This year, we are making every effort to finish the exterior and get the whole structure closed in, so that we can—possibly— occupy the house this winter and work on the interior details. Most of the house will be sided in Hardi-Board siding, a simple and easy solution, but there are some areas where we would like to use some alternative treatments for both practical and aesthetic reasons. The major project is finishing off the false chimneys that disguise the triple-wall stovepipes that are attached to our woodstove and the zero clearance fireplaces.

The front of the house is dominated by two enormous false chimney shafts. They are 4’ x 8’ and about 20’ tall. One of them houses the fireplace in the living room and an auxiliary furnace closet that holds an electric garage furnace that someone gave me for nothing. The other shaft handles fireplaces in the master bedroom and the guest room above it, and some closet space.

Ideally, I would have gathered sufficient stone from my property and built honest, fully functional, stone chimneys. These two gray stone behemoths would have risen out of the ground and anchored the whole house. However, as I am well past the bloom of my own youth and neither blessed with strong, energetic sons nor friends who will work for beer, I have had to come up with a simpler and less costly method of achieving the same look.

The chimneys are basically just big wooden shafts, conventionally framed and sheathed in OSB. The bases are going to be sided in Hardi-Board, where they are part of the wall surface. But from the cornice line up, I wanted something with a more rugged texture. I thought about that faux stone you see plastered on every other suburban cottage going up in a subdivision near you, but it is wildly expensive and doesn’t bear close inspection. It just looks phony, and I was afraid the house would look like a motel that featured “an authentic cowboy experience.” “Mutton dressed as lamb,” as the English say.

Then, I got the idea of using cedar shingles. There was plenty of precedent for this in American 19th-century domestic architecture. New England and the Jersey shore are overrun with stick and shingle houses that are a riot of shingled decorative surfaces. I thought about doing the chimneys in oversized rough shingles with a copper cap on top for contrast. But again, the cost of cedar shingles was prohibitive, and their application is labor-intensive. As most of these shingles will be going on a surface that is, at least, 12 -16 feet above the ground, it was going to require a lot of waltzing around with long ladders or building scaffolds and sliding about on metal roofs.

For obvious reasons, this is not a job for me (wheelchair-bound homesteaders are extremely rare, much less roofers), and neither Jon nor Levi is particularly keen on heights. And Jon pointed out that there was a possible fire danger as well. A metal capping on the shafts would help prevent fires, but there was still a chance that a stray spark could set the chimneys ablaze. And shingles didn’t give me the right amount of texture and contrast that I had envisioned in my mind’s eye.

I next considered using random slab siding, the sort that is cut right from the log, and the edges are left wavy and, in some cases, still covered in bark. I thought that perhaps these could be laid like clapboard siding and stained gray. I’d seen this done on other houses, and at a distance, it almost looks like flat slab stone walls, particularly if the slabs are random widths. But up close, most of the effect was lost, and I ultimately rejected this idea, at least for the chimneys. I’d also seen a house, here in town, that had a little gable roof porch over the front door, which was sided in leftover boards. Most of the boards were 1×6 or 1×8 of various short lengths, and they had been put up like cedar shingles.

The effect was really quite interesting, very textured, very random, and there was little doubt that the materials were all end cuts from other projects that had been saved in the shed until the homeowner came up with a use for them. But even this little gable must have taken a couple of days to finish, and the thought of my two monster chimneys was daunting on many levels. I may still try this on my own porch gables, but I rejected it for the chimneys.

The quality of cementing materials deteriorated, and the use of concrete died out during the Middle Ages, as the art of using burnt lime and pozzolan (admixture) was lost, but it was later reintroduced in the 1300s. During the Renaissance, the manuscripts of the Roman architect, Pollio Vitruvius, were discovered in a Swiss monastery, and concrete was once again widely used as a building material.

The 18th century saw the development of Portland cement, hydraulic lime, and concrete for use underwater. In 1818, a British engineer, Ralph Dodd, took out a patent introducing wrought iron bars into concrete, and in 1867, Joseph Monier, of France, reinforced William Wand’s (USA) flowerpots with wire mesh, ushering in the idea of reinforced concrete.

It’s this simple idea of a mesh of wire and concrete that eventually leads to our own down-home favorite, chicken wire concrete. Cement is at its strongest when it is less than ¼ inch from the steel reinforcement, and it is the various layers of reinforcement that increase the concrete’s ability to resist great stress. The mesh, as opposed to thicker rebar, allows the creation of more fluid and less linear forms.

The standard rule for mixing concrete is four parts sand to one part Portland cement, plus sufficient water to give it a proper consistency. Mixing concrete is a bit like making piecrust; it isn’t an exact science. Some days you will need more water, sometimes less. Too little water will make the cement crack, but too much makes it soupy, and it won’t stay on the wall. You just have to work at it until it feels right. Eventually, you will get the hang of it.

Plain old one-inch chicken wire is all you need for the reinforcing mesh. The rolls come in various lengths and are generally three feet wide. The old-timers used a single layer, and that is usually sufficient for most simple flat walls, but multiple layers are better for free-form work or for roof structures that will take some weight or be self-supporting. Overlap the layers so that the openings in the mesh are as small as possible. Twist the edges of the wire together to keep them from moving.

The next morning, I went round to my neighbors to take a look at the various examples of chicken wire concrete that they had to show me. The first example was the simplest. My good neighbor had used chicken wire concrete to cover the old foundation under his house.

The foundation was built of brick and was starting to show its age, and there had been several cracks that were beginning to leak. He had stretched a single layer of chicken wire over the brick, stapling it to the sill plates at the top and to the bricks themselves at the bottom. He had then roughly troweled on the standard concrete mix using a stucco trowel with a toothed edge.

He simply slapped it on, working from the bottom and forcing it into the mesh and onto the wall. He left the first layer a bit rough; the professionals call this tooth, and when the first layer had begun to set up, he put on a thinner coat with a smoother finish. When the finish coat had started to set, he brushed it down with an old stiff-bristle broom, just to give it some character.

He had never bothered to seal or paint the concrete, and it had stood up to all sorts of weather for some 35 years. Every few years, he went around and inspected the work for any cracks or failures and made minor repairs. Repairs to the exterior chicken-wire concrete weren’t much more difficult than spackling the occasional ding in the plaster inside the house. The surface was extremely durable and took all the abuse that weather and man could send its way.

My second neighbor was the proud owner of an ornamental fish pond that his father had built in the 1950s as an anniversary gift for his wife. It was meant to be a purely ornamental feature in the yard and had been home over the years to several families of goldfish and carp. My neighbor had helped his Dad to build the pond, so he was able to give a fairly detailed account of the process.

They had chosen for their site a natural little mound that already existed in the yard, a spot where the yard began to rise up toward the surrounding woods in back of the house. He and his father had dug a hole about 3 feet deep and maybe 8 feet in diameter. Being a free thinker and not bound by the rules of strict geometry, the hole was rather freeform and sloped a bit along the far side nearest the woods.

Once the digging was done, they had put down a layer of fine sand and then covered the bottom with 5 layers of overlapping chicken wire, bending it up around the edges where it met the sides of the hole. Five layers of chicken wire were perhaps overkill, but his dad wanted to make sure that the bottom wouldn’t crack or leak. He also had the forethought to install a length of drainpipe, so that the pond could be drained if necessary. They then covered the wire with concrete and let it set up solid, making sure that the turned-up ends of the chicken wire remained accessible so they could attach the sides.

When the base was solid, he and his Dad had spent a couple of days building up the sides of the pond. They had put a bit of sand down to make a cushion and then wired sections of mesh to the ends that were left protruding from the bottom.

They left the wire overlapping the perimeter of the pool and added two more layers until they had a shape they liked and a fairly solid form. They then applied a slightly richer mix of concrete, 3 parts sand to 1 part Portland cement, and troweled it onto the sides of the pond, merging it with the edge of the bottom. They made the joint a bit rough to make sure there would be no leaks, but still managed to get a relatively smooth surface. They brought the concrete up over the top to form a rough border around the pool, which they ornamented with flat stones.

A short length of pipe was set into the wall of the pond and left to protrude as a runoff drain. The runoff drain keeps the pond from overflowing its sides in heavy rainstorms. Once the concrete had set up completely, his dad had painted the inside with black pitch to seal it and make the water look deep and cool. After it was embellished with water lilies and other ornamental plants, it became the focal point of the yard. My neighbor says that it has never cracked or shown any signs of leakage and feels certain that it is so heavy that there is never a problem from frost heave.

His only complaint about the project was that by the time they had twisted together all the necessary layers of wire, their hands were cut to shreds, but admitted that wearing gloves would have made the task even more difficult. Sometimes you have to suffer for your art.

