, is adding some difficulty to some steps... If I had a plan and set of drawings, I could have foreseen the problems I am encountering..... OH WELL !!!!!!! stuff happens...

Attaching the wire, to the treated lumber that is sitting on the ground, as sort of a "foundation" will pose a few issues......

I will succeed..... If at first you don't succeed, keep on sucking....



..Mantis did a good job.... ..rake and shovel, into the dump on my tractor...

 

[aart]

As a design drafter for 20years in a regulated industry, I can tell you that 'asbuilt' happens to check final construction against design drawings.....

.....so the good news is, you can still do asbuilts if you want! LOL


I didn't see any wire under there?

 

[DaveOmak]

Wire is in the mail....... maybe Tuesday....

In the future I will call this build "Seat of the pants" or "As I build it, the design will follow" or "Wherever stuff falls into place" or "If the board is 26" long, then that's how big it will be"....

I look in the "Spare Stuff" pile..... see what I have..... where it may fit and....... fit it.... very similar to a coop and run built from pallets.....