Chicken Coops for Sale in Lincolnshire, Illinois
Chicken Coops for Sale in Lincolnshire, Illinois
A Recycled Chicken Coop – Part 2
Yesterday I about how we picked the old building to remodel into our chicken coop. We also started building the run but the ground froze before we could get all the posts set. Ah the joys of a Wisconsin winter! Since we couldn’t work on the run any more, we moved on to the building itself. I’m a list/classify kinda gal so I like to think of the work in phases.
Recycled Chicken Coop Phase 1: Destroy
Recycled Chicken Coop Phase 2: Rebuild
Recycled Chicken Coop Phase 3: Details
So we jumped right in with Phase 1. We slipped on some face masks and gloves, grabbed the snow shovel and started cleaning up the raccoon poop and broken pots. We also removed the two old broken windows. The third window was in good shape so we left it. (And by “we” I mainly mean Josh. I forget where I was, but I’m sure it was very important to miss such a fun time.) I arrived on the scene just in time to take a photo. (Hmm, maybe I was out buying a camera since this is now in the ANC time period: After New Camera.)
Once we got it all relatively nice and clean, we made a huge mess by ripping the cardboard wall coverings down. It was pretty yucky because the board had gotten wet and was a little soggy and gooey.
Next we pulled down all the old siding on two walls of the building. Most of it was rotten and in pretty rough shape. We even removed the door because of the raccoon pet door (AKA: huge hole) in the bottom.
Before
After
Everybody helped!
Both sides done
And with that, Phase 1: Destroy! was completed.
Now we move on to Phase 2: Rebuild. We scored two big storm windows off Craigslist for $10 each so Josh built frames for them. Here we are testing the first one to make sure it fits. Being newbies at this sort of thing, it’s always hit or miss. Sometimes we amaze ourselves and sometimes, well, it ain’t pretty. So we held our breath and fit it into place.
Success! Sometimes we can read a tape measure! (And in case you are wondering, yes it is on backwards. My dad pointed that out as soon as I showed him this photo. I’d like to say that we knew that but, um, we didn’t. We thought it wouldn’t matter but for drainage purposes you shouldn’t just turn them inside out. Live and learn, right?)
So we removed the test window and then covered the two bare sides with tar paper that is normally used for roofing. Now, I’m not sure if that is exactly what we should have used (again, newbies!) but I got it from someone on Freecycle for FREE so that’s what we went with. (I also got a few bundles of shingles with the paper. We need to re-shingle another building here on the homestead. Gotta love Freecycle! If you don’t know about it, check it out .)
After cutting out the windows and door areas from the black paper, we went shopping on the homestead again, this time for siding. Now, our lives would have been easier if we just went to a real store and bought something new. But in the interest of money-saving and world-saving, we wanted to use whatever we could from the farm. We had two buildings to work with. First was the old chicken coop and the second was an old building behind the barn. A previous owner had already removed the siding from one wall of building so we figured we could too.
The result of previous siding shopping trips
What we removed
I don’t know how we would have done it without our little nail puller. Even though it took us a long time, it was worth it. Not only did I save some money, but I am glad that these buildings were able to still be useful. Both the old chicken coop and the building in the photos were part of the original homestead over 100 years ago. They have the remains of plaster and molding in them. You can see where stairs and woodstoves once sat. It’s easy to imagine a child climbing the stairs to their bed in the loft or a woman cooking over the big stove in the center of the room. Since their glory days, they have been used as houses for chickens, hogs and lambs. That kind of rough life has taken it’s toll on the buildings.
The old farmhouse where the stairs once led up to the loft
It makes me sad that they have gotten so rundown so I’m glad that we can make them useful again, even if it is only in a very small way.
The next two weekends were spent taking down siding from the old buildings, cutting them for the new coop and putting them up.
Our workstation - professional looking isn't it?
We had to work around the snowstorms but we finally got it done! Once we permanently installed the windows, it looked like a REAL building! Imagine that. We were pretty proud of ourselves since we really had no clue what we were doing.
Our "new" siding and windows
That concludes Phase 2: Rebuild! (If only it were that simple and quick in real life.) And since you’re probably on photo overload, I’d better conclude this post for today. But I’ll be back tomorrow with Phase 3: Details. See you then!