The third chicken wire concrete project was definitely the most impressive. It was a literal tarpaper shack that had been completely covered in chicken wire concrete.

The shed was about 10’ x 12’ with 8’ walls. My neighbor had set 4×4 treated posts in the ground at the corners and then hung 2×8 rim joists about 8 inches above the ground. The floor was laid on 2×8 joists set on 2-foot centers and floored with old pallet boards. The walls were conventionally framed with 2×4 stud walls and had a shed roof of 2×6 rafters. So far, this was standard building procedure, but from this point on, it was less conventional.

Rather than go to the expense of sheathing, my neighbor then covered the walls with plain old tar paper, rolling it out over the studs and stapling it down as tightly as possible. When the walls were covered, he then stapled up some thin lengths of lath to give the tarpaper surface some rigidity. The lathes were set about 6” apart.

Then he had stretched two layers of cross-lapped chicken wire over the tar paper and laths. Once the walls were complete, he had troweled on the usual mix of concrete, forcing it through the mesh and onto the surface of the tarpaper, taking some care not to tear the tarpaper. It had taken him and a friend the better part of two days to concrete all four walls and to get a decent finish on the walls. Even with just tar paper backing and 2 layers of chicken wire mesh, the walls are surprisingly strong.

He gave them a semi-rough texture with the trowel and a stiff-bristle broom. Eventually, he painted the concrete, but this was purely an aesthetic choice. The raw concrete is completely weather and fireproof, but it isn’t particularly attractive in its basic state.

The real surprise was the roof, which had been made using the very same method. After setting the rafters, he had stretched tar paper across them and turned it down over the edges of the rafters. He had then nailed on the thin lathes like purlins, followed by five layers of chicken wire, cross-lapped to make the smallest openings possible. A wooden edge of 1×3 was then nailed onto the face of the rafters to create a small form to hold the concrete, cover all the wire ends, and make the edge neater in appearance.

The concrete was mixed a bit thinner than it had been for the walls so that it would flow more easily and give a smoother surface finish. The concrete was brought up in buckets and poured over the chicken wire mesh. A stucco trowel was used to spread a thin layer of concrete over the whole roof surface and to force it into the mesh. It was then given a smooth finish with a standard mason’s trowel.

After a few days of curing time, he painted the roof with concrete waterproofing as an added precaution. The whole structure is virtually fireproof, the roof is completely waterproof, and it will easily support the weight of several grown men. All in all, it gives a whole new meaning to the idea of a tar-paper shack.

After seeing these examples of chicken wire concrete, I am convinced that this will be the method I use to finish my two chimney stacks. As they are already sheathed with OSB and tarpaper, it is only a matter of stapling up the chicken wire and troweling on the concrete.

It won’t be a small job, but I figure it can be done in sections, and that a rough and ready finish will probably be a better solution than a smooth troweled surface. I’m not sure how I will finish off the tops of the stacks. I may cap them with sheet copper or metal, which will give a rich effect, but I may attempt to do it with a built-up edge of concrete and chicken wire instead. I think before I send the boys up on the roof, we may build something smaller on the ground as a practice exercise.

Maybe when we get our well installed this summer, we can build a little well house to learn the finer points of chicken wire concrete. From all I have seen, it’s simple and durable, it uses common and easily procured materials, and, best of all, it’s inexpensive. Sounds like a perfect solution for many homestead building projects in my book.

The post How Chicken Wire and Concrete Solved My Problems appeared first on Homestead.org.

I once heard it said, “A poor man has his cold in winter and his hot in summer.  A rich man can have his whenever he wants.”  Over the years, during times of high heating costs, and before we added a whole-house wood furnace in our circa-1880s home, I was starting to believe that was to be my fate in life.

But in recent years I’ve made a concentrated effort to “button up” our drafty, old house, and to improve my heating methods, too.  I’ve learned over the years that the key to an efficient and happy homestead is to plan ahead.

As an example, a few years ago there was a television show out about a family homesteading in Alaska.  One young couple always worked at least a season ahead.  At the first glimpse of spring, they were planning and working on projects to make summer more productive.  In summer, they prepped things for fall harvest and hunting.  In fall, they took care of winterizing projects and getting in plenty of firewood.  They built a greenhouse to extend the growing season, worked in the heat of summer cutting wood, and made sure their simple house was as weatherproof as possible.

But the guy’s cousin and his wife were always running behind.  In late spring, they were trying to get the tiller and tractor running to make a garden.  In fall, they were harvesting what little they had grown from beneath a layer of early season snow (remember this was Alaska).  In winter, they were constantly running out of firewood and having to slip and slide, battle cold-weary equipment, and work in uncomfortable conditions to scrounge for wet, unseasoned wood that would just sputter and smolder in their poorly-constructed, homemade woodstove in their drafty house. You get the picture.

This is the first of a series of three stories outlining winter preparations.  This first story deals with getting the house ready for winter.  The second will focus on machinery (including machines with engines), while the final installment will deal more with land and assorted stuff around the homestead.

So, the question is, how can we be more like the prepared young couple who took advantage of, and seemingly enjoyed, each season as it came, instead of being like the second couple who were always fighting Mother Nature and Father Time and getting backhanded as a result?  Here’s how…

The first step is to make an honest assessment.  You may love your house, or perhaps you abhor it, but this isn’t the time to let feelings get in the way.  You’re simply giving it an honest, thorough survey to determine likely problem areas… and possible fixes.

As you walk around and through the house multiple times checking the different areas and pieces—foundation, windows, doors, siding, soffits, roof, et cetera—carry a notebook and list all concerns.  You’re not going to be fixing as you go, and if you rely on your memory to recall what all needs tightened up at a later time, I can assure you’ll miss a few things.

The first rule is that heat rises and cold settles.  While cold air can enter around a window or soffit, let’s start at the bottom and work up.  That’s where the cold will usually enter.  The heat you generate inside the home will escape up top.  So, for now, inspect the foundation.  Look for cracks or gaps.

Check any built-in vents to assure they are closed for the season.  Foundation vents with screens can be left open in summer to allow cool air to reach the crawlspace and help cool the floors.  Leaving them open in cold weather can mean cold feet and indoor heat robbed through absorption through the floorboards.  Also, look closely at where different sections of the foundation intersect at corners.

Then check where the sill plate sits on the foundation.  If the home is more than a couple of years old there might be some settling of the foundation or warping of the sill which could leave some sizable gaps.  A little later, we’ll discuss winterization of the plumbing beneath the floor, but for now, we’re only looking for heat-robbing exterior concerns.

Next, inspect windows and doors.  Look for visible gaps around facings and sills.  At the same time check for gaps in doors where the actual door meets the jamb.  Inspect windows where the upper and lower panes meet in the middle, especially if the windows are older, wooden units.  If the drapes move when the wind blows then you’ve got a serious leak.  Another way to check is to move a lighter or a burning candle, or, even better, a lit incense stick, along an inch or so from the sealed edges of windows and doors on a windy day and look for the flame or smoke being pushed about by an otherwise undetectable breeze.  While these gaps might be small—even invisible on first inspection—the amount of heat they can rob from a home is unbelievable.

There’s no mystery that single-pane windows are robbers of heat.  A double-, or better, triple-pane window has a gas-filled air-gap that provides a buffer between the cold outer pane and warm inter-pane on a winter day.  A single-pane window is little more than a hole in your wall.  It might not let the wind or rain through, but the glass will constantly be wicking the indoor heat out and the outdoor cold in.  Still, for many reasons a homeowner (like me) can find themselves dealing with older, less-efficient windows.  The best option would be to upgrade and replace them, but a quality double-pane, vinyl-framed replacement window can start at $200 and go up from there.  Later, we’ll talk about the cheap way to add a second “pane” to your single windows to dramatically save on heat loss.

Next, comes looking at the siding, or whatever covers the exterior of your dwelling.  Whether it be 4×8 sheet-goods, board and batten, wood or vinyl siding, brick or stone, any exterior can have leaks… whether due to poor quality installation, or shifting, or shrinkage of an older surface.  Wood products dry and shrink over time.  Moisture can gather in the mortar between bricks or stones and freeze and eventually open up gaps.  Vinyl siding ultimately becomes brittle after years of sun and weather exposure.  Transition areas between two exterior surfaces, even with proper flashing, can open over time and create a crack or gap.

Next, check the roofline.  Look for gaps between wall covering and soffits.  Look for missing or damaged shingles, or openings along flashing around vents or flues.  Chances are, if you have flashing problems, you’ve already seen signs by way of water stains or actual dripping during heavy rain, or snow or ice thaws.  Finding such leaks can be a pain.  Where the moisture enters isn’t always where it shows up inside.  Water will migrate along the bottom of rafters or joists and show up feet—if not yards—away from where it came in from the outside.  And remember that heat rises, so along the roofline is where you’ll lose it most.

