Washingtonians

[FirewifeJess]

Urban Enthusiast - there is a store in Tacoma called the ReStore. It's got all sorts of scrap EVERYTHING and lots of stuff that was just extra's from projects and brand new. Try there first!

 

[UrbanEnthusiast]

Or just build more coops!

Nah, we're just going to salvage the materials from the coop we have now. We didn't build it and it's terrible. It's tiny and right on the ground. The roosts are only a few inches off the ground and can go no higher as there would be no room for the hens. This is probably why they rejected the coop and decided to roost in a giant pine tree every night despite our best efforts to curtail the behavior before we just gave in. After nearly a year of tree-roosting, it has worked out well so far, so I'm not sure if I want them to start using the new coop or just keep it on reserve for occasions like cold weather, injured birds, etc. It is definitely going to have an automatic door which we're going to design and build ourselves, which if nothing else will serve to protect our feed at night from the enormous rat population in our neighborhood.

YEP! What he said!!!!

We built a pallet coop, actually it's a long duplex coop, so two sides to it. We used the pallets assembled, you will find that taking them apart is a LOT of work.
I used to have a page here showing photo's of us building it, but I don't think it came over correctly when they upgraded the site. If you can view my uploaded photo's here, it's in there somewhere!

I keep telling my BF that leaving the pallets assembled is by far the easiest way to go, but he insists that he wants to be able to customize the dimensions and he wants to use screws, not nails, so therefore the pallets will have to be broken down. I understand his reasoning but I'm not looking forward to all the extra huffing, puffing, and cussing once he realizes how much work he's in for!

Oh well, nothing that can't be cured with a few of these, right?

 

[itsren]

metal fence post and wire to tie the lattice to the said post?
the post do not have to be way down in the ground... just enough to hold steady and the pull up and move when needed.

That's a good idea. I know I have 2 T-posts. I'll have to see if I can rig something up with them. Thanks!

 

[JennS]

Indeed! We are going to go as big as we can afford. And even though we're going to use as many "freecycled" materials as possible, cost is still a limiting factor as we are some of the 50% of Americans currently struggling with poverty.

We want to include a very small, enclosed "room" in the structure for storage if we can, though it may have to be added on later when we have more time/money/materials.


Yes, we are not sure if we are going to make it tall enough for a human-sized door, but I certainly want to if we can find a free door somewhere.

Does anyone know a good place to find free or very cheap scraps of hardware cloth, lumber, concrete, hinges, screws, etc.? Also, anyone have any tips on raccoon-proofing? We don't have foxes, coyotes, or weasels around here, just a lot of raccoons and a few birds of prey. For instance, how deep can/will raccoons dig?

There is a ReStore in Ballard. I picked up a bunch of $1 door pulls for my coop. They carry a ton of hinges, old windows, and a small selection of lumber. Good prices. You might also see if there is a Freecycle email list for your county/city. I am on Snohomish county freecycle, and I've seen lumber, paint, and other building supplies go up every so often. You can also make a request (limited # per month, I think) and usually someone has what you want.

Good luck!

Jennifer

 

[hallerlake]

Urban Enthusiast - there is a store in Tacoma called the ReStore. It's got all sorts of scrap EVERYTHING and lots of stuff that was just extra's from projects and brand new. Try there first!

There's one in Ballard, too.

 

[FirewifeJess]

Quote:
Oh yeah, I forgot where she lived

 

[UrbanEnthusiast]

Urban Enthusiast - there is a store in Tacoma called the ReStore. It's got all sorts of scrap EVERYTHING and lots of stuff that was just extra's from projects and brand new. Try there first!

Ah yes! I lived in Tacoma from 2003-2006 but I had forgotten about the ReStore! Thanks for the reminder! We will definitely check it out once we're back from our anniversary camping trip and ready to start building.

 

[KMHunter]

Quote: Jess, I let my kids play with alot of things and do alot of things that I know other parents would cringe at too. And mine didn't wear helmets either.

They are not riding bikes anymore and they survived. Without too much damage, mostly.

 

[UrbanEnthusiast]

Oh, there's one in Ballard, too? SWEET!

 

[KMHunter]

Oh, there's one in Ballard, too? SWEET!

I think I need to check this place out.