Re-Coop -- A Noob's guide to (trying) to build a "chicken mansion" on a budget

[JeepDVL45]

I had a bit more time today to work on the girl's new coop. Turns out I can squeeze myself through their main door if I need to, and its actually quite spacious!! I attached the hardware cloth for the "back" window (faces EAST away from my house), that was a little more time consuming then I thought. In hind sight (remember, Hindsight is always 20/20) I should have pulled the poop shelf and to give myself a little more room to swing the hammer.
I also got a pallet pulled apart and built their door. Not too shabby, I do need to adjust the size of the opening for their door since this is a little too narrow (but working with pallet boards, I just kept swapping out boards until the width was about right.



I also used up the last bit of my plywood for the siding. I know I have some scraps at my Dad's house from his coop, so I can use those to finish up the last bit of siding (I need twp 6" by 32" pieces, one 2" by 32" piece. So that will be easy to come by.

Unfortunately, I need to find another piece of hardware cloth (the remaining piece I have is 3" too short!!!!) Talk about FRUSTRATING, I really don't want to have to buy an entire new roll. Its finally REALLY starting to take shape!!!! (I'm still a bit under $100 into this coop.....I think if I purchased ALL the material at a hardware store -- Lowe's, Homedepot etc -- rather than salvaging it, I think I would be up around $300-$400 so far....) I'm hoping that I can salvage the rest to keep it a $100 coop!

As it stands now....

 

[JeepDVL45]

Not really an update, but we had a wind storm last night...... as you can see, apparently I chose the right spot to put the new coop....I was planning on moving it up the property about another 2 or 3 feet...but I'm glad I didn't!!!! This is what I came home to last night....

The good and the bad.....

GOOD - I was planning on thinning that tree out a bit anyway.....just not quite this much
BAD - I still wanted it there for some protection from the sun during the summer.... I have A LOT of yard to clean up now (only the 1 tree down, but LOTS and LOTS of BBBIIIGGGGGG branches down..

Not the greatest pics, but the tree that used to be over their coop, is now laying on the ground. The hole it left from the root ball is about 2.5ft deep. I should have know it would be coming down soon, the girls LOVED digging under it looking for bugs to munch on...

 

[write2caroline]

Anyone building homes in the area? Maybe they have a building trash heap. My husband used to find all kinds of goodies in the building trash heap. If you are 3" short can you use some wood to make up the difference?

Caroline

 

[Cameron03]

it looks like it is comming along well... have you thought of using some of the branches to make something?

 

[JeepDVL45]

Anyone building homes in the area? Maybe they have a building trash heap. My husband used to find all kinds of goodies in the building trash heap. If you are 3" short can you use some wood to make up the difference?

Caroline

I never thought to check a building site. My neighbor is a contractor though, and he knows I'll looking for pretty much ANYTHING I can salvage (that storm we had actually took out the front porch and roof of the house he is gutting a redoing across the street from me (and another took out some of his siding on HIS house next door to mine)

 

[JeepDVL45]

it looks like it is comming along well... have you thought of using some of the branches to make something?

I was actually thinking about it. Not at first, but the last time I let my girls out, they went on to one of the downed trees, and went up into it to roost....got me thinking. I may use some of the branches for the run somewhere.....

 

[Cameron03]

have you had any more progress, Im eager to see what you have so far

 

[JeepDVL45]

Unfortunately, not yet. I've been cleaning up after the storm for the last couple days. I do have the long weekend to work on it though!

 

[chickencoop789]

Well, is the coop done?

 

[JeepDVL45]

Well, is the coop done?

Unfortunately no, not yet. My full attention was needed elsewhere.....as it turned out, my kitchen was in dire need of some "small" repairs. And, as everyone knows, as soon as you start fixing something, you find 10 more things that are wrong, so the fun I was having building the coop needed to take a break until spring.

Taking a break from the coop is a bit of a blessing in disguise though....we've has some SERIOUSLY cold weather in my area this winter (many nights 5 below zero with wind chills as low as 20 below) For my 2 girls, I think the big coop would have been too cold for them, but with their old/current coop, they stay nice and "warm" even during the super cold nights.

Bright side, I will be making a small addition to the new coop in the spring.......a small 4x4 addition to one side that will be a separate "coop" with floating walls so I can insulate it with hay and really keep them out of the cold if they need it for next winter. Then I can pick up my new chicks in the spring.