Now what?

With your list made of possible concerns, it’s time to simply start at the top of the page and address each entry.  It makes sense, at this point, to create a shopping list.  You’ll likely have to make return trips to the hardware store, but you can collect most of what you’ll need on the first visit.

Preparing the Homestead for Winter: The Foundation

For visible cracks in the mortar between stones (blocks, brick, etc.) or concrete walls, you’ll find compound, caulk, or grout are the top three choices.  Of the three, grout would be considered the most permanent repair but is primarily for horizontal cracks only.  It’s hard to adhere grout to a vertical crack and keep it in place until it dries.  Most likely, the cracks you find in a foundation will be vertical, or close to it.  That said, look for a “crack filler” compound or an exterior-grade latex caulk.  The compound can be added to foundation cracks with a putty knife or clean paint-stir stick.  Work to press the material deep into the crack instead of simply smearing it over the surface.  You want to eliminate any places for water to pool and freeze deep in the crack.

Caulk comes in a tube and can be easily applied and is usually much more pliable than compound for the first several minutes, and can easily be shot into deep cracks for complete penetration.

Regardless of the method you use, spread enough material on the surface of the crack to not allow any water or ice to find its way back in.  Caulk will need to be replaced every year or two, while a good grout or compound repair can last from a few years to forever.  Whichever option you choose, make sure the surface of the material around the crack is clean to promote good adhesion.

Make sure any foundation vents are closed for the season and look to see if there’s some way to add an extra layer of insulation in front of or behind the vents to help block cold air migrating through the metal or plastic of the vent.

Preparing the Homestead for Winter: The Doors

By their very nature, slab doors are usually not drafty themselves.  It’s how they fit and seal within the frame, or oftentimes how the frame and adjoined trim are sealed within the wall, that is an issue.  Start by looking to see if the door is sealing against the jamb within the frame.  Factory seals are usually glued or secured by a vinyl or metal strip screwed to the door facing.  Older wooden exterior doors will likely have a felt strip nailed, stapled, or glued to the facing, if it has anything at all.  Close the door and inspect from the outside to see if the door is firmly touching the seal.  If not, it’s definitely time for a fix.

If it’s a matter of the seal being worn, new blade- or strip-type seals are readily available at the local hardware or farm and home store.  Simply remove the old seal and put a duplicate in its place.

Threshold seals for the bottom of the door come in two main forms: a vinyl “bulb” seal that attaches to the threshold, or a “sweep” that attaches to the bottom interior face of the door.  Bulb seals require slightly more skills, but even then, basic hand-tools are all that’s needed… a small saw or tin snips, screwdriver, and scissors.  Remove the rubber bulb-seal from its framework, and measure and cut the frame to fit the threshold of the door.  Secure it down with the supplied screws.  Then measure and trim the rubber or vinyl bulb-seal to the correct length and reattach in the frame—usually a simple press fit.

Also, consider a sweep seal.  There are many kinds available including rubber and vinyl, and one that looks like thousands of short, nylon broom-bristles. The seals attach in one of two ways: a screw-on vinyl or metal strip which holds the rubber or vinyl sweep in place, or a self-adhesive backing.

The next step is to assure you’re not losing heat or gaining cold air through a poorly-fitted door or window frame.  Nowadays, rubberized adhesive membranes and better replacement door and window designs allow an installer to really “button up” a window or door into a wall.  Most older doors and windows were not installed with such attention to potential air leaks.

Here’s what I suggest.  Start by removing either the exterior or interior trim around a door or window.  Either way, the main concern is always that the trim will split where it is nailed in place.  Work with a small pry-bar and slowly work your way along the length of the trim pieces.  Once the trim is removed set it aside in a safe place.  Now, look between the door frame and wall framing.  What’s in there?  If your house is old or exceptionally drafty, it’s likely you won’t find anything but an open space and a few nails holding the frame in place.

There are two approaches here.  The first is to loosely stuff the open area with batt insulation.  You don’t want to tightly wad the insulation into the hole.  It’s much more effective if left loosely packed, but be sure to see that it touches all edges. The other option is filling those open areas with expanding spray-foam.  Keep in mind it comes in regular or “high-fill”.  Use caution when filling a boxed-in area with high-fill foam because the expansion can flex boards and cause a door or window to bind.  But if you have the trim from one side or another of the door or window frame removed, you can fill the entire crevice with foam and let the excess expand outside the opening and trim it away with a utility knife or hacksaw blade afterward before reinstalling the trim. Reattach the facing trim and you have a perfectly-sealed perimeter to block out the scavenging cold air.

Preparing the Homestead for Winter: The Windows

As mentioned before, older homes will often have single-pane windows.  A single pane of glass can stop rain, or snow, or wind, but serves as a heat sink, reaching an average of the temperatures both on the inside and outside.  It wicks cold to the hot side, and heat to the cold side.

The answer to less drafty windows for years was the addition of storm windows.  First in aluminum and then vinyl frames, storm windows provided the first line of defense against the winter’s cold, and a screen window to keep vermin out when windows were opened in the summertime, before air conditioning.

While nowhere near as efficient as dual-pane windows, having that second glass of a storm window as a windbreak can make a significant difference.  But if that’s not your case, the low-cost window winterization step that anyone can do is plastic-sheet shrinkable film such as these pictured to the right.

The only tool required to apply the film, which mimics an additional pane of glass, is a pair of scissors or a sharp knife, and a tape measure or ruler.  Start by measuring the size of the window frame.  Now cut the sheet of clear film one inch larger than the frame.  Next, apply the supplied double-sided tape to the window frame, then, starting at the top, apply the film and work downward keeping it taut.

A better-looking fit can be had by applying heat to the face of the film with an electric hairdryer.  Films can be applied to the exterior of the window as another option.  While not the most visually appealing, the temporary window applications can offer significant savings for only a few dollars each.  One window film can be installed in 10 to 20 minutes from start to finish.

Preparing the Homestead for Winter: The Exterior

The next step is addressing any cracks or gaps found in the siding, soffits, or roofline.  Small gaps in wood sheet-goods or board and batten exterior can be patched with wood putty.  Gaps where vinyl siding meets other surfaces can often be repaired by slightly shifting the siding pieces.  Normally, vinyl siding is merely a cosmetic covering anyway.  The walls will either have a layer of foam insulation or an older layer of siding beneath.  When installed properly, vinyl-siding trim assures moisture is kept out.  If your siding was not installed properly, and there are gaps where walls intersect, or where the siding meets other materials such as masonry flues, you might consider using exterior-grade caulk to seal the openings.

So far, these have been easy, straightforward measures nearly anyone could do with basic hand-tools.  But this next step, if required, takes more skill and is best left to a handyman or carpenter.  Flashing repairs around flues and chimneys and where differing roof-angles and materials meet and should be left to someone with the proper tools and know-how.  Fortunately, rural areas are rich with handymen and neighbors who possess all kinds of fix-it skills.  Many will do small jobs for honest pay, or trade skills for other labor or goods.

Other Things to Consider When Preparing the Homestead for Winter

With the exterior buttoned up, now it’s time to turn your attention to the interior.  There are several simple, inexpensive things you can do to save on heating costs.  The next several suggestions are listed in no particular order, but all are good ideas to address.

Increase attic insulation:  One of the best investments in winterization is adding more insulation in the attic.  More is usually better.  You should have a minimum of 12 inches of insulation in the attic.  Keep in mind the higher the insulating properties (the larger “R” value), the higher the cost will be, but insulation is worth the investment.  Just remember, when you lay out the insulation, it should be snug to the exterior walls to eliminate any air gaps; and remember the tip about not packing it too tight.  Insulation, after it’s installed, should maintain nearly the same “fluff” it had when unrolled from the package.  Cutting and installing can be done with a utility knife and tape measure.

Seal around electrical outlets and switches:  Any openings in exterior walls, even openings on the interior side only, can let in cold air that has bled into the walls from outside.  The area around electrical outlets and switch boxes are a perfect example.  You can fill voids around the box housing the switch with a little insulation pushed loosely into the crevice or a shot of expanding foam.

Before you button it back up, hardware stores and home centers sell outlet gaskets—thin foam rectangles that sit behind the faceplate of a switch or receptacle and insulate the gap between the inner wall surface and switch or plug cover plate.  Installing them is the easiest repair discussed yet.  Simply remove the cover plate of the outlet or switch, slip the foam gasket in place, and replace the cover.  These two simple measures repeated on all switches and outlets can make a noticeable difference for little cash outlay.

