Vent - I am terrible at coop making

[NancyNurseCxMama]

The math would work if my posts were straight. The posts didn't set straight, which is 90% of my problem. They are at a slight angle (there should be 7' 5" between the posts, 8' on the outside, top and bottom. They are only the correct distance apart at ground level.) But I was in a rush and wasn't able to keep the posts upright while the concrete set. NOTHING IS SQUARE!

Even the ground slopes, which is why I didn't cut my posts to length before setting them. I'm also working only with a jigsaw and a hack saw - I have NO idea how I'm going to do the roof (I have plastic corrugated roofing, but attaching it is... a whole other ball of wax.)

Your chickens are not going to care much if things are a bit out of square. They need it to be as safe as it can be against predators and to provide a healthy environment. They will be okay with "unique." No one will care, really.
We didn't cut our posts before we set them either because of our ground slope. After they were in we marked a level line and cut off the tops with a circular saw. There were thirteen posts---fun times.
This will be fine. Just keep going, one foot in front of the other, and it will get done.
I do like the blue!
About that roof---here's a video. (YouTube can be your friend.)

 

[User395221]

Your chickens are not going to care much if things are a bit out of square.

But the OP will feel all of the pain of trying to get things to fit....

I did see a video on youtube about how to cut decking boards for an existing construction where it was out of square and it wasn't as difficult having someone tell you rather than trying to figure it out by yourself. Deep breath, keep calm and carry on.

(I feel your pain, I really do, but when this thing is up, every time you see it you'll also see your huge accomplishment)

 

[fightingbunny]

My run door is perfectly square and perfect. I was so proud until I went to put it into the framing and found that I need to cut a half inch off the top left and bottom right to match the framing which is not square! I think most people find parts of their build aren't perfect, but they know how to make it work. You just end up custom cutting and making it work the hard way.

 

[NancyNurseCxMama]

My friend:

 

[aart]

Your chickens are not going to care much if things are a bit out of square.

But the OP will feel all of the pain of trying to get things to fit....

Exactly! Start stuff out of square and you pay for it with all the other parts....sometimes to grows exponentially worse.

The chickens don't care but all the other parts of coop do.

 

[NancyNurseCxMama]

Exactly! Start stuff out of square and you pay for it with all the other parts....sometimes to grows exponentially worse.

The chickens don't care but all the other parts of coop do.

Sure, but the posts are a done deal now. The OP has to assess what is unfixable and work from there.
Shoulda, woulda, coulda. Chalk it all up to lessons learned and file it for the next time.
Life goes on.

 

[fightingbunny]

You can buy 2x4s that are 10 foot or more in length and just use those for the parts that are greater than 8 feet. It is annoying to go back to the store, but you can still go forward without pulling up the posts.

 

[User395221]

Exactly! Start stuff out of square and you pay for it with all the other parts....sometimes to grows exponentially worse.

Yes the size of the difference increases as you move away from the source. It just means that instead of whacking everything up quickly like ikea furniture you have to fiddle-faddle your way through (what should be a straight line needs to be a slanting line, etc). The good thing is that it's a small structure and there aren't too many bits to be fiddle-faddled with. Nonetheless, I don't envy the poor OP.

I knew a guy who worked as a handyman. I remember the pain he went through trying to replace the ropes and pulleys on an old house's windows. Everything had gone out of square over the 100 years or whatever the house had been up, and the mechanism itself was fiddly. He got there in the end. At least you haven't got fiddly mechanisms to deal with, OP. I bet that doesn't make you feel any better but sometimes "it could be worse" does give some motivation to carry on.

 

[junebuggena]

Measure, measure, measure. And then double and triple check your measurements. It makes for slow going.

 

[User395221]

Measure, measure, measure. And then double and triple check your measurements. It makes for slow going.

And after you've measured it, learn and remember which side of the line you put your saw blade....