Leave a CommentShare: |
Subscribe
I’ve waited a long time for a chicken house here! At first, the chickens were roosting on the studio deck and around the porches. I managed to eventually route them to the barn, where they took to roosting on the barn steps and the fences. This was better, but not what I wanted for the final result. I wanted a chicken house–but have been reluctant to spend money on one.
This one is constructed almost completely from salvaged materials or leftover materials from other projects. The back, which nobody will see much, is made of tin.
I have a huge stack of tin roofing sheets that was left here. After roofing the chicken house and covering the back of the house with it (and also covering the goats’ creep feeder with it), I still have plenty left over for other shelters in the fields.
The roosts are the former curtain rods in the studio.
The wire is all leftover wire from fencing, and the rest of the materials are all leftover or salvaged pieces of wood and plywood. I bought the paint, of course.
I’m searching for the right red paint color for repainting the barn next year. I wasn’t satisfied with the red I used on the goat house. I think I’ve found it this time!
I think the chicken house came out absolutely adorable. I love it. It’s trimmed out to match the barn.
It was built over an existing 8 x 8 concrete slab in the barnyard. (Why that slab was there, I don’t know.) It can be SPRAYED out to clean!
Do you notice something?
That’s a little chicken “hand rail” to one side of the ramp. (An Adam and Robbie joke that I liked so much, I told them to leave it.)
This sign is misleading because I didn’t have them add nesting boxes to the house. I free-range my chickens and am perfectly satisfied with picking up eggs around the barn and farm. I don’t want to keep the chickens in the house except from dusk to dawn.
The chicken house is so cute, somebody is a little bit jealous and started head-butting the still-wet house!
“Where’s the white trim on MY house, Woman?!”
11:40
am
11:58
am
Well done, Suzanne.
12:04
pm
12:09
pm
12:10
pm
12:24
pm
12:27
pm
1:20
pm
1:23
pm
1:29
pm
1:39
pm
1:59
pm
I agree on adding some nest boxes. My Granny’s chickens were free range until the dairy inspector said we had to keep them away from the cows and the feed/hay to keep the Grade A license. I’d say at least 80% laid eggs in the nests in the chicken house, another 10% laid somewhere in or just outside the hen house and the final 10% laid an egg where ever the urge hit. Except for the hen that really liked to use the tractor seat. This really aggravated my Dad because more than once he ended up with egg on his rear. Me too once, then I always checked, even after the chickens were locked up. Some of the hens preferred to roost in the boxes too. I think they might have been the older or injured hens that couldn’t fly up onto the roosts easily.
Maybe you could wrap the curtain rods with tape or use spray foam or something. Metal will really conduct the cold to their feet. The chickens may not even want to use the rods in the winter. I’d think they would be a tad bit slippery too as those curtain rods look to be very smooth.
Jeanne
1:59
pm
A well done on using materials on hand. What a Farmer
thing to do. Image- your going to have to where overalls
more often. That is all I remember my grandfather wearing
on his farm. If I had some kind of income to support the
farm. But then again there are the Ticks and Chiggers. You
must have ticks, do you have chiggers?
2:04
pm
Jeanne
2:07
pm
2:08
pm
2:11
pm
2:21
pm
Jeanne
2:23
pm
2:48
pm
3:04
pm
3:09
pm
And being disabled I LOVE LOVE LOVE the handrail..err WING rail !
3:14
pm
3:15
pm
4:40
pm
4:45
pm
5:27
pm
6:27
pm
At least on screen I really like the red! Maybe it will help me get the color I’ve been looking for. (Seems like they end up too orange or too pink or too maroon or….
6:59
pm
7:19
pm
8:19
pm
8:23
pm
6:13
pm
I’ve been following you ever since you lived at the old place and I’m so proud you’ve got such a nice place now.
6:01
am
8:22
am
8:27
pm