Insulate water lines: If your home sits on a crawlspace which is not sealed up—such as a mobile home with inadequate underpinning or an older home with a stone foundation full of cracks and crevices, or if water line runs along an exterior wall, then you might want to consider covering them with insulation or installing a heat tape.  The insulation comes in lengths several feet long and can be slipped over the pipes and then secured with tape or zip ties.  If you go the route of using a heat tape you’ll need an outlet to plug it in.  It’s advisable to install or retrofit using a ground fault outlet to reduce the potential for a shock or fire if the heat tape or cord leading to it comes in contact with moisture.

Furnace upkeep:  Replace the furnace filter regularly.  Although it sounds simple, how many people actually do it religiously?  I buy four or five at a time and set a reminder alarm on my phone.  Our thermostat has a reminder message that pops up every few months, but our old dusty house requires more frequent filter changes than is suggested by that new thermostat.  If you’re not into smartphone text alerts, simply write the task down on a calendar.  I’ll admit I’m more of a “list maker” than the average person, but I have a list on my calendar of things that need to be checked every couple of weeks (oil level in our cars and trucks, etc.), every month (furnace filter), every six months (batteries in smoke detectors, etc.) and on, and on.

Other heating concerns:  We heat with a combination of an electric furnace during mild fall and spring days, and a wood furnace during hard winter.  At the end of each heating season, I clean the ashes from my wood furnace and coat the interior of the firebox with a film of used oil.  I tie a rag to a stick and use it as a mop to apply the oil.  It keeps down the likelihood of rust forming during summer when heating and cooling can create moisture on the firebox and flue pipe.  I also sweep my chimney at the same time.  I bought my chimney brush and fiberglass cleaning rods to attach it to several years ago, and I intend to use the same setup for decades to come.

Keep yard debris away from foundations and gutters clean. Take time to clean out the gutters after the last leaves have fallen and before winter’s dampness starts freezing ice on the roof.  Clean gutters and downspouts will not necessarily keep your home warmer in winter, but it will certainly make it last longer.  Winter involves lots of water—rain, freezing rain, sleet, snow—all of which needs an easy way to get off your roof and away from your home’s exterior.  Also, look to make sure any landscaping you might have done during the summer months hasn’t created drainage issues around the foundation.  And remove accumulated leaves from areas where they might come into contact with exterior wood siding or trim and hasten rot.

Reverse the ceiling fans. Most ceiling fans have a small switch near the bottom of the fan and above the light kit that allows the user to reverse the electric motor.  In the summertime, the blades should be forcing air down into the center of the room.  In the winter the motor should be reversed, causing the blades to pull heat up in the center of the room and force it down exterior walls, which will still circulate the warm air but without feeling that breeze of air being forced down upon you by the fan.

The more Missouri winters I endure, the more I think those old Florida snowbirds are onto something.  My wife and I are now passing the 50-year-old mark and looking ahead to retirement a little way down the road and thinking a little house or duplex in the Bahamas might be just the ticket for weathering January and February each winter.  I could never leave my native Ozarks behind for good, but with each harsh winter we have, I think it might be nice to shut off the water, drain the lines, turn the thermostat down to about 58F and head out after Christmas and return only in time to think about gardening in the spring.

Robert Byrne is credited for saying, “Winter is nature’s way of saying ‘Up yours’.”  But by following these helpful tips just discussed you can have the final say in how this upcoming season treats you.

Read “Part Two: The Machinery”

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The post Preparing the Homestead for Winter, Part One: The Buildings appeared first on Homestead.org.

Based on a recent survey—i.e. walking around the garage and yard and outbuildings—I currently own 14 pieces of machinery that rely on some kind of engine, mainly gas engines.  With so much dependence on equipment to keep things going around my rural Ozarks’ property, you can guarantee I give the change of seasons some serious attention.

I don’t know what your equipment lineup looks like, but mine includes these: one small crossover my wife drives, a 4-wheel drive pickup I drive, an SUV my college-student daughter drives, a 1947 Farmall B tractor (my grandpa bought new and has been passed down through three generations, so far), an old Cub Cadet 127 garden tractor (used regularly to plow the garden, blade snow, grade the driveway, and put in and maintain wildlife food-plots on our hunting property), a 1951 Chevrolet project truck with a more modern V8 engine and automatic transmission, a gas-powered trimmer used for trimming around the house and cutting small brush, two chainsaws for cutting firewood and trimming brush, a riding mower, a garden tiller, a power washer, a large air-compressor, and a generator called into duty every time a summer storm or winter ice brings down the power company’s feeder lines.  And at times throughout the years there’s also been a boat with an outboard and trolling motor used for fishing and gigging, and a snow blower or limb chipper added to the lineup.

My approach to keeping my equipment—especially things with an engine—in optimal operable condition is a seasonal one.  I have a checklist of things to do or check in both spring and fall.  Sometimes by the time I get to the end of the list, it’s more like early summer or winter… but still a major season doesn’t come or go without me giving each piece of equipment the necessary attention.

Since we’re facing winter at this point and this is the second entry of a three-part series on winterization around the rural property, I’ll focus on getting things ready before the snow flies and the mercury drops.

Preparing Machinery for Winter Checklist:

• Check the coolant level and freeze point in all liquid-cooled engines.
• Clean and tighten battery cables in all equipment with battery-powered starters.  Also, check battery voltage while charging and at rest.
• Check windshield wipers on vehicles and windshield washer reservoirs for proper fluid.
• In areas with extreme temperature variations from summer to winter consider changing oil and using a slightly thinner viscosity during the winter months.
• Drain or treat gasoline in tillers, lawnmowers, gas trimmers, and anything else that will be garaged or otherwise mothballed for the winter months.
• If you tend to use your ATV more in the winter than summer, change the oil an  install a new spark plug now;
• Clean mower decks and sharpen blades, clean tiller tines before putting away for the season;
• Drain water out of hoses and proportioning valves of power washers.
• Drain or treat gasoline for outboard motors and drain any water from lower units of those outboards.
• Install a new spark plug and sharpen chains on all chainsaws.  Start the season with fresh 2-cycle gas and oil mix.
• Sharpen all axes, splitting mauls, hatchets, and tighten loose handles if needed.
• Touch up edges on snow shovels and check handles and tighten if needed.
• Install a new spark plug, change the oil, and put fresh gasoline in the generator.  Start and run for several minutes until the engine is warm and assure the unit is making electricity.  (I start and run my generator every other month to assure it’s ready to go when needed any time of year.)
• If you heat outbuildings, assure adequate fuel supplies for those heat sources (I have a garage heated by a woodstove, and another heated by a multi-fuel “salamander” stove which burns diesel or kerosene).
• Check supplies of oils and other lubricants, antifreeze, and windshield washer fluid, as well as starter fluid.
• Connect trickle chargers to all equipment that relies on a battery to start.

Preparing Vehicles for Winter

This includes pickup trucks, cars, SUVs, minivans, also tractors, garden tractors, mowers, ATVs… think of anything propelled by an engine.  While each one is different, in many ways they’re all the same.

Focus on cooling/heating systems, fuel, and charging.

Start by checking the coolant level and freeze point. Purchase a coolant tester (a.k.a. hydrometer) and read the directions if you’re new at maintaining your own equipment.  A decent tester should only run $10 to $20 and will last for many years.  Read the owner’s manual for your vehicles and know the proper coolant level.  The level when the engine is cold will be slightly lower than the level when the engine is up to operating temperature. And, of course, if you’re checking fluid when the engine is warm, use extreme caution when loosening the radiator cap… or, better yet, let the engine cool down first.

Make sure you have the proper coolant for your engine.  Newer automobiles may require a specialized coolant.  Older engines normally take the basic blue stuff.  Read the labels closely.  At the parts store you’ll find full strength coolant or 50/50 mix.  While the half-n-half mix is cheaper you’re better off buying full strength coolant for the slightly higher price.  When you by 50/50 mix you’re paying a high price for the half of the gallon which is only water.  Use the coolant tester to check the freeze point for your engine’s coolant fluid.  We live in southern Missouri, so having our engines protected down to -10F is generally adequate. Adjust for your own area or places you’ll be traveling through during the coming winter months.

On any engines that’ll be sitting for periods of time, consider either draining the fluid from the tank, fuel line and, carburetor, or add Sta-bil or a similar fuel treatment to the tank and then run the engine for several minutes to work some of the fuel stabilizer through the fuel line and into the carburetor or fuel injectors.  But even if you use a fuel stabilizer, if you leave the vehicle or other engine out in the elements or an unheated building, there’s a chance the fuel can freeze and cause all manners of problems.  At least twice, that I can recall, I’ve purchased a piece of used machinery in the past only to discover a ruptured fuel line or fuel filter, or a damaged carb float caused by winter freezing of fuel.

