Pallet coops and longevity

[wholehearted]

We are considering using pallet wood on our coop, mostly for the siding/wall covering because that is where it will save us the most. I'm just curious about the longevity of the pallet wood when exposed to the elements. Most of the pallet coop/building pics I've seen don't appear to be stained or painted. If we did choose to paint or stain it, I would imagine the pallet wood would really soak it up and require a lot.

Anyone have experience or insight to share? Thanks!

 

[chfite]

Pallet wood tends to be unstable because it is not carefully selected and dried as with most lumber one buys. Once it has been through its life as a pallet, it should be stable so far as warpage and such are concerned. The amount of finish that wood takes is pretty much dependent upon the roughness of the finish of the wood. Smooth wood doesn't have as much surface area as a rough finish wood has.

Things that cause wood to deteriorate are primarily moisture and sunlight. Paint or other finish will protect the wood from both. Bare wood that does not stay damp will last for many years exposed to the elements. I have some 1 x 12 pine boards that are bare and have been exposed to the rain and sun for over ten years. They have the gray color that you might expect, but they are still structurally sound.

Chris

 

[KBreedlove]

My husband and I built a chicken coop from pallets back in the fall (September or October, can't remember!). Originally we didn't paint ours but once we moved we decided that we wanted to go ahead and paint it. Before we painted it, it didn't have any problems withstanding the weather, but it was only unpainted for a few months so it may have eventually deteriorated. Like Chris said, paint will definitely protect it from sun and moisture. It didn't take much paint at all to do ours; we just used some that we had leftover from a different project.

As far as the pallet chicken coop goes, I love ours. It's so much cheaper than buying brand new lumber, and I think it has a really unique look. One thing to think about with making it out of pallets though is that usually not all the wood will fit together perfectly, so you may have to use something to fill in the cracks so that there aren't a lot of drafts coming in, especially in the winter.

I have a picture of ours on my blog if you want to check it out, and if you have any questions about how we made ours I'd be happy to help! Good luck!

Kaitlyn