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Baby Chicks For Sale in Lincolnshire, Illinois
A good place to start any search is the internet. Simply plugging in the phrase "chicken coops for sale in Lincolnshire Illinois" into any one of the numerous search engines and a wealth of information will pop up. This information will provide links to other websites that will be informative and will provide the right direction for finding Lincolnshire Illinois chicken coops. What to look for when buying a chicken coop in Lincolnshire, Illinois With the substantial increase in poultry maintaining there has been an equally big surge in the range of chicken materiel on sale. Chicken housing is a situation in point. It's likewise a classic instance of the great old bandwagon being jumped on as numerous prospective poultry housing experts pitch a variety of lodging asserting to be the excellent option to your chicken housing requirements. Frequently the cost looks appealing, your diy-chicken-coop-planshome looks desirable, hell also the clean-cut family standing there feeding the chickens look desirable. Surely they recognize a top quality chicken house when they see one? There are lots of low-cost and horrible coops swamping the marketplace. I recognize this as I've tested a number of them in the area, and seen a ewe run straight via one when the feed container appeared. The result was nothing but a pricey stack of firewood and also a tiny group of bemused as well as now homeless bantams.
Baby Chick For Sale in Lincolnshire, Illinois
More often than not these standardized designs are constructed of rapid grown up lumber - come the initial decline of rain they swell, leaving you either defending a doorway that will not close, or tearing the doorway furnishings off in a vain effort to launch the squawking residents. The first warm and comfortable day indicates the hardwood dries out and also fractures, the felt roof bubbles as well as boils, and come nightfall the chickens refuse to go in. This is not as a result of their frustration at the decline of their when desirable building but since the hovel is now a haven for, as well as probably crawling with, the poultry keeper's bane, red mite. Add that it claimed on the blurb that it would certainly suit four huge chickens when that stocking thickness was based upon the Circle Line at 5pm on a Friday, and exactly what are you left with? A number of hinges and also some kindling. A decent coop for thee to four birds ought to cost you approximately ₤ 300 though this can depend on whether you elect for a free standing house or one with a run attached. Thinking you are varying your birds in a large room and the pop hole doorway is big enough for the type you maintain, then the primary demands of housing boil down to 3 factors which will certainly specify the variety of birds your house will certainly hold; perches, nest boxes and also ventilation. The majority of types of chicken will certainly perch when they visit roost at night, this perch must preferably be 5-8cm wide with smoothed off edges so the foot rests easily on it. The perch must be above the nest box access as chickens will certainly likewise naturally seek the acme to perch. A perch lower than that will have the birds roosting in the nest box overnight (which is by the way when they create the most poo) causing dirtied eggs the list below day. They shouldn't nevertheless be so high off the floor of your home that leg injuries could possibly occur when the bird gets down in the morning. Chickens need concerning 20cm of perch each (in little breeds this is undoubtedly much less), plus if more than one perch is installed in your house they should be greater than 30cm apart. They will hunker up with their neighbors however are not that keen on roosting with a beak in the bloomers of the bird in front. Preferably the house ought to have a least one nest box for each 3 birds as well as these ought to be off the ground and also in the darkest area of your house. Your house should have ample ventilation: without it then condensation will develop every night, even in the coldest of weather. Understand, air flow works on the principle of warm air leaving with a high void drawing cooler air in from a lower space - it's not a collection of holes on opposite wall surfaces of your house and at the very same level, this is just what's known as a draught. If you have a house with a run connected then the points above are still true, however you need to likewise take into consideration the run dimension. The EU maximum lawful equipping thickness for a free array bird is (as well as let's face it, among the inspirations for keeping some hens at home is perhaps boosted or much better well-being) 2,500 birds per hectare, that's optimal one bird per 4m made even. Take a close take a look at several of the bargain homes - it could well be the house has the right perches, proper air flow as well as adequate nest boxes for an affordable number of birds, yet will each of the chickens have anything more than an A4 sized piece of ground to invest the day on? Therefore as the claiming goes, "you get just what you spend for". You could believe you've grabbed a bargain, but you and your group can rue the day you did. Acquisition the ideal house and it will certainly last for a couple of years, otherwise longer given the right therapy. In the end your chicken and also your poultry keeping experience will be a lot the better for it.chick diy
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