In my automobiles and tractors, I’ll run a bottle of Heet or other fuel antifreeze/water remover through with a tank of fuel about every three months, especially during fall to spring.  I’m no scientist, but the explanation given is that the Heet attaches itself to water molecules in the fuel and help pull them through the system to be burned up in the combustion process.  If I have an engine that gets sluggish or hard to start during the winter, I’ll run a bottle of Seafoam or other fuel additive through it, then a couple of days later I’ll dump a bottle of Heet in the tank.

As for batteries, start off the winter by removing, cleaning, reinstalling, and properly tightening all battery connections.  Consider using the small felt washers (red and green) that are placed on battery posts beneath the connectors to help squelch acid and corrosion buildup.  A battery with a bunch of acid and corrosion on the top can fail you by losing stored voltage across the dirty surface.

Here are two simple home remedies for cleaning the top of that battery.  The first is Coca-Cola, the same kind you pour over ice in a tall glass to quench your thirst.  The second is to mix up a tablespoon full of baking soda in a glass of water.  Now slowly pour either over the top surface of the battery.  You’ll see the liquid react with the dirty surface and bubble as it neutralizes the acid residue on the battery.  The only thing to be aware of is, if the battery is not “sealed” and has removable caps on the acid chambers, that the caps are tightly secured.  Any soda finding its way into the chambers of the battery could neutralize the acid inside and kill its ability to take and hold a charge.

If you suspect your battery is failing, check the voltage at the positive and negative posts while not under a draw, otherwise known as being “at rest”.  The “resting” voltage of a 12-volt battery should read at least 12.8 volts.  With the engine running and the alternator or generator charging, the battery should show about 14.0 to 14.5 volts.  If the charging voltage is reading normal, but the battery won’t hold a charge and the at-rest voltage reading is lower than 12.4-12.8, it’s likely the battery has failed.  If the voltage reading is not up to snuff when the engine is running you’re looking at a fouled or loose connection, or more likely a failing charging system.

Preparing Machinery for Winter: Other Engines

For 2-cycle engines that require a fuel/oil mix, consider dumping the fuel if the engine won’t be used during the winter, as in the case of gas trimmers or 2-cycle tillers.  For engines using a fuel/oil mix that will be used throughout the winter—such as chainsaws—empty the old fuel (in an environmentally-friendly manner) and start with a fresh mix.  I use Sta-bil in all my fuel systems—both 2- and 4-cycle—except for vehicles I drive regularly year-round.

As a kid, a part of getting ready for every spring fishing season involved disassembling the fuel line, filter, and carb on Dad’s 9-horse Evinrude outboard to dig out the gummed up green, rancid fuel which had sat unused throughout the winter.  It was a tedious task done on the evening before we were set to fish for the first time each year, and could have been eliminated if we’d simply properly drained the fuel system in the fall.  But nowadays fuel stabilizers help keep those issues at bay without having to drain the systems completely.

Since all of my smaller engines are on equipment without hours-of-use counters or odometers, I make a point of doing basic tune-ups at the start of the busy season for each machine.  That means new spark plugs for chainsaws, a snow blower, the generator, and the ATV I use for fall and winter hunting and hauling firewood from the woodpile to our furnace woodbox.  In the spring I’ll install new spark plugs in mowers, the weed trimmer, the tiller, and power washer.  Spark plugs for small engines usually run $1-$3 each… cheap insurance to keep the little engines running most efficiently.

Preparing Machinery for Winter: Other Equipment

In the fall, I’ll sharpen all my chainsaw chains, my axes and splitting maul, and the hatchet I carry in my chainsaw box in case I make the mistake of getting a chainsaw bar pinched in a limb or trunk while sawing.  I’ll also touch up the edge, as needed, on my snow shovels.

In the spring, I do the same thing to the garden implements, the mower blades, and the blade I use on my gas trimmer for cutting saplings and thick brush throughout the summer months.

Invest in a couple of good-quality coarse and fine flat-files for blades, and the correct round file for the size teeth on your chainsaw chains.  Another great tool for touching up sharp edges is a “puck” sharpening stone.  These stones are shaped like a hockey puck and about the same size but with tapered edges.  Such a stone is ideal for finish sharpening of all kinds of equipment blades.

Another necessary tool to maintain your own equipment is a good grease gun.  Keeping pivot points, ball joints, and other potential friction points adequately lubed can save a lot of money over a decade or more.  I also keep a tube of multi-purpose penetrating oil in the top of my toolbox for lubing smaller joints and pivot points on all kinds of equipment.

The last thing to mention on seasonal maintenance is to check belts and hoses at the start of each use season.  Handle the belts and hoses and look closely for dry-rot cracks, or fraying or cuts caused by the belts or hoses rubbing against harder surfaces during use.

Admittedly, the list is lengthy, but remember that’s for maintaining more than a dozen pieces of equipment with engines and several hand tools.  Most of the tasks are relatively easy if done when you want to, not when you need to—while the snow is blowing and the winter darkness is everywhere, and you have to get that motor started and that task completed.

Read “Part Three: The Animals”

Many of the items discussed in this article can be found at Amazon.com.  Purchases made through this link help pay for content on Homestead.org.

As an Amazon Associate, Homestead.org earns from qualifying purchases.

The post Preparing the Homestead for Winter, Part Two: The Machinery appeared first on Homestead.org.

Admit it, we all feel that nesting instinct as soon as we set foot on our raw land and immediately start to look around for a suitable home-site. The toolbox calls to us with a Siren Song and we can’t pass a lumberyard without going in, “just to see what’s on special”. But many homesteaders lament their lack of building and design skills and are afraid of messing things up. Actually, it’s not their lack of skills that’s the problem, it’s that they are thinking too big, too soon. The solution is to think small and simple. You don’t really need a full bathroom and all those plumbing skills.

Our ancestors made do with an outhouse or a potty chair and you can still get quite reasonably clean with a bowl and pitcher. You don’t have to have granite countertops and a refrigerator and that Italian farm sink. A tin dishpan and a tea kettle of hot water will wash the dishes and the food tastes just as good prepared on a plain pine table top. And there is nothing cozier than a built-in cupboard bed, piled with quilts, and a view out the window on a crisp clear November morning. So, just as an exercise in building, let’s see what the basic necessities should be and how we can most simply accommodate them.

First of all, I’m going to make a few assumptions. I’m going to assume you have some source of water. It might be a creek or spring or a fully functioning well, or you might have a generous neighbor like I do, that allows you to come over, once a day, to fill your three, five-gallon gas cans. You would be surprised how far that 15 gallons will go, if you’re careful and sensible about its use, particularly if you have to tote it home, uphill, on a blisteringly hot day in August. The second thing you will really want to have is some form of power.

I can hear you purists already clucking your tongues and I know how our ancestors made do with a hammer and saw and a good ax… blah blah blah…. And that’s fine, if you are 21, built like a Greek God, and have all the time in the world. But many of us aren’t in the prime of youth and the main idea is to build something quickly to get ourselves settled in, so we can tackle more important jobs. Building and remodeling is considered one of the most stressful events a couple can endure. Imagine how much more stressful it will be when you are trying to cut a sheet of plywood with a handsaw in the middle of the woods and the sweat is pouring down your face and the plywood keeps moving. You will NOT be whispering sweet nothings in your dear one’s ear. So, do yourself a favor, swallow your purist pride and get some electricity. I was blessed with an existing pole and hookup and I have never regretted my early relationship with the local power co-op. If permanent power isn’t a possibility, then rent, buy, or borrow a generator for the week or two that you will be working on this first shelter. Trust me it’s worth every penny. End of lecture.

The Bare Necessities

Let’s make a list of the essential activities and necessities that your little house will need:

1) A PLACE TO SLEEP AND RELAX. A separate bedroom is nice, but it’s a luxury. A good comfortable bed in the corner is more than sufficient. Our first bed in Missouri was a 4×8 platform of plywood and 2x4s, nailed up in a corner and supported by one 4×4 post. It was just big enough for a full-sized mattress. With plenty of quilts, we were warm as toast in the winter and in the summertime, we slept cool as cucumbers by opening the window over the bed and leaving the front door open. Cross ventilation is your friend and it doesn’t cost a penny. And that bed piled high with cushions will do double duty as a sofa during the day. A rod and some curtains around the bed will ensure a bit of privacy and add to the winter warmth as well. Add a little shelf for your glasses, the alarm clock and a good book or two and you’re snug as a bug.

