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ALMOST BEEKEEPING - RELATED TOPICS => FARMING & COUNTRY LIFE => Topic started by: Frantz on January 09, 2008, 06:09:49 pm

Title: Them chikens are tough!!
Post by: Frantz on January 09, 2008, 06:09:49 pm
Wow, did everyone survive that storm? I know that a few of you were fighting it last weekend, It hit here in Park City, UT with a vengence. We got feet of snow not inches, and 105 mph winds.  So the point of this is I could not get in to the ranch to feed and water the chickens until today and I had to snow shoe in at that. My wife is such a good sport. Last time I was out there was last Sat. I usually stock them pretty well with the feed just in case, but they were good!! I was very impressed that they were all just hanging out and waiting for us to swing by. The new snow was thigh deep over our packed trails and the drifts were 7-8 feet. We have a yurt out there that we rested in after the adventure, as I said, what a good wife I have. So my question is, do chickens get along like that normally or is my group just amazing? I really was surprised to find them all ok. With the wind and the sub zero temps, and all the new snow etc. I was impressed. I will try to post a photo of us out there for your enjoyment, I don't know if I am old enough yet to post photos but I will give it a try???<a href="http://s224.photobucket.com/albums/dd195/Frantz_010/?action=view&current=P1010539.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd195/Frantz_010/P1010539.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket">[/url]
If that works I will post a few other fun ones... I pray you all survived the storm!!
Thanks all
Frantz
Title: Re: Them chikens are tough!!
Post by: Understudy on January 09, 2008, 06:14:05 pm
I am glad to here your chickens survived.

Nice owl in the pictures.

Your weather sounds like a hurricane with snow instead of rain.

Anyone lose their roof? Or did the snow weight help hold them down.

Sincerely,
Brendhan

Title: Re: Them chikens are tough!!
Post by: Frantz on January 09, 2008, 06:24:55 pm
Snow held everything down pretty well. You are the guy who is out here in Ut all the time right? Were you around for this last one. I am only about 40 mins from SLC. Up here in Gods country, although West Palm sounds pretty good right now!!!!
It was a tornado with snow that is for sure... We were out in it last night helping a few people get out that were stuck!!! It was a tornado for sure. Fun though in hindsight... Still somewhat young and stupid I guess. For a few more years anyway!!
Title: Re: Them chikens are tough!!
Post by: Understudy on January 09, 2008, 06:45:55 pm
Snow held everything down pretty well. You are the guy who is out here in Ut all the time right? Were you around for this last one. I am only about 40 mins from SLC. Up here in Gods country, although West Palm sounds pretty good right now!!!!
It was a tornado with snow that is for sure... We were out in it last night helping a few people get out that were stuck!!! It was a tornado for sure. Fun though in hindsight... Still somewhat young and stupid I guess. For a few more years anyway!!

Yeah I was out there for a bit. I left on 12/28. I had to go to NY after that and got home on 12/31.

Did you lose power?

Sincerely,
Brendhan

Title: Re: Them chikens are tough!!
Post by: Frantz on January 09, 2008, 08:25:14 pm
Yea, we lost power on Sun and Mon, not for very long though. We have a pretty good infrastructure out here and rarely lose it and when it does go we get it back pretty quick. One of the benefits of getting power a little later than the rest of the nation is we were able to do most of it right the first time by learning from the rest of the nations mistakes. (Infrastructure wise). You seem to travel even more than I, you must be racking up the skymiles!! Nothing wrong with that. By the way how did that rooftop recovery end up. That was very inspiring, I can't wait to find something like that to recover. I want my kids to see it.
I just went back and read the rest of the post on your soffit bees. So you don't have to relive it now. That is incredible that they built that much comb while you were gone. Like you said you have to respect them!!
Good luck with that!!
Title: Re: Them chikens are tough!!
Post by: Cindi on January 09, 2008, 11:46:02 pm
Frantz, what an ordeal to get to the chickens, you are indeed fortunate to have that supportive wife, yea!!!  Hard to picture snow that deep, never experienced it, so it sounds so weird.  Glad things all went well.  Have a wonderful, great day.  Cindi
Title: Re: Them chikens are tough!!
Post by: thomashton on January 15, 2008, 06:20:18 pm
I live in Northern Utah (Cache Valley) and it sounds like you got a lot more than we did up here. We got some good snow, but all my chickens were fine. When I built the coop (a humongous 16'x24' structure), I put it on 2' risers to stay out of the snow and keep rodents and mud out of it. It has worked pretty well that way. Also, it has a hinged trap door to sweep out all of the litter and mess which makes cleaning it really convenient.

