So, I got some help and got the coop roofed, trimmed, fenced and (mostly) painted.

I built nesting boxes from the trimmings of the siding.

I used some leftover scrap to build a brood box.

I have to put the gate together, but it shouldn’t take but ten minutes or so.

And I have chicks! 15 Buff Orpington, 10 Sumatra and 15 Americauna peeps showed up in the mail this morning!

Total chicken coop project costs:

Pallets - Free

Lumber - Free

Siding - $48

Roof panels - $36

Tar paper - $20

Shingles - $200

Nails, screws, hinges and other hardware - $50

Total building costs (not including fencing) $354

In all, a pretty successful project!

Originally, I was going to use pallet tops to finish the upper angles of the sides of the coop, but I was having trouble figuring out how to make things meet up and make a complete side. Then, my wife showed me this Web site: http://www.theroosterandthehen.com/how-to-make-a-pallet-headboard/. The person cut the slats off of pallets with a saws-all, easily separating them from the nails without tearing them up (see pic on link). Brilliant! Problem solved!

I cut the two ends down, leaving the center slat on the pallet tops, which I separated using a flat prybar and hammer. I simply hammered through the staples holding the top together, leaving me with slats!

These went up very quickly, closing in the sides with a cool rustic look that will really pop when I paint the coop. A little more work with the saws-all and they’re trimmed and ready to go!

Next, I’ll finish the upper part of the front the same way, then put the roof on and it’s CHICKEN TIME!!!

Well, it’ll be chicken time once I get the fence put in …

I was finally able to get out and put some time into the coop. I finished the skin and built and hung both the main door and the chicken door.

For both doors, I used the pallet tops to provide structure, so I wasn’t just hanging a floppy piece of plywood. I screwed the plywood to the pallet top, then I had places with enough integrity to screw the hinges on to.

I added a 2” x 3” to the left side of the main door frame and another 2” x 6” to the right to bring the frame flush and give the door some extra meat to hang on. It turned out pretty sweet! The main door is very tight.

Well, the weather is taking a turn for the worse after a great day Monday and a very windy day yesterday in which I was unable to work. I wanted to get something done, so I went out and fought the very cold breeze, which is rising, and finished 3/4 of the coop’s skin. I had to call it quits because the winds are picking back up, making it very difficult for a single person to handle sheets of plywood.

You’ll notice gaps at the corners of the coop. This will be covered by strips of 1x6 wood trim, which I will probably paint white to contrast the red I intend to paint the coop. This will be picked up in the slats at the tops of the angles and on the front face, too.

I wanted to mention something important about the soffets. One thing I learned from the pole barn we had at our last house was that if you don’t make sure you close off your soffets completely between the joists, you will be virtually unable to heat the building or retain any heat. Making sure they’re closed is important - it could mean the difference between cold, pissed off chickens and frozen, dead chickens.

Construction on the coop isn’t moving as fast as I would like, but it is moving forward, which is what’s important. Hopefully, the winter storm that’s about to hit will pass quickly and I’ll be able to get back out and continue working on this. We’ll be ready to order our birds soon!

Very productive day today. We got the joists up this morning, then took a break for a while (nap time is something I get to claim helps my disability, right?). 

Next, as the wind began picking up, we put on the first of the sheathing on the chicken door side. At the top of the wall, you’ll see slats - this is a pallet top. I am going to use them to fill in the sides on the angle and possible the front, for a little difference in appearance but also because it’s easier than buying extra plywood and cutting it to fit in to the angles.

I will disassemble several of the pallet tops to use as slats to fill in the gaps.

The weather has been prohibitive the last few days, but I’ll finally get to make a run to the big box store to get the lumber I need to finish my chicken coop project.

I think we’re going to go with a metal roof, which will last longer and withstand the weather better than a shingle roof would.

Once the primary construction is complete, I have to start building things like nesting boxes, roosts and mounting feeders and waterers. I have also decided that it might be best to put a windbreak outside the chicken door so that on windy days, the birds can come out but the wind won’t tear through the inside of the coop.

I just found a cool box-style homemade dog house that will do nicely as a brood box and a “remote” coop - a second place for chickens to chill and hide out if they want to. It’s free on Craigslist and you know the old saying, “if it’s free, it’s for me.” It will be nice to have for some variety for the birds. I hope no one beats me to it.

I hate that I won’t be able to recycle the entire list of things needed to build my coop, but I will definitely be building another outbuilding using free pallets again. It is solid, has withstood a couple of windstorms - even one without the extra bracing - and is still standing.

Updates on construction progress to come soon - maybe even today!

Well, the coop survived hell intact and it even looks like my extra bracing was extraneous, which is good news!

No construction today as I have to go to the VA hospital, but, weather permitting, I’ll hit it again tomorrow and get the rest of the roof joists on!

We went from perfect and sunny yesterday to the return of the Nazgul and imminent destruction today. Winds steady at 25 gusting to 60 MPH. Not a good situation.

Although I have faith in my construction, you can never be too safe, so I went out and nailed a couple of braces on to the front wall to ensure its survival - the top is only held on by the base screws and two joists, so adding some insurance is not a bad idea.

As we were out there for a whole 20 minutes, the mountains disappeared and the wind went from a breeze to holy crap, we gotta get outta here. This will be a real test of my construction skills as these high winds are notorious around here for tearing things like sheds and chicken coops apart.