2) A PLACE TO PREPARE AND STORE FOOD. A separate kitchen is nice but, again, not a necessity. What you do want is a solid, comfortable, flat surface to work on that is handy to the stove. This can be as simple as a wide board shelf on heavy-duty metal brackets or a plain old kitchen table. The table is a good idea, as it can do double duty for dining, but let me urge you to invest in a few old kitchen cabinets. Used kitchen cabinets aren’t hard to come by and even a few new ones are not all that expensive if you buy them unfinished. A six-foot sink counter will do the trick. Adding a couple of uppers or a few open shelves will give you a basic kitchen. Remember to have some drawers for all those little kitchen things. You can get a used stainless sink for a couple bucks and it’s easy enough to set it in the counter and run a drain out through the wall or floor, or just let it drain into a slop bucket. You can also make do with a couple of dish pans. Give yourself some closed food storage as well. Two or three old upper cabinets stacked on top of one another in a corner make an excellent pantry.

3) COOKING AND HEATING. You will need a stove of course. If you don’t have power, then it will have to be propane or more likely a wood stove, that will do double duty as a heat source. Suit yourself. But if you do have power, there is nothing like a real range with an oven. At least get a microwave, a good electric skillet and crockpot, a coffee maker and a toaster. Anyone who made it through four years of college in a dorm room knows how much cooking you can do with these five basic electric appliances. Yes, I’m aware the Ingalls family didn’t have a crockpot, but the idea is to provide decent food with a minimum of trouble in that first homestead. You have better things to do than spend three hours cooking a meal, when you barely have a roof over your head. At the end of a day shingling the barn in the rain, a hot crockpot meal is going to taste mighty good at suppertime.

4) CLOTHES STORAGE. I don’t have much use for closets, particularly in a tiny shelter, where square footage is at a premium. You probably won’t have brought your Chanel evening gowns or your Versace suits, so you really don’t need hanging space. A better and simpler solution is to store your clothing in drawers or bins built in under the bed. Face it, your wardrobe is going to be fairly simple and sturdy and won’t need careful storage. If you can’t manage under-bed storage, invest in a good chest of drawers or chest on chest. They provide plenty of storage and take up a minimum of floor space. And stay away from chests or trunks. Invariably what you want will be at the bottom of the chest and the flat top will attract all kinds of stuff that has to be moved before you can open the chest and start hunting for your wooly socks. A good chest of drawers is a godsend. Why do you think so many came west on the back of a covered wagon?

5) BATHING/TOILET SPACE. Outhouses and outdoor showers are perfectly reasonable solutions to this daily need as long as the weather is pleasant, but if you can manage a little indoor space, that doesn’t require a jaunt through sub-zero weather, I urge you to do it. A space as small as 5 x 5 will give you room for a sawdust toilet and a simple washstand. A floor drain, that will send the gray water outside, will let you take a primitive bucket shower and a thick mat over the drain in winter, will keep the cold air out. If you want something a bit more upmarket, buy an invalid potty chair. It’s a rare general auction that won’t have one of these “barely used” on offer and you often see them at yard sales or at Goodwill. One size generally fits all and when you’re done, you just empty the pot into the handy slit trench you dug way out back, give the pot a rinse and return it to the potty chair. If you are the fastidious sort, you can make a slipcover for the potty chair and a matching cushion like I did and the necessaire becomes a charming piece of bedroom furniture. It’s a good thing.

6) WORKSPACE AND TOOL STORAGE. Your little house should definitely include a covered work area and a place to store all your tools and other equipment in a way that is handy but not necessarily in the living space. An attached tool shed with an outside entrance and a door into the house space will make a handy mudroom and allow you to keep your living space relatively neat. Closed and secure tool storage is a given and if you can manage some covered workspace, do so. A good wide porch or open-end dogtrot will suit the purpose. Either will make a shaded place to work and live in warm weather, as well as keep you dry and out of the cold and snow in the winter. It will give you a place to store dry firewood, hang the wash and do all the messy jobs involved in homesteading. And don’t be skimpy. There is nothing worse than a narrow porch. In my book, 8 feet wide is the minimum. Give yourself room to work and a space for a bench or rocker where you can enjoy the view and the good clean air. You’ve earned it.

Now that we have a list of basic necessities, let me show you a few simple plans that will fill your needs. These houses can all be built using ordinary carpentry tools and require only the most basic skills. You can build on a foundation, or piers if you want to, but the easiest way will be to use a modified pole building method. Pole building is about as basic as it comes and you really have to try hard to screw it up. If you can dig a hole, set the posts, and square up the four corners, you’re pretty much home free. Pole buildings are fairly forgiving of small mistakes in laying out. The whole thing won’t come tumbling down if the corners aren’t quite square. Remember the first rule of Do-It-Yourself:

Don’t Worry… The Trim Will Hide It

The building sequence is pretty much the same for any of the plans I will show you. Essentially, you are going to build a deck supported on posts and then build conventionally framed walls between the posts. The posts and walls will support the rafters for the roof. Single sloped shed roofs are the easiest to build, but it doesn’t take much expertise to build a gable roof. Anything fancier is just showing off.

1) Lay out the building on the ground, marking the position of the corners and all the posts. Dig the holes deep enough to be below the frost line if you have one or at least deep enough to support the pole safely or until you hit the first really big rock. It really is amazing that you can stand a 14 foot, 4×4 post in a hole that is less than 3 feet deep and keep it plumb, square, and secure enough to support your building. Remember you are not building for the ages here.

2) Set the posts in concrete or dirt, whichever method you prefer. The posts should be treated unless this is a very temporary structure. 4×4 posts are the easiest to use and are sufficiently strong for most applications. 5×5 posts are nice if you are planning a second story or very high ceilings, but the larger posts are extremely heavy and hard to move without a few extra hands. Only use the big posts if you need them for structural strength.

3) Attach the rim joists to the posts with lag screws or 16-penny nails, suitable for use in pressure-treated lumber. I generally use pressure-treated joists because I build close to the ground. If you build your platform more than a foot off the ground, you can probably get away with no- treated lumber, which will, of course, be cheaper. Most of these structures are so small they won’t need support beams under the floor joists. I always use 2×10 floor joists and they can usually manage a span of fewer than 14 feet without a beam underneath.

4) Hang your floor joists on two-foot centers, using standard joist hangers. I use offcuts from the 2×10 joists as blocking between the joists, at least one block every 6-8 feet, staggered for ease of nailing. The blocking keeps the joists from twisting or bouncing.

5) Lay out your plywood sub-floor; glue and nail it down securely. I always use ring-shank nails. If you are using planks, instead of sheet goods, for your sub-floor, make sure to stagger the joints and forget the glue.

6) The rest of the method is basic conventional framing. Lay out the sills and mark them for studs on 16-inch centers. Frame the wall sections to fit between the posts. Frame the usual openings for doors and windows. Sheath the exterior walls with plywood, OSB, or sheet siding. Sheath over the door and window openings and cut them out later.

7) The simplest roof structure will be a single slope shed roof. Mark out the rafter placement on the top plate with 16” centers. If you don’t plan to insulate the roof, you can use 2’ centers for your rafters. Nail the first and last rafter in place with the necessary overhang. Nail up the fascia boards on each end and use them to place the remaining rafters. If you are going to shingle the roof, sheath the roof with boards, osb, or plywood and cover it all with black roofing paper. Nail up the metal drip edge and shingle the roof in the usual manner. If you are going to use metal roofing, the method is slightly different. Once the rafters are set, nail up the 2×4 purlins across the rafters, placing the purlins on 2’ centers. Lay out the metal roofing sheets and screw them down according to the manufacturer’s instructions. You can leave the roof overhang open, if you aren’t concerned about heat loss or insects. If you need to winterize the structure, close the overhang with soffits or put blocking between each set of rafters, above the top plate of the walls. If you prefer to do a gable roof, the easiest way is with purchased pre-made trusses. They come in various sizes and are relatively inexpensive and easy to install. If you aren’t well versed in laying out and cutting rafters, trusses will save you a lot of headaches. They can also be placed on wider centers if you are using the purlin and metal roofing method. The lumberyard will help you choose the proper size, number, and placement. Once the roof is on, you are practically home free.

8) Install all doors and windows on the exterior.

9) If you have chosen to rough sheath your building and then put siding over it, now is the time to do the siding and trim work. Once the exterior is completely closed in, caulked, and ready for paint, you can go on with the interior work.