So, we got some good snow, but no where near the winds you got. Glad you, and your girls survived it.
Title: Re: Them chikens are tough!!
Post by: Frantz on January 15, 2008, 07:27:15 pm
Yea, I have mine up as well but not quite that high. I am about 16" up. I got an old pigeon racer loft from a gal over in Oakley that keeps all my girls warm enough. Sounds like you have a huge place. How many birds do you have in there? Sounds like a good sized place. Love to see how you did the trap door for clean out...
As soon as I am allowed to do pics I will send some snow photos, It will truly blow your mind. I was clearing 7-8' snow drifts this last weekend. I finally got all the way in and wow what a chore. Only to have in drift back in two days later. Went out today and yep it is totally drifted over, like I was never there. I can't believe the snow this year@#$%^#@@!
Title: Re: Them chikens are tough!!
Post by: Brian D. Bray on January 15, 2008, 10:19:42 pm
Yea, I have mine up as well but not quite that high. I am about 16" up. I got an old pigeon racer loft from a gal over in Oakley that keeps all my girls warm enough. Sounds like you have a huge place. How many birds do you have in there? Sounds like a good sized place. Love to see how you did the trap door for clean out...
As soon as I am allowed to do pics I will send some snow photos, It will truly blow your mind. I was clearing 7-8' snow drifts this last weekend. I finally got all the way in and wow what a chore. Only to have in drift back in two days later. Went out today and yep it is totally drifted over, like I was never there. I can't believe the snow this year@#$%^#@@!


I keep racing pigeons in my pigeon loft.  Chickens I keep in the hen house.
Title: Re: Them chikens are tough!!
Post by: Frantz on January 16, 2008, 12:54:19 am
Yea, I have been given a lot of guff from guys who have seen the operation and said " What are you doing putting them chickens in a perfectly good racer loft." But it was free and it works very well for the chickens. They love it.
Title: Re: Them chikens are tough!!
Post by: thomashton on January 16, 2008, 07:37:02 pm
Yup. It is a huge hen house. 2/3 of it (16'x16') is for the chickens. There is a lot of floor space which is great for cold winter days when no one wants to go outside. In one corner I have several large plastic garbage cans with lay pellets in one, scratch in another, bedding chips and oyster shells. Adjacent to that is a "high rise" of nest boxes. There are three levels with 5 boxes each. I currently only have about 40 birds in there, but the floor space and roosts would accommodate much more. I have about 32' of roost space.

The roosts slope up from the floor to the wall and have 4 levels. This area covers a 4'x8' section of floor which has a screened frame underneath it. I call it the droppings pit. The girls sleep there at night, poop to their hearts content, and it all falls through the screened droppings pit outside. This is the area that makes clean up a breeze. The roosts are on hinges and swing up to the ceiling and attach there to get out of the way. Then, the screened droppings pit cover is also on hinges and swings up leaving a 4'x8' hole in the floor. After that, all I have to do is sweep everything down and out the hole where I leave a wheelbarrow to haul it off to the garden or compost pile to make mulch out of.

The other 1/3 of the structure (8'x16') is simply for storage. I keep beekeeping equipment there (as my bees are in the same fenced in yard with the chickens), hoses during the winter, whatever needs a home goes there.

As I said, it is on 2' risers, has a 4-step staircase up to the 36" wide human door (next to the smaller chicken door) and it and huge ceilings. The lowest point is 8' and due to the roofline slopes up to 10' or so at the high point. My buddy had defective vinyl siding on his house and after 2 years got all of it replaced. He gave me free siding, so it has real vinyl siding and 3 double paned glass windows from the local bone yard at the lumber yard.

