Please stop me if I'm about to make a big mistake

[aart]

I understand the other cautions you posted, but I don't understand these two.

OK, I didn't look at the opener close enough, my apologies.
I like the over-torque feature on the control arm motor,
but wonder if it would stand up to a raccoons strength.
I'd cut off the excess latch arm length to provide less of a 'handle'.

The vid you linked is a blogger who got the coop for free and is(or was, vid is 4yrs old)a dealer for the company...so salesman. Did you find his blog post where he showed how to attach coop to cart? Wonder if he did any followup review after using it for 4 years?

I still think that coop is too small and under-ventilated, but maybe that's just me.
Carry on, have fun, Best of cLuck.

 

[crowdofmyself]

The vid you linked is a blogger who got the coop for free and is(or was, vid is 4yrs old)a dealer for the company...so salesman. Did you find his blog post where he showed how to attach coop to cart? Wonder if he did any followup review after using it for 4 years?

I had watched a number of videos and read a lot of reviews about that coop by different people and I picked that particular video out because it showed that he had it mounted on top of a lawn cart like I bought. I figure if I can't make it work with the sides up, I'll remove the sides and affix a piece of plywood to the flatbed. Or maybe I'll just build a stand like they show on the coop website and use the cart for hauling around chicken feed: http://snaplockchickencoops.com/images/coop-instructions-stand.pdf.

I've enjoyed Phil Williams' permaculture videos and got valuable information from them, so I didn't get the sense that he was doing nothing but plugging the coop. Normally I'm pretty cautious about things like that, but I trusted this guy based on his other work, e.g. https://goo.gl/6yHo5s. He's hardly an opportunistic salesperson.

I guess time will tell, because I really am stuck with the choice I've made. I just got through confirming with Meyer Hatchery that the birds I chose to have delivered mid-October are very heat-tolerant and not too large. Hopefully it will all work out! Thanks for giving me lots to think about!

Easter Egger
Buff Polish
Partridge Rock

 

[crowdofmyself]

I am living and learning. Just discovered that the circular saw I bought to cut 2x4s won't cut 2x4s. In a fit of complete panic (because chicks are ordered to come in October and I've got a LOT of work to do), I ordered a darned portable table saw. I may have to learn how to build things.... I'm not made of money, by the way, but my sister just died and she gave me a little money to get things to make my life happier. Will a table saw make me happy? Time will tell. First I have to learn how not to kill myself with it!

Anyway, because I'm panicking about not having the predator-proof abode finished by the time I need to, my mind is racing on what I can do as a temporary alternative if I'm not finished in time. I've been looking at the whole chunnel idea, and I'm wondering if I might be able to make this work:

I have twelve 2x4 heavy-duty black gridwall panels. The other threads I've read here mentioned their gridwall panels have 2x2" openings, but mine are the "standard" 3x3 inches. I know that's not going to keep out predators, and probably won't keep out even my little chihuahua-sized dogs, but the panels are VERY strong, can be zip-tied together as needed and moved around, and the size they are opened out to can be varied based on the terrain. I was thinking about maybe getting some kind of cheap 4-foot wide smaller-holed fencing to cover each panel with (maybe just chicken wire; I have a lot of that lying around; NOT hardware cloth!), thinking during the day it might help keep claws and jaws from reaching in for the chickens; the thick wire of the gridwall would keep it from being smushed.

Any thoughts on this? Remember, this is just for a day run and mainly to keep our dogs off the chickens; the dogs do a good job of barking anything else out of the yard during the day. Chainlink fence around the back yard, too. The coop itself (a Formex Snaplock) is already well fortified against predators for night-time. This would not be a permanent solution, of course, because I'd still be building my larger run.

 

[ChickNanny13]

A circular saw (6" - 7 1/4" diameter) WILL cut a 2 x 4, you don't need a table saw (Red Devil blades are great). That's what we used to build my Chicken House ... Even a jigsaw will cut a 2x4 (8TPI blade) although not the saw of choice.

 

[aart]

Just discovered that the circular saw I bought to cut 2x4s won't cut 2x4s.

A circular saw (6" - 7 1/4" diameter) WILL cut a 2 x 4,

I'm guessing it's one of those little battery powered ones?

 

[crowdofmyself]

I'm guessing it's one of those little battery powered ones?

Yeah. Black and Decker 5.5" 20V Lithium one. As I said, I'm living and learning.... I consoled myself by going to the Habitat for Humanity Restore here and found an awesome, strong, sturdy, long workshop table for $30 that fits perfectly into my little front bedroom that I've decided to make a shop. Y'all keep your fingers crossed for me...I just might learn how to build myself a coop after all!

 

[crowdofmyself]

I'm guessing it's one of those little battery powered ones?

I do have a corded jig saw I've never used. Good to know I can cut my few 2x4s with that. I keep getting stopped in my tracks on this coop-setup thing!

 

[aart]

Yeah. Black and Decker 5.5" 20V Lithium one.

Like this one?
Should do the job with the right blade and IF it's fully charged and you use a slow feed.

I do have a corded jig saw I've never used. Good to know I can cut my few 2x4s with that. I keep getting stopped in my tracks on this coop-setup thing!

That's what I started with 40 years ago....in an apartment.
Still make sure you have the right blade
Learning curve on building and using power tools an be as steep as learning what chickens need. Hang in there!

 

[crowdofmyself]

Like this one?
Should do the job with the right blade and IF it's fully charged and you use a slow feed.

That's the one. What I don't understand is why it cuts all the way through the wood fine except for about 1/16" the blade won't go through. I've tried it with the blade that came with it and also this one: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00I9JT384/. When I first put the blade in, I had the type facing outward because it looked like the teeth were meant to bite into the wood on the turn. Then I watched a video that said newbies are bad to put saw blades in backwards, so I tried it the other way. Worse. I made sure the saw was set to 0 degrees and tried it set at 1-1/2" and then backed off even more open than that. I think my saw may be defective. If you can recommend a better blade for me to try with pressure-treated 2x4s, I'll try it again. I think it's too late to return it.

That's what I started with 40 years ago....in an apartment.
Still make sure you have the right blade
Learning curve on building and using power tools an be as steep as learning what chickens need. Hang in there!

Thanks for the help and encouragement! I'm starting to figure out which YouTube video people are trustworthy and worth my time and which ones are not. I watched this one on the table saw yesterday and learned SO MUCH! https://goo.gl/nA4e45

I'm thinking I may need to cancel my chickens for October and plan to get them next spring instead. The only thing that makes me not want to wait is my age (66) but it would give me more time to learn how to build what I need to build to keep my chickens safe.

 

[aart]

What I don't understand is why it cuts all the way through the wood fine except for about 1/16" the blade won't go through.

So it's cutting all but 1/16 along the bottom?
Blade depth should be set to a bit(1/8-1/4") beyond the depth of cut.

I'm thinking I may need to cancel my chickens for October and plan to get them next spring instead. The only thing that makes me not want to wait is my age (66) but it would give me more time to learn how to build what I need to build to keep my chickens safe.

Might be a good idea. Better not to rush the coop building process, especially for a novice carpenter.