a new house project

[karminski]

i know i said i wasnt going back to using wood but i am trying the plastic housing and i am not 100% happy so for £80.64 i brought 4 sheets of ply and this is the new house so far i have done most of this myself but i had to get dad to help me hold a few sheets in place while they were drilled but so far i am happy the doors are on and done but not finsihed yet so havent taken a pic and the roof wont be going on tell the weekend i pray it stays dry :lol: . we did have fun though and i got very stressed a few months back dad brought a bosch drill very expensive etc and it went bang yesterday so i panicked as its easier with 2 drills and not 1 so this morning we had to rush to homebase to get the broken drill swapped got 2 more drills and 2 battries each for an extra £30 on top of the £100 the first drill cost not bad going . this time i am getting even with the red mites i have put sealant all round the bottom and this rest of the seals i am going to varnish would that be ok and also would i need to paint the inside at all .

 

[chrismahon]

Hi Karminski,
Your ply is softwood which will be fine but doesn't have the long term water resistance of hardwood, so I would paint it inside. Wouldn't be a problem until you have to wash the coop out for any reason. Oil based primer and one-coat white I use on the softwood planking of the floors and roof. Makes it nice and bright for them as well, so hens can find the perches at night easier.

 

[Castara]

What's the thickness of the ply you're using? Going to start building one with a similar shape and I'm not sure whats the minimum thickness I can get away with?

 

[karminski]

i have used 12m ply its probably not brillant but if you look at most 6'4 sheds the wood isnt very thick at all and although they can be treated they dont last that long they soon start to full apart . what would be best for the inside ? someone mentioned a wood treater thats red and i water down the first coat so it soaks in really well then just add a normal coat but i cant remeber what he said it was .

 

[tygrysek75]

Looks impressive and choks already checkin inn 08 Good luck with finishing your projec 17 t

 

[karminski]

the girls love it already i only had the base up on 4 legs in each corner an the girls could not of got under there fast enough :lol: it gives them lovely shade and i have decided the inside is going to be cupinrol sweet pea paint its a really nice pink 07

 

[Castara]

PINK :roll: Ok , thanks for the info on the thickness . im on a budget and 6mm adds up :lol: Good luck with the build ,

 

[karminski]

i'm also on a budget which is why i went for the 12m instead of the 18m all i got to do is put the roof on and its useable but that might not happen tell the weekend so i really dont want it to rain until next week but the weather is meant to turn for the worse this week also i was thinking about it last night if any of the sheets need replacing then i only have to remove 15- 20 screws at the most as each section is battened on with 2'2 so each side can came away easy without having to take down the whole house

 

[foxy]

Looking good Looby...that will save your back!

 

[karminski]

well i am proud so far :lol: , got 3 coats of paint onto the sides yesterday am going to seal all edges tonight if i get time but i ahve to go to wickes to get the roof as mum has sold her car and it goes tonight and its the only car big enough to put the sheets in so thats going to be bit of a rush but i also want to do it before the rain sets in even if the sheets go up tonight and just get tired down for now ita drizzley at the mo and the tarpaulin i have over it isnt perfect so no doubt i will worry all day that its going to get wet .

 

[chrismahon]

Hi Castara. 6mm is awfully thin so no heat insulation really. It will flex a lot and not be very strong in one direction (only 3ply not 5) so you will need to add more internal support which adds to build time and cost. I would follow Karminski and go for 12mm.

 

[Castara]

I concur Chrismahon. I was thinking 18mm ,but Karminski made me think about using 12mm . As it goes I just found some scrap packing stuff , just going to get it outta the van and assess its merit, might be to thin so I may try doubling up . Although as I trawl through Ebay im finding cheeper and cheeper prices on 18mm ply . so I may yet open my wallet and buy some new stuff . New wood is so nice to work with.

 

[daniellesdogs]

looking good
iv pinched a big shed for mine and been trying to put it up need to get some new perches.hoping to beable to make some nest boxes befor get wet

 

[karminski]

heres some mroe pics of the front , today i went and got the roofing sheets and the clouds were getting blacker as we were on our way to wickes so i was worried they were going to open up and the tarpaulin would not hold out but thankfully i got the sheets on the roof just in time before the first shower i may not get the roof done tell the weekend but that all depends on the weather tomorrw when i get home . but i am gutted wickes doesnt sell cupinrol and i really want the sweet pea pink for the inside although i did notice a really cool lime paint but i dont know if that would of been suitable the paint that is not the colour :lol: :lol: although my 7 yr old nephew wants it to go mutli coloured on the inside 07 green purple , pink and yellow with curtains .

 

[tygrysek75]

Looks great already and girls moved in I see,even without painted walls. 10 :lol: I see the front opens on both sides 17 ,makes cleaning easy.Are you putting automatic door opener for them?

 

[karminski]

for some reason i dont like the idea of an auto opener i perfer to let them out myself as that way i can check the run fencing etc first and as for them going to bed at the right time is probably a no go :lol: i have some that would stay out all night and wind up mr fox .but i know they cant wait to get in there full time they may just have to put up with 2'2 roosting perches if they want to go in there as soon as the roof is fixed down as i wont be getting the posts until the weekend . dont know if i mentioned it earlier but those doors are 4'4 and are quite heavy so tomorw night i am going to put mini posts into the ground and then cut an L shape inot them so when the doors are open full way they wont be heavy and hanging down as they will rest onto the L posts .

 

[Castara]

If the doors sag , you could try longer brackets like they have on shed doors, saw some in homebase today for £8 , about a foot long

 

[karminski]

i do have some here but i decided to recycle the hinges of the old shed we made 4 sets of hinges out of one long piece best thing is it was all free as my last shed was free .

 

[karminski]

wowowooww house is about finished but omgggggggg what stress got home tonight to get the roof done and it poured with rain but finally it stopped and i got the house finished just need to add perches so i need to ask would my girls be ok with 8 ft sqaure 2'2 perches for a few weeks { have run out of money to get round ones } if yes then they can move in there tomorrow night the treating of wood etc can be done over the weekend .i am sooooooooooooooooo impressed with myself think i might have to go into chicken house building full time :lol:

 

[foxy]

They will be fine, one of my sheds just has a long branch screwed in, and they seem quite happy with it!