That is super cool!We have an inexpensive, attractive, functional, and super strong run that we made out of three cattle panels and steel fence posts. Just pounded the posts into the ground, arched the panels between them and wired them into place, covered it with chicken wire to deter overhead predators and then ran hardware cloth about 2 feet up the sides, folded the excess outward at the bottom, and secured it with landscape fabric staples. The hardware cloth apron at the bottom deters digging predators and any gaps where the run meets the coop have additional hardware cloth. It's worked very well for us for a few years, withstands Wyoming winds (which today are steady at 35-40 mph, gusting to 55) snow loads, easy to clean, and I can work in it without hunching over. We added a little white vinyl lattice to make it look purty, since we're on a corner lot in town and it's visible from the street on the north and east sides.
The beauty is that Ken and I were in our mid 60s and both of us are somewhat disabled, Neither of us has the building skills to put together a straight sandwich. But this went up in no time flat, we were able to complete it in two days, and last year when we decided to expand it we just took of the end, added another fence post on each side, arched another cattle panel into place, wired it to the existing panel, and put the end back on. Of course, we also added the chicken wire and hardware cloth to continue the predator protection, but the whole project took just a couple of hours.
Hardware cloth and chicken wire put on the run.
Front door is just a frame with lattice - reinforced just after this was taken with hardware cloth.
Almost completed run.
The end piece taken off in one piece so we could expand the run. Notice the chicken wire, hardware cloth skirt and apron still very much attached, ready to go back up onto the new panel.
Ken wiring the new cattle panel to the existing one.
Winter and snug as can be in there. We put clear greenhouse plastic over most of it, leaving open areas for ventilation, and we even able to raise broods of chicks out there from day one when temps were still in the teens and twenties.
Shortly after completing the run, and before we put on the addition the following year. We used landscape fabric as "roll up" window shades in summer.
You can see how the shade is pulled up a bit in the center on the east side. Max air flow, still nice and shady, and cheap to replace if it gets ripped. We love this thing, and it didn't cost an arm and leg or need to be hired out to get it done.
