When the Chickens Come Home to Roost

No, I have not confused my two blogs--I do have another one, The Garden Spot where I chronicle our life on five aces. Rather I decided to create a banner that would show case my next project: a chicken house. I watched Julie Warren's tutorial on building her little shed. She has made variations: a garden shed, a writing shed, a workshop, and others. As I watched the tutorial, I thought, "I can do this." With the Bellingham nearly finished, I need other projects. I've mentioned building another big house, but I'm holding off until I'm totally done with the Bellingham.

To prepare for the chicken house project, I've ordered Julie's book that shows how to build this little shed. 

I've purchased the wood: three sizes of bass wood: 1/32, 3/32/ and 1/16; 15 mm width boards for lap siding (not on her cutting list. I'm thinking these will reduce the cutting); and 3x3 mm and 5x5 mm square lumber. I'll use my Xacto blade to cute and measure using my little ruler that has both inches and mm--meters.

I was never very good in math. My last math class was 9th grade algebra. I got a D. My dad made me go to summer school to bring the grade up. I did--to a C. That was my last math class.  So to work with building instructions where the measurements are in millimeters instead of inches can be quite daunting. When I first began making Julie's projects I tried to convert millimeters to inches, using conversion charts on the web. Then she began offering her measurements in both sizes, a great gift; however, how do you find 19/64 this on a ruler?  You don't. Instead I took time to understand millimeters and found that I don't have convert from metric system 

I have found it much easier to measure in mm instead if in. I don't fear the metric systems when I can use a ruler to do the work for me. Nor should you be intimidated.

This is my inspiration, our hen house. It began as a garden shed where I stored garden tools and pots at our old house. Then we moved to the 5 acres, and I insisted that we move my shed, too. At first is was a garden shed, but then we decided to get hens and it became a hen house/potting shed then we got more hens and need more coop space then the Head Garden (my husband) decided he wanted pigeons. So now it supports a dozen hens and numerous pigeons.

The exterior will be easy to replicate, except I will have only one chicken pen.

Inside it is divided into four spaces: on the right the original coop; the left is divided in half: in the corner an additional small coop to accommodate young chicks was added to keep them separated from older hens who would pick on them. The other half was converted into a  pigeon coop. The center of the house is storage. The bench that the feed cans sit on is actually a tunnel so that all the hens now have access to both sides. Should we get young chicks again, we can close off the tunnel and raise the little ones in their own coop on the left. The house has a heater should it get really really cold, but a head lamp generally keeps them cozy when it is really cold.

The original coop has three nesting boxes on one side beneath the window. The other side has the roost with a ladder access and the poop deck. My mini chicken house will not be as elaborate, nor will it have a place for pigeons.

 

Tractor Supply has excellent ideas for hen houses which really clarified how I will design the interior off  my mini coop. While it will two sloped roofs instead of on slanted roof, the interior will be much the same. This is going to so much fun and my first totally from scratch project. I may move the door to one of the long sides. I'll wait to see if that is possible to deviated from the original plan.

To go along with the potting bench I found a toy wagon on eBay. I really wanted a vintage one, but they are very expensive. I found an old Radio Flyer wagon at the antique store here in town, dated 1935,  looked warn, but I just could not spend $75. for it. Instead I found this one, labeled vintage---1990. Hardly vintage for me. The Head Gardener at the Bellingham needs a way to haul her gardening supplies around, so the little red wagon is perfect. Here at the Garden Spot we use a golf cart. 

Well it is time to go build something. My Julie Warren book should arrive soon and then the building will begin and we go will step by step. I hope you join me.

Thanks for visiting.