| Thu, Sep 30 2010 08:41pm BST 1 |
merlotti
11 Posts
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Hi,
I've read the many WIRs, but can't seem to find all the basic info
in one place, nad keep forgetting what I've already read. Please
can you help?
I'd like to build my own WIR, but:
1 - What type of wood do I use? Hard / soft?
2 - What size wood for the frames? 1x2 inch? Too small?
3 - What do I treat the wood with?
4 - What grade weldmesh? I need it to be foxproof so don't htink 19
gauge will be enough?
5 - Can I just staple gun the mesh to the frames?
Can you tell I'm still learning?! Would really appreciate all the
answers in one place!
Thanks in advance - I'd better get cracking, they arrive on the
16th Oct!
Merlotti x
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| Thu, Sep 30 2010 09:23pm BST 2 |
weeley
93 Posts
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Hi Merlotti
My husband build our walk-in run, and I've typed out what he
said he did for it, but others may have other ideas.
1. Soft wood is fine - buy it ready treated (preservative
treated sawn softwood)
2. If you're going to put a roof on it (we did - and i'd
recommend it) it needs to be strong enough to bear your weight
while you fix the roof. Ours is is 3m wide (because the timber
comes in standard 3m lengths) and my husband used 4x2 on the
roof, and 3x3 corner posts set in metal post holders.
3. If you buy ready treated wood you don't need to treat it or
paint it.
4. We used small gauge chicken wire, and sunk it into the
ground to stop foxes digging in. I'm not sure we made the right
choice with that, because it rusts and rots too quickly. Some
runs use a 'skirt' of galvanised square mesh on the ground
around the run to stop digging, and that sounds like a good
idea to me - i think we'll probably add that soon to ours.
Perhaps someone else will have more advice for you on this
topic.
5. We used wire staples that you hammer in - a fox could
probably tug a staple-gun staple out, but maybe you could use a
mix.
We added a wire roof for safety and the run turned into a muddy
mess, so we topped it with sloping plastic corrogated panels
(which also come in 3m widths) as a roof and its made a huge
difference, and it would have been easier to have done it when
we built the run.
We also put the hen house up on legs outside the run, with the
wire fixed to the front of the hen house so the pop hole opens
into the run. The hen house is up high enough to get a
wheelbarrow under the main door to make cleaning really easy, and
rats can't dig under it. We also don't need to go into the run to
collect the eggs or to clean the house out. It works a treat!
Hope you enjoy your hens - happy building! Hope this helps.
Weeley
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| Fri, Oct 1 2010 08:24am BST 3 |
merlotti
11 Posts
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Weeley,
Thanks again - you really know your chicken stuff! Lots of tips
there, so I think tomorrow is the day I begin to make the frames,
even if I don't manage to get them all wire meshed up!
I'm getting excited!
What sized wood did you use for teh 'frames'? I think 1 x 2 will be
enough but some people have used 2 x 2 (or did you put large posts
in and wire around those?) Sorry!
Many thanks
Merlotti x
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| Sun, Oct 3 2010 06:00pm BST 4 |
weeley
93 Posts
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Hi Merlotti
I hope this isn't too late -if you've had a rainy weekend, maybe
you didn't get a chance to get on with it, anyway.
All the uprights he's put in are 3x3, so it was wrong of me to
call them corner posts - they're all the same. Apparently he
put such robust posts in because, once again, he had in mind
that it'd have to bear his weight when he put the roof in. He's
always one to make it good and strong, so maybe something less
robust would be ok.
How far did you get with it? Hope all's going well.
Weeley
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| Sun, Oct 3 2010 10:05pm BST 5 |
merlotti
11 Posts
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Have taken some advice and ignored others! Hopefully will turn out
ok though - loads of people have said so much and given so much
help...
I've gone for thinner wood for hte frames as I'm going to screw it
around the base of sleepers anyway so thought that would be ok -
I'll let you know if Mr Fox managed to get in or not!
I've made the frames and overall structure - I now need to add the
mesh, screw them all onto the sleepers and add the mesh on the
roof! Then put a piece of plastic over the top. Its higher at the
front than back so the rain runs off, and i have doors opening
inwards. I'm hoping to put the eglu outside and attach it into the
run!
Have a look at how far I've got: http://twitpic.com/2ufbhr
Will keep you posted! Thanks for the help,
Merlotti x |
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| Mon, Oct 4 2010 07:18pm BST 6 |
weeley
93 Posts
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Wow! It looks great!
You've done an awful lot in a very short time - very impressive!
You've got another couple of weeks before the chooks come,
haven't you? What are you getting? It's very exciting, getting
new girls.
Weeley x
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| Mon, Oct 4 2010 09:17pm BST 7 |
merlotti
11 Posts
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Thanks!
Just getting a few ex-batts - I couldn't leave them when they
needed homes, although think the shorter lifespan might be a
problem if they die too quickly (always looking on the positive
side!!)
We'll see how we get on with them, but they don't arrive til the
16th so I've got a bit of time! Now I've got the Eglu and run, it's
not vital that the walk-in run's finished either. It won't harm
them to stay in the little run fora short time, but I'd like to get
them out into more fresh air sooner rather than later!
Can't wait - so obsessed I'm dreaming of them! What types (? -
breeds?) do you have?
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| Tue, Oct 5 2010 05:52pm BST 8 |
merlotti
11 Posts
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ok - mesh has arrived.
Now, shall I staple it to the chicken or the fox side? Inside or
out of the run? I see most people ahve gone for the inside, but
surely that means Mr Fox has more chance of pushing against it? Or
maybe, if it's on the outiside, he has more chance of getting a paw
behind an edge?
Thoughts please!
Merlotti x
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| Tue, Oct 5 2010 10:11pm BST 9 |
Gambler
21 Posts
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Hi Merlotti
The pre built runs have the mesh on the inside, If on the outside
may be gaps for Mr fox`s jaws.
A fox has a quite hard bite could bite through normal chicken wire
quite easy so on the inside would be better.
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| Wed, Oct 6 2010 08:30pm BST 10 |
merlotti
11 Posts
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Thanks Gambler - I'm using 1.6mm 16 gauge mesh so mr fox hopefully
won't find that so easy! Will definitely go for the inside though!
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