The old goat cabin will be cleaned out and refinished for a transformation into kid clubhouse. Paint it to match the color theme of our house exterior adding better curb appeal. But what about the chicks which are due for delivery February 8? Oh, by the way...we ordered more chicks...
Since The Captain and I have decided staying together and counseling is much better then separating, Our adventures continue on this little plot of land. We have Americaunas (easter egg color laying hens), more Deleware hens with 1 rooster, and Silver laced Wyandotte hens to make up the new homestead ladies. Not all will be kept. No more then 15 chickens will stay. (I say that now..) But where are we going to house them?
So The Captain and I made a trip to the library after court and found a book on various chicken coop housing styles. The cordwood/earth berm fit in our unusual style and we have the perfect hill side for it. This is covered in snow at the moment, but you can see the great sized slope. The dogwood which is dying will be removed from the space. The hill top is north side and the coop will be facing out towards the south. A roof top will rise above hill level by 1 foot and have its own "gutters" to guide water into as rain barrel.
The interior we hope for a 6X8 space. A cement slab floor and cement brick back wall and lower sides which will be covered with hill sides. This is the cordwood coop which is gave us the "crazy" idea:
Drawing of the pic we found in the book:
Minus the front porch they have added, their coop door will be on the west side for entry into their run.
Now the search is on for seasoned/dry firewood cords. I will be "doing my homework and that thing I do", as the Captain likes to say, calling around for either old telephone poles or other logs that will be drastically less then buying cords of firewood. In our area, they average $165 a cord. The plan, as always, is cheap or free for the project. We will see if my resourcefullness will bring one of those to the table.
The run will go out to one side and up onto the hill side behind the hen house.. I am hoping to preserve the pink lily of the valley which grows in the spot we want to build. I wish to plant them on the rooftop of this project for a more enviromently pleasing view and earth friendly building.
We will be placing a few wood fence panels blocking the view from the road and a gate for entry. Another curb appeal aspect but the cordwood coop would have its appeal as a kids playhouse once cleaned out and the old goat cabin could be an actual tool shed for the future buyer.
See? Its not crazy. It's called seeing the possibilty and versatility in what you do to fit your lifestyle and future inhabitants.
Construction starts as soon as the ground thaws enough to start digging. If your in the area and would like to help or just come check it out, let me know. An extra hand is always welcome. Not to mention, how often do you see a cordwood chicken coop?
Sweeter dreams,
~Tammie
Since The Captain and I have decided staying together and counseling is much better then separating, Our adventures continue on this little plot of land. We have Americaunas (easter egg color laying hens), more Deleware hens with 1 rooster, and Silver laced Wyandotte hens to make up the new homestead ladies. Not all will be kept. No more then 15 chickens will stay. (I say that now..) But where are we going to house them?
So The Captain and I made a trip to the library after court and found a book on various chicken coop housing styles. The cordwood/earth berm fit in our unusual style and we have the perfect hill side for it. This is covered in snow at the moment, but you can see the great sized slope. The dogwood which is dying will be removed from the space. The hill top is north side and the coop will be facing out towards the south. A roof top will rise above hill level by 1 foot and have its own "gutters" to guide water into as rain barrel.
The interior we hope for a 6X8 space. A cement slab floor and cement brick back wall and lower sides which will be covered with hill sides. This is the cordwood coop which is gave us the "crazy" idea:
Drawing of the pic we found in the book:
Minus the front porch they have added, their coop door will be on the west side for entry into their run.Now the search is on for seasoned/dry firewood cords. I will be "doing my homework and that thing I do", as the Captain likes to say, calling around for either old telephone poles or other logs that will be drastically less then buying cords of firewood. In our area, they average $165 a cord. The plan, as always, is cheap or free for the project. We will see if my resourcefullness will bring one of those to the table.
The run will go out to one side and up onto the hill side behind the hen house.. I am hoping to preserve the pink lily of the valley which grows in the spot we want to build. I wish to plant them on the rooftop of this project for a more enviromently pleasing view and earth friendly building.
We will be placing a few wood fence panels blocking the view from the road and a gate for entry. Another curb appeal aspect but the cordwood coop would have its appeal as a kids playhouse once cleaned out and the old goat cabin could be an actual tool shed for the future buyer.
See? Its not crazy. It's called seeing the possibilty and versatility in what you do to fit your lifestyle and future inhabitants.
Construction starts as soon as the ground thaws enough to start digging. If your in the area and would like to help or just come check it out, let me know. An extra hand is always welcome. Not to mention, how often do you see a cordwood chicken coop?
Sweeter dreams,
~Tammie
8 comments:
oh, man... that looks really cool. i might have to try that out. good luck to you on your journey, it sounds like you are off to a good start.
What a great coop. I looked into one very much the same. There is one on line with great pictures. When I think of where I saw it I will pass it on.
It was much the same made with fallen trees, dug into a bank with a dirt roof. The guy said it was 20+ years old and only in need of minor repair on the roof and to be rebanked. He also said it was great protection/warm for the birds.
I will keep a watch to see how you do. Also glad to hear you have new chickens on the way and your personal life is looking better.
~Karyn
Lemme do some checking on phone poles.....I think there are a few 10-12 footers at my uncles, plus being a retired 40 year county worker (traffic signal repair) he may have some connections still.
The indoor pond is lovely. Bill and I went to Lowes the other day but we didnt get to hit the garden section...but I will be getting to go into town again tomorrow I will be swinging in there. I have kept you and yours in my thoughts and you can always reach me at my email addy Labyrinth080305@yahoo.com
We have lots of pine from the neighbors cutting down 75 foot tall pines, all cut into 2-3 foot sections. being a soft wood they shrink much less and Roy Rob (cordwood mason), said soft wood has better R value and holds the heat different then hardwood. We are going with the mortar mix suggested in the book Roy Rob uses and will be doing "pockets" between of sawdust for better insulation hold. I think we will go with 12" long logs, split pine logs.
Chris W., As always, I Thank you for your help. But now that I have thought more into materials, do you think the phone poles would hold any health hazard with possible chemicals in them? I am not sure how they are treated or if they are but thought I best inquire.
Went to our local lowes and picked up the last 32 gallon pond. There were 6 just days before. All they had left after that were the 125 gallon ponds.
I kept getting the "are you crazy" look carrying ponds through the store. Nope...Just a smart shopper.
Tammie I just remembered something else for you to try. My friend that lives near you used to buy scraps from Longaberger out in hartville. They were 5-6 foot long logs that were perfectly round and roughly 10" diameter-somehow leftovers from their basket making. I remember him getting them to use as firewood, and he got them by the trailer load. I don't remember the cost, but it may be something worth looking into. If you decide to go with pine, the guy across the field from me has had a huge pine down for over a year,and I'm sure he would be happy to get rid of it. He payed someone to come and get rid of it, but they abandoned it after a day.
Good thinking on the phone poles, even though they claim the newer treating is enviro-friendly, I did a little research...I wouldnt want that around our birds either.
I love the cordwood coop design!
I also wanted to let you know I am happy to hear that things are looking a bit more hopeful. I can relate in so many ways to some of what you have experienced (from the MIL to other people entering through vulnerable spots). I know it is private matter, but I hope you will continue to update on the "progress" (it's helpful!)
Love all your projects and wish you all the best!
i am glad to hear you and captain are giving it another try. good luck to you both! relationships are so hard to maintain, aren't they?!
i can't wait to see the cordwood coop!
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