It is way overkill, but I am a large 6'6" and did not want to have to hunch over in it or dread having to clean it when needed. Needless to say, it more than meets my needs. My father-in-law calls it "The Chicken Marriott" and even made a sign for me last Christmas saying that. The sign is now affixed above the human door on the structure.
Title: Re: Them chikens are tough!!
Post by: reinbeau on January 16, 2008, 10:10:30 pm
Thomashton, do you have any pictures?  I'd love to see them!
Title: Re: Them chikens are tough!!
Post by: Frantz on January 17, 2008, 09:53:36 am
Thomashton,
All I have to say is right on! Sounds like a good place to hang out and all. Any chance of a big screen TV?? Super Bowl Sunday is just around the corner. Great idea concerning the swing up roosts. I will definately implement that this spring. I love the idea of the poop hole under the roosts as well. Does that get drafty at all, or is the rest of the coop bottom covered? I leave the bottom open so when the girls are out on the spring and summer they have a place under the coop to hang out and escape if needed. We have owls, hawks, and some turkey vultures out there at the ranch.
Yea, I would love to see some pics as well if you ever have a chance, thanks for sharing you innovative ideas.
F
Title: Re: Them chikens are tough!!
Post by: Cindi on January 17, 2008, 09:56:41 am
Thomashton.  I am with Ann, got any pictures?  If not, go on a hunt and get some for us, it sounds like you have something really wonderful to look at.  I am amazed at how cool your henhouse/storagehouse must be, yea!!!  I picture myself inside on of my chicken houses, bent over, scraping out the dung, thank goodness it only takes a few minutes, cause I tell ya, my back is achy.  I think that I am going to revamp that house this spring (well, actually, I will ask my Sister to, she is the builder).  It needs some changes to make it more human-friendly.  It is difficult to do anything in there.  The other house was for the horses and the hay barn, so it is a whomping tall building, lots of room for the human body and soul.  Beautiful, anyways, go get some pictures!!!!  Have a great and wonderful day.  Cindi
Title: Re: Them chikens are tough!!
Post by: thomashton on January 22, 2008, 08:00:04 pm
Hey guys. I'll see if I can scare up some pictures. If I have to take some new ones of the inside it will be a bit messy as the girls have kept themselves inside a lot lately and like to make a big mess. I also have some other things I have to do inside to complete it, but once it is up and running at a sufficient level you drop those other things down on the priority list. There is still a little bit of siding that needs to go up and a few things here and there, but if I find some pics or take some, you'll get the idea in any case.
Title: Re: Them chikens are tough!!
Post by: thomashton on January 22, 2008, 08:03:12 pm
One other thing about the coop. I really struggled with what to do with the floor. I ended up going to a flooring supplier and buying linoleum remnants to cover the plywood floor as I knew that would rot out quickly if it were left to the moisture from the fount and the droppings.
Title: Re: Them chikens are tough!!
Post by: Cindi on January 23, 2008, 12:32:59 am
Thomashton.  The chickens are poopy poopy things.  I can't believe how much poop they poop and everywhere.  I've even seen them poop and other chickens too, if they are below where they are roosting, dirty girls.  So, if there is some poopy messes, anyone who keeps chickens and the like, know what it is all about in the dark days of winter when the girls stay inside alot.  Bring on the pics.  Have a great, wonderful day, Cindi
Title: Re: Them chikens are tough!!
Post by: Frantz on January 23, 2008, 10:03:22 am
Here is my racer loft-coop. I will be adding a few of your ideas come spring, thats for sure..(http://img264.imageshack.us/img264/656/p1010242ft4.th.jpg) (http://img264.imageshack.us/my.php?image=p1010242ft4.jpg)
There you go.
Now imagine about 10 feet of snow there. HaHaHaHa!!!!
Frantz
Title: Re: Them chikens are tough!!
Post by: Cindi on January 23, 2008, 10:25:39 am
Franz, now that is one doozey of a chicken coop, I cannot for the life of me picture 10 feet of snow though.  That is a chicken palace, wow!!!  Thanks for sharing this part of your life with us.  Have an awesome day.  Cindi
Title: Re: Them chikens are tough!!
Post by: Brian D. Bray on January 24, 2008, 01:29:40 am
Deffinately built by a pigeon fancier.
Title: Re: Them chikens are tough!!
Post by: Frantz on January 24, 2008, 07:32:52 pm

Check this out, note the height of the snow behind our little home made Yurt!!! We have had about 7 feet this year, this picture was taken the day my wife and I had to snowshoe in to feed the animals... This is just outside of park city, elevation only about 5000ft. It is about 100 yards from our coop
(http://img211.imageshack.us/img211/1780/p1010539qr8.th.jpg) (http://img211.imageshack.us/my.php?image=p1010539qr8.jpg)
We are supposed to get more tonight and tomorrow. I am hopeing that it stays south.
Cross your fingers.
What a good wife!!! HUH!!!
F
Title: Re: Them chikens are tough!!
Post by: Cindi on January 25, 2008, 10:11:24 am
Franz, awesome and beautiful picture of you and yours.  What the heck is a yurt.  Tell us why this structure is here and what is done with it?  I am more than curious (and I bet others are too, I am not the only one that has this malade, hee, hee).

