Shadrach's Ex Battery and Rescued chickens thread.

[BDutch]

…

To be fair, the Met Office had been warning on radio and TV for days before that this was coming. Plenty of time for me to make suitable arrangements, i.e. shift chicken stuff to the most sheltered bits of the garden.

Yes warning in time seems a lot better as what happened in Spain a month ago.

And fwiw, 3 days without power is enough to drive the last nail in the coffin of the idea of an electric car as far as I'm concerned. It was a timely reminder of how fragile and un-resilient our modern lives have become, and making everything electric-dependent is just plain stupid.

You made me think .
As long as the shops get supplied I dont need a car for the most important things.

We have an all electric car but solars panels too. I wonder how easy it is to make a semi-independent system with solar panels . Not so much for the car but to use the most convenient e-equipment going. If the electricity goes to a battery before its diverted to the e-network it should be possible to use the electricity from the battery in this kind of situations.

Tax, Tommie my first cockerel in 2014. Dutch pyle coloured.

 

[Perris]

In fact it was the ball on top of the upper arm that got broken
It’s 3,5 months now and my movements are still improving but not completely back to normal. I need to do special exercises 3x a day and go to a physiotherapist every 2 weeks.

thanks for the clarification. How long do they estimate you will need physio? that would be an indication of when they think you'll hit the home straight.

 

[Perris]

need a car

it's essential here. There are buses but they are infrequent and expensive. And the last time I took one, it was significantly late (20 minutes).

solars panels

lots of neighbours have these now but were still in the dark

If the electricity goes to a battery before its diverted to the e-network it should be possible to use the electricity from the battery in this kind of situations.

I think very few here have coughed up the huge extra expense for house-appropriate-size batteries.

 

[ashleykfleming]

When I was thinking about building the coop extension and have looked at Molpets article and a few others I just couldn't find a British equivelant of a cattle panel such as I had seen in the hoop coop builds on BYC.
I think these might do the job. The large heavy guage sheets are pretty expensive but this for example which at 4mm is bendable but still strong enough to keep anything we have in the UK except a charging bull out. With hardware cloth covering the cost could start approaching reasonable

https://www.wirefence.co.uk/75mm-x-75mm-galfan-mesh-panel-l202-5cm-x-h202-5cm-8g/

https://www.wirefence.co.uk/fencing/stock/cattle/cattle-panels/

Hi Shadrach,

Many thanks for recommending our mesh panels as a base for a chicken coop extension.
The reason you may have found it harder to find British cattle panels which are equivalent to the ones used on BYC is that they are not that popular in the UK and the ones that are, do not have the same exact specs as the ones found in the USA.
Our 4mm panels would most certainly do the job and keep the hens safe since the wire would be strong enough to keep predators at bay.
Since these are galfan coated mesh panels, they cost a little bit more compared to the traditional galvanised panels as the coating is much stronger and the panels last longer over time. The panels are a good choice as they are bendable, but they maintain their rigidity and strength even when bent.
Hardware cloth would be needed to stop the hens from plucking their heads through the large holes of the panels and also to keep rodents out.
You can browse our welded wire mesh category page where you might find a suitable hardware cloth cover for the panels as well: https://www.wirefence.co.uk/types/welded-mesh/
Many thanks again for the recommendation and we wish you good luck with your project.
Let us know if we can advise or help in any way!

Kindest regards,
Ashley, from The WireFence Team

 

[BDutch]

thanks for the clarification. How long do they estimate you will need physio? that would be an indication of when they think you'll hit the home straight.

Hard to tell. To heal to the max can take several months more. And probably/possibly I keep a little restriction in moving my arm.

I think very few here have coughed up the huge extra expense for house-appropriate-size batteries.

We want to buy a car that can deliver electricity in the future. Or buy a home-battery if they become a bit cheaper.
Because electricity companies have plans to charge for delivering electricity to the network on peak moments. They pay for delivered electricity outside these time frames. And its a waste not to use the solar energy.

it's essential here. There are buses but they are infrequent and expensive. And the last time I took one, it was significantly late (20 minutes).

Living in a small town with supermarkets and the centre at 1 km distance has its benefits. But of course it’s a pity I cant keep a rooster.

 

[Perris]

making everything electric-dependent is just plain stupid

further to this, I've just read that the landline phones here that have been converted to digital didn't work, because they rely on wi-fi, so all those people were not only stuck in the cold and dark but also completely cut off. Our landline phone is scheduled to be changed over to digital but hasn't been as yet, so although it looked dead (and I have no idea whence it drew its power), it still worked, as we found out when someone rung us. Digital radio and digital TV have issues that analogue never did or does.

Not all new technologies are improvements in all respects, and piling all our eggs in the digital basket is beginning to look idiotic. And that's quite apart from factoring in the recent acts of sabotage on undersea cables and pipelines, and the apparent ease with which digital systems can be hacked or otherwise compromised.

 

[Ladies-Eight]

Ex Batts good morning one and all!

Tea is ready.

Temperature is in the 70s mostly cloudy.

Have a great day!

 

[no fly zone]

thanks for the clarification. How long do they estimate you will need physio? that would be an indication of when they think you'll hit the home straight.

I had a rotator cuff tear that required surgery in 2017. Had to wait 4 months for it to heal enough to even start physical therapy.

 

[Shadrach]

Hi Shadrach,

Many thanks for recommending our mesh panels as a base for a chicken coop extension.
The reason you may have found it harder to find British cattle panels which are equivalent to the ones used on BYC is that they are not that popular in the UK and the ones that are, do not have the same exact specs as the ones found in the USA.
Our 4mm panels would most certainly do the job and keep the hens safe since the wire would be strong enough to keep predators at bay.
Since these are galfan coated mesh panels, they cost a little bit more compared to the traditional galvanised panels as the coating is much stronger and the panels last longer over time. The panels are a good choice as they are bendable, but they maintain their rigidity and strength even when bent.
Hardware cloth would be needed to stop the hens from plucking their heads through the large holes of the panels and also to keep rodents out.
You can browse our welded wire mesh category page where you might find a suitable hardware cloth cover for the panels as well: https://www.wirefence.co.uk/types/welded-mesh/
Many thanks again for the recommendation and we wish you good luck with your project.
Let us know if we can advise or help in any way!

Kindest regards,
Ashley, from The WireFence Team

Thanks for posting.

 

[Shadrach]

Two hours today. Dry, grey and chilly at 3C.
Everyone came out on to the field. Sylph is still leading Henry around by the wattles. It will be interesting to see if her beak goes out of joint once her sister starts laying as well because that will take away some of the current attention she's getting from Henry.
Got all the drink cartons and small plastic rubbish out of the extended run. The shed had lots of rubbish in when it blew down. Not quite sure what to do with the greenhouse. It can't stay where it is

.