- Dec 9, 2011
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Looking for thoughts, suggestions on this idea...
I've been gathering wood for my quail pens and the only thing else I need is to get to Home Depot to acquire some plywood, hardware and some 1/2" X 1/2" hardware cloth. So last week I found a plan here for a wood hutch that is pretty thrifty as it uses only 1 piece of plywood. Add a few smaller pieces of and wire and you end up with a 3' X 4' pen that slopes front to rear..
That said, I was behind the shop today looking at a white plastic drum and got an idea. What if I lay the drum on it's side and work(cut) the ends to make doors and ventilation for a coop? I can get clean drums for $10-$15.00..
Then I can build a scrap wood frame with some hardware cloth attached to it for a floor, placed in the drum part of the way up from the round bottom. The space below the wire frame becomes a cleanout for waste that can be pulled out with a tool shaped like the bottom in one pull. I may also add small holes for drainage/ventilation. Then I would add a full wire door to the front and a door in the rear with a window for ventilation that can open/close depending on weather.. I can add a rabbit water bottle to each pen on the side and a ceramic feeder inside. There will be room in the back to add a small shelter/nest box that can be removed if needed. I can build x-frames under each barrel for support off of the ground and add a roof if I want but I'm not convinced this set up needs one other then for a sun shelter. The white barrels will let a lot of light through and I can also add 1 strand of white christmas lights to extend the days to 14 hours for continuous egg production. This would save having to put 1 light in each wood pen.... I'll post pics when I get started. It will not be long before I start as I am expecting some adult birds shipped from a member here an a couple of weeks... Cheers!
I've been gathering wood for my quail pens and the only thing else I need is to get to Home Depot to acquire some plywood, hardware and some 1/2" X 1/2" hardware cloth. So last week I found a plan here for a wood hutch that is pretty thrifty as it uses only 1 piece of plywood. Add a few smaller pieces of and wire and you end up with a 3' X 4' pen that slopes front to rear..
That said, I was behind the shop today looking at a white plastic drum and got an idea. What if I lay the drum on it's side and work(cut) the ends to make doors and ventilation for a coop? I can get clean drums for $10-$15.00..
Then I can build a scrap wood frame with some hardware cloth attached to it for a floor, placed in the drum part of the way up from the round bottom. The space below the wire frame becomes a cleanout for waste that can be pulled out with a tool shaped like the bottom in one pull. I may also add small holes for drainage/ventilation. Then I would add a full wire door to the front and a door in the rear with a window for ventilation that can open/close depending on weather.. I can add a rabbit water bottle to each pen on the side and a ceramic feeder inside. There will be room in the back to add a small shelter/nest box that can be removed if needed. I can build x-frames under each barrel for support off of the ground and add a roof if I want but I'm not convinced this set up needs one other then for a sun shelter. The white barrels will let a lot of light through and I can also add 1 strand of white christmas lights to extend the days to 14 hours for continuous egg production. This would save having to put 1 light in each wood pen.... I'll post pics when I get started. It will not be long before I start as I am expecting some adult birds shipped from a member here an a couple of weeks... Cheers!