Wow, snow and more snow eh?  When does the snow melt and be gone and spring be there in your area?  I would love to hear about this.  Yes, you have a good Wife, you are a lucky man.  Have a great and wonderful day, Cindi
Title: Re: Them chikens are tough!!
Post by: Frantz on January 25, 2008, 09:28:19 pm
Oh Boy, How do I start on the Yurt.. First thing is just to google Yurt and that will tell you about anything and more that you want to know. We spend a lot of time out at "The Ranch" we call it, and we have an old hilbily motorhome that we usually have out there to stay in but that is out of state now serving as my temp office on a project I have going. So we were looking for something quick, mobile, temporary, and most of all cheap! I have seen these round tents (Yurts) around and checked them out online for pricing. Can you say RIDICULOUS pricing. They wanted like $5K for something around 15' in diameter. So ofcourse being the cheapskate that I am and loving to make things anyway. I started trying to figure it out. Bottom line, I made the frame out of 2" PVC with plumbing T's, 45's, and such, my wife found some cheap painters canvas 12oz stuff and some tarps to sew together for the exterior and BAM!~! It ended up being about 13.5' in diameter and 5' tall at the walls. We spend about 3 days total building it. We are into it about $450 in materials and a whole lot of laughs putting it up and having sledding parties. We have had family, friend, and church parties out there this winter just having a blast. I have a small tent stove that my grandfather had, so I built a pipe sleeve out of the top. That is the stove pipe you see coming out of the top. It stays plenty toasty in there. Enough to be a romantic getway if need be.  :shock:
Here are a few more pics
(http://img525.imageshack.us/img525/6564/p1010509se5.th.jpg) (http://img525.imageshack.us/my.php?image=p1010509se5.jpg)
(http://img525.imageshack.us/img525/610/p1010494xx9.th.jpg) (http://img525.imageshack.us/my.php?image=p1010494xx9.jpg)
(http://img525.imageshack.us/img525/7954/p1010499jq0.th.jpg) (http://img525.imageshack.us/my.php?image=p1010499jq0.jpg)
(http://img525.imageshack.us/img525/641/p1010503as3.th.jpg) (http://img525.imageshack.us/my.php?image=p1010503as3.jpg)
So there you go, the story of the YURT!! Sorry to bore you, it has been the source of great family fun this year for sure.. You find yourself near Park City UT sometime stop by we will take you out to the yurt for sure!!!!
Title: Re: Them chikens are tough!!
Post by: Cindi on January 26, 2008, 09:51:33 am
Franz, how on earth could you even think that your story was boring!!!  Unlikely, it was a thrill to read how you and your Wife have that innovative side -- and what a beautiful yurt you both have built.  Looking at the pictures, I cannot believe what you have inside of it, I see the tables, the cup hooks, the stove, the cots and so on....holy smokers!!!!  I must take my hat off to you both.  Look at the thousands of dollars you saved, and the fun that you must have had with the assembly, and the fun that continues on with friends and the children.  Yea!!!!!

If I am ever up near Park City, UT, I would surely come over for a party in your yurk, hee, hee.  Not that that would ever happen, but it is fun to go there in my mind's eye.  Anyways, beautiful job and thank you for taking me into this part of your world. Have an awesome and wonderful day, Cindi
Title: Re: Them chikens are tough!!
Post by: reinbeau on January 27, 2008, 09:52:27 pm

(snip) It stays plenty toasty in there. Enough to be a romantic getway if need be.


Looks like there's been at least three of those getaways  :evil:

That looks like a blast, I know my hubby would love to stay in a yurt set up like yours in the winter.  Enjoy!  :lol:
Title: Re: Them chikens are tough!!
Post by: Cindi on January 28, 2008, 12:15:48 am
Looks like there's been at least three of those getaways  :evil:
That looks like a blast, I know my hubby would love to stay in a yurt set up like yours in the winter.  Enjoy!  :lol:

Ann, you are a naughty, bad girl!!!!  Have a beautiful day, Cindi