10) The interior finish can be as simple, or as elaborate, as you like. If you plan to wire the building, now is the time to do it. Keep the wiring simple. A single circuit for the lighting system should be more than adequate. A single circuit for the kitchen area will probably be sufficient if you don’t have any large electrical appliances, but it might be best to split the plugs in the kitchen area between two separate circuits, and extend each circuit into other areas of the house. If you plan on having an electric range, you will need to put it on a separate 220 circuit. A separate circuit for a full-sized refrigerator is also a good idea. Just remember to keep the electrical system as simple as possible. With care and a good book on basic wiring, you should be able to manage it all nicely. However, unless you have done it before, I suggest you hire an expert to install the panel box and hook up your circuits. The power company will naturally take care of the connection to the main line. All this is moot however, if you plan to be off-grid and use kerosene lamps or candles and cook on a wood stove. This is also the time to do any plumbing you may have in mind. You probably won’t be installing running water and the drains should be as basic as possible.

11) Insulate the building well if you plan to occupy it in cold weather. Fiberglass batts are the cheapest way to go. Two people working together can easily cut and install the batts necessary for a small structure in a day or at most two. It’s easiest if you measure and cut a number of batts first and then install them. You will be warm as toast in no time.

12) If climate or aesthetics aren’t an issue, the interior walls can be left open to the framework, but most will choose to put up some sort of finished wall surface. Conventional drywall is quick and easy, and if you rough tape the seams and use textured paint, it will have a suitably rustic look. Pine boarding is just as easy. It’s really a question of personal taste and the depth of your pockets. Once the wall surface is up, you’re down to cabinets and fixtures and before you know it, the furniture will be in and you will be hanging the curtains and making the beds.

Now let’s take a look at the plans for a few structures that you can build with this simple method. Because I was inspired by Neil Shelton’s article about his visit to a dacha in Belarus, I have named this group of designs the Dacha series.

DACHA 1: This is the smallest and simplest of the designs at 368 sq.ft. It’s meant for a single person or a couple. There is a single main living space with a 10’ kitchen counter with a sink and open shelving. The sleeping platform is big enough for a queen-sized mattress and has room for built-in drawers underneath. There is a small room for a sawdust toilet or potty chair. A woodstove will provide heat and a place to cook. Double French doors open to a generous front porch. A tool house at the back provides additional storage space. Lofts can be built over the whole interior, just the bed and bath spaces or at the back. DACHA1 is shown with a gable roof and porch, but it could just as well be built with a shed roof on the main structure, the high side to the front and another shed roof on the porch. There are plenty of windows for light and ventilation.

DACHA 2: THE LONGEURE.* This plan is meant for a larger household. It has 672 sq.ft. , but this includes attached work and barn space. It has two sleeping rooms. The smaller room has a single bunk, but with sufficiently high ceilings, it could have double bunks for two children. There is drawer space under the lower bunk. The larger bedroom has a platform for a double bed with drawers underneath and the room is large enough for a chest of drawers and other small furniture. The central kitchen/living room has a 10-foot kitchen counter and space for a wood stove. There is a 6’x7’ bathroom and a 6’x10’ storage room that connects to the barn area. The barn has a large workspace, a stall for a goat or cow, and a small chicken house. It isn’t a big set-up but would be sufficient for the new homesteader just starting out. The front door is sheltered by a wide arbor, which will make a shady place to sit in the summer. It would be a simple matter to extend the barn in the future and loft space could be provided over the whole structure if taller poles were used and a second floor was framed.

*NB: A longeure is a French term for a house and barn combined into one long structure. It’s a common traditional house form all over France.

DACHA 3: THE DOUBLE DACHA. This design consists of two equal-sized, shed-roofed structures that face each other across a 20’ wide open courtyard. One structure has 3 sleeping spaces in it, two with double bunks and the usual drawers underneath for the children and the middle space, a double bed, intended for the parents. The second structure has a large kitchen living space and an adjoining storage room with a toilet closet. The central court can be fenced at either end to contain the children and keep them safe and it can be shaded by trees, an overhead arbor or a canopy strung on wires that can be opened and closed.

However, when the family has built a more permanent house, the double dacha is designed in such a way that it can be converted to a barn. The high front walls of the sheds facing the courtyard can be used to support trusses, which in turn can support a roof over the central court. The three sleeping spaces can be converted into stalls by removing the built-in bunks and the kitchen can become a workshop, summer canning kitchen or space for processing dairy goods. If the front posts on the original sheds are taller than the roof line and left to stand proud, like the false front of a store in the old west, there will be sufficient head-room when the court is roofed to allow for a hayloft. The ends of the central space can be enclosed with walls or standard sliding barn doors. The original homestead will now have a useful second life after the family has moved into a larger conventional home.

Every homesteader’s dream of a safe shelter for the family can be accomplished if they remember to keep the initial plans as simple and basic as possible. That first house should provide all the bare necessities, but few frills. It can be built easily and economically if you follow these few rules. The modified pole method will make it possible for even one person working alone to build a first home in perhaps a week’s time, if they are sensible and diligent about the work. Then the homesteader can stop and rest on the front porch in the twilight and dream about the big house they will build in the future. Meanwhile, the family is safe, warm, and secure. Supper is on the table and all is right with the world. What more could you ask for?

The post The Simplest House of All: The Dacha Series appeared first on Homestead.org.

You’ve got everything in the bag, except for one small detail: you’re homeless.  You’re also dirt-poor.

You’ve always dreamed of building your own home from hand-carved oak (plan A), but a quick check on the prices of lumber put that notion right out of your head.  Plans B and C (find a cheap mobile home or cut a house from sod, respectively) also did not work out.  Forlornly, you walk out into the field, admiring the gorgeous desert sunset, and kick at the dirt under your feet.

Then it hits you: you’re not dirt-poor.  You’re dirt-rich!  You don’t need wood or steel. You don’t even need to raise a herd of yaks, harvest their fiber, and weave a yurt cover (plan Y).

“Missus!” you call excitedly, throwing back the tent door.  “Do you still have finely muscled arms?”
“Why do you keep calling me ‘Missus’?” asks the Missus.  “My name is Barb.  But, yes.  My arms look amazing, thanks for noticing.”
“Excellent!” you say, picking her up and swinging her around. “Let’s build an earthbag home!”

What on Earth is an Earthbag Home?

An earthbag home is, simply put, a home made from bags of dirt.  Polypropylene bags are filled with a mixture of sand, clay, dirt, and gravel.  These long, tubular bags are then stacked to create walls and tamped firmly.  Barbed wire is placed in between each layer for stability.  To finish the walls, earthen plaster is applied inside and out.  Simple, amazingly stable, and dirt-cheap.

Given their (usually) domed shape and sometimes other-worldly appearance, earthbag homes have a bit of an unorthodox reputation.  We’ve grown so accustomed to houses made of wood, steel, and glass, that at first glance we may be tempted to dismiss the thought of an earthbag home as inferior.

But this is a mistake.  Properly done, earthbag homes can withstand earthquakes, last hundreds of years, regulate their own indoor temperature, and present quite a beautiful appearance.

Ancient structures made of mud can be found all over the world, and environmentally-conscious architects have been working to revive the old arts of mud construction.  Especially in hot, impoverished places, homes constructed of earth are a wonderful alternative.

As more homesteaders become interested in living off-grid, alternative shelter options for both people and animals have flooded the internet.  Earthbag homes (also called mud homes, earth ships, or superadobe) are rising in popularity.  From the YouTube family that has built an entire earthbag home on their homestead for each of their grown children, to the entrepreneurs who host summer-long workshops to offer hands-on experience in the mud, one could spend hours researching earthbag construction methods.  Given the versatility of dirt, you’re really only limited by the strength of your back and your imagination.  Some earthbag structures are not much more than a simple hut for storing food, while others rival Gaudi for intricacy of design.

Is an Earthbag Home Right for Your Homestead?

Before you go excitedly swinging your missus around, let’s make sure you know a few things about building an earthbag home.  The most important thing to consider is your environment.  Earthbag homes are NOT suited to damp places with wildly fluctuating temperatures or flooding.  The filling in the bags must start out and remain dry.  If moisture makes its way into the walls, you’ll be dealing with mold, deterioration, and shifting.

While simple in concept, building an earthbag home is a LOT of physical work.  The most strenuous part of the process is filling the bags with dirt and hoisting them in place, layer upon higher layer. If you don’t have finely muscled arms, you probably will by the time you move in.  As a desert environment is best suited to this type of home, you will probably find yourself doing this work in some pretty intense heat at times.

