Run to Outdoor Brooder Conversion -- Rush Job

[3KillerBs]

Since somehow snakes managed to get in and eat 7 of my most recent 12 chicks and since I have more chicks hatching on Sunday, I decided to put a floor on this thing.

This has been easier said than done because the man who built it wasn't really a very good builder and I'm having to cope with some of his bad design decisions -- including the one that made it turn out about 52" wide instead of 48" wide.

DH gave me an old sheet of 3/8" plywood that's warped from him using it as a makeshift outdoor worktable and I'm making up the difference in fence pickets.

I'll have photos later, but I *might* have found the place where another of those construction oddities created a spot that wouldn't sit quite flush to the ground. A corner of door "jam" (to use the word very loosely), that would have prevented me from putting the floor on it if I hadn't trimmed it and thus must have been holding that spot up *maybe* 3/4" above the packed gravel pad.

The door itself was also warped by just about that much, so I put in a proper door jam.

 

[3KillerBs]

I intend to leave a 6-8" vent all around the top when I wrap it in the tarp and am now struggling with how to cover it against rain. In a different situation I would have just asked DH to pick me up a sheet of thin plywood when he was at Lowes last night and make top-hinged covers to prop open.

We have access to scrap vinyl siding if we can figure out how to mount it and, possibly, roof flashing. I could also use strips of tarp if I could figure out how to mount those because there were only two sizes of tarp available -- much too large and a bit too small so DH wisely bought the one that was much too large.

Any idea on how to mount said scrap vinyl siding at a roughly 45-degree angle to a piece of 2x2?

Or the strips of tarp?

I am trying not to add too much weight to this structure both because I am thinking of using it as a tractor afterward and because I am concerned that the 2x2 structure won't take too much (it seems to me to be as well built as something made from 2x2's could be, but I'm accustomed to the family habit of over-engineering everything. )

 

[3KillerBs]

All the hardware cloth is on. Also the new latches. Of all the weird things, I couldn't find any ordinary carabiners at Lowes, only the fancy ones with 4 keyrings attached. Crazy, right? There's a pack of multiple sizes, only the middle size being useful to me, but no normal ones to buy individually.

We're going to have to order carabiners on Amazon and I'll have to scare up some of our collection of extra padlocks until we do (a padlock is too much trouble for long-term use),

I'm scarfing down some dinner than going back out to try my hand at cutting metal siding.

 

[3KillerBs]

DH helped me with the metal around the bottom since it was so awkward. We haven't figured out the pop door and will have to add it later.

Tomorrow it gets tarped except for the top 6-8" and then an awning made from more scrap metal siding.

I had to seam the hardware cloth on the door since a lot of it was 12" scrap:

Tomorrow I'll put some holes into the metal here and do some more stitching. The hardware cloth was warped and couldn't be pulled tight in this spot.

I have most of the anti-dig skirt cut. I won't fasten it, just tuck it under the edge, since this is a temporary setup.

 

[3KillerBs]

To cover the edges maybe some of that foam pipe insulation can work.
Colorful? Pool noodles.

Pipe insulation was DH's thought.

I was hoping there was some kind of product made for the purpose that might not be as bulky and conspicuous.

 

[21hens-incharge]

Pipe insulation is best as it has an adhesive strip already and is designer for outdoor use. It's only about 2" in diameter.

 

[3KillerBs]

A quick question.....


Do you get much wind there?

If so pounding in a couple T posts to brace it so it cannot flip would help.

OH and how many youngins are you getting?

We only get much wind during hurricanes and tropical storms, mostly later in the year. This is a sheltered spot against storms -- but I do have a few t-posts and making sure is probably a good thing.

I ordered a dozen from Ideal that are coming tomorrow and 25 from Welp in 2 weeks.

I'm planning on selling at least half as started pullets and POL pullets.

 

[3KillerBs]

The new chicks' thread will be here: https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/introducing-the-ideal-dozen.1469451/

 

[DavidReaves]

OK, nix on the hammered staples. All I can manage is to bend them. Plan B is screws and fender washers. I'll have to draft the 15yo to help me wrestle wire tomorrow afternoon when I'm home from work and then finish Monday after DS#1 returns the metal shears.

I know you are long done with this project, but an alternative that is working well for me is "narrow crown" (1/4) staples in a pneumatic gun. I have cordless, Ryobi, but it could easily be done using a compressor driven stapler. If you already have a compressor, Harbor Freight has a Narrow Crown Stapler for only $30. The 7/8" staples hold wire well, and it is much quicker than either by hand or driving screws with washers. I'm just adding here for any future readers!

 

[3KillerBs]

The only thing I can think of that seems really likely to work as an awning for the vents is roof flashing, bent to shape. It will be floppy, but I can't think of any means of supporting the scrap vinyl siding or tarp awnings when there is so little structure to fasten anything to.