Which is easier?

[Gdurham]

Today’s progress!

 

[Gdurham]

Almost there! Still need to hang the door and fix some paneling in the back and sides. Also to extend the roof a foot outward as someone suggested earlier since we get snow. I bought some polycarbonate roofing material too that people use for carports.

 

[aart]

Also to extend the roof a foot outward as someone suggested earlier since we get snow.

Helps with keeping rain out of the windows and vents too

 

[Gdurham]

more progress! When it’s done, the town of Poughkeepsie wants to inspect, as an FYI to others wanting coops in this area. I think some areas will issue permits and no inspection after (so what I’ve learned is that many pre fabs wouldn’t pass with the quantity of chx they advertise can be housed...) I used glass shelves from an old medicine chest as the windows in the door between the boards! It’s roughly 1 sq ft ventilation/chicken and built for 4. Had to look up HS math formulas for area of a triangle. Still a lot more work to go.

 

[3KillerBs]

What I'm going to try and draw out is a plan for a simple 4X4 coop for three chickies.

Consider a monitor roof like my little coop. The ventilation is superb and draft-free.

Notes:

Don't use OSB, even painted. That one wall was OSB because of a T1-11 miscut and it now has to be replaced. It just won't stand up to the weather even painted.

The full-width nestbox was unnecessary. Two is plenty for the size. (DH thought they'd need individual rooms).

 

[mowin]

I know you're only looking for 3-4 birds tops, but did you know that NY has a 6 bird minimum order. No hatchery will sell you 3 chicks. Tractor supply will not sell you only 3. You might be able to locate someone kinda local that sells 15-17 week old birds, where you can buy 3.

 

[Gdurham]

I know you're only looking for 3-4 birds tops, but did you know that NY has a 6 bird minimum order. No hatchery will sell you 3 chicks. Tractor supply will not sell you only 3. You might be able to locate someone kinda local that sells 15-17 week old birds, where you can buy 3.

I ordered from cackle hatchery. They will send as few as three. I read in reviews they often send an extra, so it’s built for 4 in the event they do and all survive.

 

[Gdurham]

Well, I built the frame of the run and started attaching the hardware cloth and woke up this morning realizing... I should paint the coop first.

 

[TheAFrameFarmstead]

Hmm, ok. Let me think some more. I’m hesitant to rent their trucks right now with the pandemic. I’m in NYS and it’s a hotbed up here. Does anyone know if Home Depot will cut plywood to size too? Then it might fit in my car. I searched the forums here for an easy plan, but all seem overwhelming.

Hey, in regards to renting a truck we had to move during peak pandemic time, (march-april we live in NJ) and they actually clean the trucks with disinfectant . We used Penske. Actually the thing that made us hesitant was the insurance they make you get for the trucks that make the truck over 100 a day. Anyways we used our masks when we picked up the truck and we brought clorox disinfecting wipes. We cleaned our truck when we got it and followed the cleaning instructions on the bottles.

Home Depot and Lowe's have a larger delivery cost for heavier items if you decide to buy wood online with them. But it might be worth it if you were going to buy wood. We have had to pay that extra delivery cost a couple of times for mulch and soil for our garden. I refuse to go into home Depot or Lowe's because masks can't be that effective in person contact. I would go for the hefty delivery fee than paying more for a truck. Unless you want them to precut the wood for you.

 

[Gdurham]

Hey, in regards to renting a truck we had to move during peak pandemic time, (march-april we live in NJ) and they actually clean the trucks with disinfectant . We used Penske. Actually the thing that made us hesitant was the insurance they make you get for the trucks that make the truck over 100 a day. Anyways we used our masks when we picked up the truck and we brought clorox disinfecting wipes. We cleaned our truck when we got it and followed the cleaning instructions on the bottles.

Home Depot and Lowe's have a larger delivery cost for heavier items if you decide to buy wood online with them. But it might be worth it if you were going to buy wood. We have had to pay that extra delivery cost a couple of times for mulch and soil for our garden. I refuse to go into home Depot or Lowe's because masks can't be that effective in person contact. I would go for the hefty delivery fee than paying more for a truck. Unless you want them to precut the wood for you.

that’s good to know in the future! Thanks. I ended up using free pallets that Williams let me take. And any spare pieces or extra lumbar I needed like plywood for the inside floor, I went mostly to Williams too. A lot less crowded! And they do curbside as well. A few times I did use Home Depot or Lowe’s curbside service, initially for some lumbar too. Somehow I managed the 8’ 4x4s in our tiny rav! Haha. The front passenger seat goes down almost entirely if the headrest is removed and I drove slow. Had I slammed the breaks, it probably would’ve broke the windshield, but I just didn’t have the money to spend on trucks and such.