questions about metal sheds for those of you who use them as coops

[Chicabee19]

I went to visit our new shed today.

It's metal - 7' deep and 10' long, with 2 doors that slide on the front.

I have a few questions:

Can we cut a pop-door, egg door and vent holes in a metal shed?

Does this kind of shed condense and drip inside?

How can it be insulated?

Does something need to be done at the skirt to pred-proof it?

added: What kind of paint to use on the outside?

Has anyone successfully shaded a metal shed with shade cloth or other materials in summer?

thanks!

 

[keljonma]

Does this kind of shed condense and drip inside?

The people we bought the farm from, for some reason replaced the old barn (1880's) roof with metal roofing. Not the good stuff, the cheap stuff. We had to make sure all the seams were sealed and paint some reflective sealant paint on it to stop the condensation. We did this before chickens.

We found the touch up job this year a bit harder because the flock thought the ladder was great fun for roosting.

I would think it would be relatively easy to cut holes with the proper equipment.

Hopefully someone with 'metal shed into hen house' experience will chime in....​

 

[Chicabee19]

kelj,

I was reading about condensation with these metal sheds.

So you painted the reflective stuff on the inside? Can you recall the name of the paint, or will the paint store know what I mean when I ask?

thanks!

 

[keljonma]

Paint on the outside - top of the roof.

No, I didn't see the brand name. Hubby bought the stuff. I think he bought it at the farm co-op or Tractor Supply, since that was where we priced the stuff. It was made in the USA, weatherproofing, sun reflective paint.

All I saw was a white generic 5 gallon bucket with no label. Hubby and I each had a bucket filled with paint, as we were each painting half of the barn roof. It washed off my hands pretty easily as I recall and didn't smell to high heaven either. Hard to believe we just painted in May...

Sorry,,,,, that wasn't very helpful.

 

[Chicabee19]

that's enough of a description for me!

thanx!

 

[patandchickens]

To cut holes, carefully drill 1/2" diam holes at the corners of the area you want to remove, then use very large ultra-heavy tin snips (and some vocabulary) to cut between them to cut the hole. Wear leather gloves and cut in the correct direction for the snips you're using.

Alternatively you can use a power jigsaw with an appropriate blade, or in some circumstances even a circular saw, but be aware that using power tools to cut metal is INCREDIBLY NOISY AND SPARK-Y.

I'd definitely insulate, otherwise you will have condensation and dampness. If all else fails, you can always use construction adhesive to stick foam to the metal and then thin plywood to the foam, and make sure it is all cut accurately enough that once it's all in there, each part sort of braces all the other parts in place, if that makes any sense?

If it doesn't have a floor, I'd definitely add a digproof skirt. A row of well-set 2' square pavers would be the simplest thing IMO.

I've had tremendous success shading sliding glass doors with shadecloth (stapled to wooden frames) - you could do the same for the walls of a metal shed. However I am skeptical that shade cloth would do nearly as much for the roof of it - couldn't hurt to put it on there if you can afford it, but it will be MUCH less help on a near-horizontal surface, unfortunately.

Have fun,

Pat