Most people will think you’re weird, and being the homesteader you are, you won’t care. But those people who issue building permits might find you so far-out that they refuse to allow your plans.  Besides the issues of permitting, the pressure to maintain a mainstream appearance might pose some setbacks.  Make sure you check the zoning laws, talk to some neighbors, and be wary of HOA zealots.  Entire documentaries have been made about the bureaucratic challenges some folks have faced as they seek to create homes from sustainable resources (check out Michael Reynolds‘ work in New Mexico).  Nevertheless, earthbag homes are becoming more common in the southwest United States, and they are officially allowed in Hawaii, California, Utah, Arizona, and Kentucky.

As the walls cannot be cut once they’re built, plumbing and electricity must be very carefully planned and executed.  For this reason, many earthbag homeowners choose to skip the amenities altogether.  This type of structure lends itself beautifully to thermal mass heating designs, fortunately, and can remain comfortable in both hot and cold weather.

Perhaps you’re still a little unsure about living in an earthbag home. Why not experiment with an outbuilding on your property?  Many folks have built muscle and honed their skills with small animal shelters, storage rooms, or work studios.  No pig is going to complain about the aesthetic of your awkwardly placed glass-bottle window.  And if you absolutely hate the final result, well, you’re only out the cost of some bags and barbed wire.

I have a feeling you will love the final result of your earthbag structure, though.  Be sure to pose for that American Gothic photo for me, and display those finely muscled arms.

The post Got Shelter in the Bag? Earthbag Homes on the Homestead appeared first on Homestead.org.

However, we found ourselves continuously tweaking the design to incorporate new features aimed at making tending our flock a little bit easier.  Recently, we were asked to design and build a chicken coop for our vegetable CSA farm.  We looked at our original design and all the features we added over the last five years.  We also considered how we ended up with our current design because not all of those new features worked out the first time.  There was some (read: a lot) of trial and error.  While the chicken coop at our CSA farm benefited from our years of continuous improvements, it occurred to me that it would have been nice to incorporate some of these improvements from the start or at least know why some coops are designed a certain way.

This is by no means an exhaustive summary of all chicken-coop design consideration, but, instead, some of the things we found important to our lifestyle.  With busy schedules, running our own consultancies, going to night school, and keeping neighbors content about chickens in an urban setting, these features turned out to be essential for simplifying our chicken-keeping lives.  For us, things like quick cleanability, easy access to coop and run areas for servicing, sealing for pests and predators, winterization, and automation were important to us.  In case of that extended vacation, we also wanted it to be uncomplicated for our neighbors to take care of the chickens.  To us, that meant daily egg collection with minimal servicing needs.

Before starting on your own chicken coop design project, decide what kind of coop fits your needs.  I put coop styles into three categories—tractors, stationary, and free-range.

Well, the last is not so much of a coop design, but it is a choice on how to maintain your flock.  It is possible to provide minimal protection for your chickens and allow them to free range in a backyard.  They will destroy any unprotected gardening and are susceptible to predators like large birds, coyotes, and even neighborhood pets.  Keep in mind, chickens fly, but do not take flight.  They can easily jump and flap their way over a 4-6-foot barrier.  In an urban setting with coyotes and large birds near a throughway with no yard fence, free-range was not an option for us.

A tractor coop is a chicken coop on wheels that is easily moved from place to place to provide chickens with a fresh patch of ground to feed and scratch in.  These are great if you are looking for a way to use your chickens for aerating soil, but it is not for manicured lawns.  It is tempting to build a tractor “just in case” you might want to move it, but parts that are supposed to move may no longer move after long, stationary periods out in the elements.  Rubber wheels, lubricated bearings, and axles can degrade from exposure causing irreversible damage.  So, only build a tractor if you plan to use it and maintain it.

Stationary coops are best if you are looking for a semi-permanent structure that might be moved periodically. They lack wheels and a foundation is not necessary for a backyard flock.  An open bottom gives the birds access to the ground for scratching and pecking.  Most are not permanent structures and they can be moved periodically as needed.  We added four sturdy handles to allow four strong people to move the coop across the backyard with only a modest effort.

We have eight raised beds and getting a tractor onto those beds is just not practical, so we have a stationary coop.  However, we do want our chickens to aerate our beds, eat vine-borer grubs, and leave some fertilizer.  In addition to composting the bedding and soil, we pen our hens on each bed at the start of the season.

The needs of backyard hens are pretty basic.  Industrial chickens operations take this notion to an extreme, but once chickens have access to food and water with some protection from the elements and predators, the rest of the coop design is about convenience for owners.  Chickens will lay eggs anywhere.  The nesting area is a space to encourage chickens to lay eggs so we can easily find them.  We do not walk our chickens on a leash.  The run is an area where they get fresh air, scratch and peck and hunt for worms off-leash.  They do not sleep in our house; the coop keeps the chickens safe at night protected from predators and elements.

Our original coop design is pretty straightforward.  The 8’ by 4’ footprint is framed by 2”x4”s.  The cuts were selected to maximize lumber usage such as completely using a 12′ board with 8’ and 4’ cuts or two 6’ cuts.  The center-peaked roof uses a single sheet of plywood as do the coop and nesting walls.  The nesting box was built separately with an internal frame allowing it to be screwed onto the main coop.  It is divided into three 12” x 12” x 12” spaces, which is more than ample for four hens. The run and the coop are accessed through simple hinged doors for cleaning and servicing. The nesting box is easily accessed through a hinged lid for egg collection and cleaning.  The perches were made from 2”x2” fencing.  We used galvanized dryer vents for coop ventilation. 

We were advised that our neighborhood is frequented by coyotes, raccoons, and large predatory birds, so, we implemented several features for predator protection.  To keep raccoons from reaching into the enclosure, the run was enclosed with ½” by ½” hardware cloth stapled every six inches.  We gave our hens a safe, enclosed coop to sleep in and added a nested, sliding, garage door to close them in the coop at night.  The garage door was manually operated with a rope and cleat requiring the coop to be closed at night and opened in the morning.

Our flock would often decide to sleep on the perches in the run.  Whether this was because they could not see well enough to get into the coop or they just wanted to enjoy the fresh air, sleeping outside thwarted the multi-layered nighttime defenses from predators.  So, one of the first features we added was a coop light.  We simply plugged in the light at night and unplugged it when we closed the coop door.

However, given our chickens are not so interested in sleeping in, ever.  We found getting up early to open the coop cut into our weekend.  So, we decided to automate not only the coop door, but also the light.  While we were at it, we also added a socket for a screw-in heater inside the coop.  Automating the light was a simple matter of adding a mechanical timer switch.  For the heater, we used a simple temperature controller.  When the coop temperature drops below 40°F, the heater automatically kicks in to keep the coop warm.  To automate the door, we opted to buy a commercial coop motor and timer.

Our most recent change swapped a heated waterer with an automatic waterer.  The heated waterer proved to be a necessity for New England winters, but keep in mind, they need electricity.  The automatic waterer simple device has a gravity activated valve and it screws into a water hose. When the waterer is full, the valve shuts off the water.  As it falls low, the valve opens.

Now, the coop door opens at 6:00 AM and closes at 10:00 PM; the light turns on at sunset and off at 11:00 PM; the heat turns on at 40°F and there is a constant supply of fresh water.  Of course, the automation did not get installed without a few hiccups.

On a few occasions, we found the glass infrared-heater shattered.  It appears our chickens like to peck at it.  We have since replaced that with a ceramic heater.  We opted to build our own garage door out of wood.  Wood does not slide against wood really well, so it took several adjustments and a few failure-to-opens to get it moving consistently.  Wood also changes with weather and time, so there are additional tweaks with seasons.  To avoid this tweaking, we will purchase a commercial door, slides, motor, and timer for our CSA farm.  There are several all metal options available for this.

We only just installed the automatic waterer last month.  It seems simple enough, but it did involve new valves and splitters at our water hose.  We also learned there is a sweet-spot to the valve adjustment.  An improperly adjusted valve causes the water to either continuously flow or never fill.  I also expect winter to present some new challenges as well; freezing may send us back to the heated waterer.

Since we had not anticipated adding so much automation, the coop did not have a protected space for some of the equipment.  We decided to turn one of our nesting boxes into a utility closet.  The utility closet houses electrical outlets with a breaker switch and the mechanical and electrical timers.  Even if you do not plan to automate your coop to this extent, you should consider how electricity may be accessed and the rules in your municipality.  You might also consider options like solar panels which are also available with automated coop doors.

All that automation may sound like a lot of work, but ultimately, it simplified our lives tremendously.  Not only did it allow us to get extra shut-eye, but it also made traveling easier to manage.  Except for collecting eggs, the chickens no longer needed daily service.

The automation also made it easy for neighbors of all ages to take care of our chickens when we were away.  As a matter of fact, it made neighbors happy to take care of our chickens when we were away.  For some reason, the simple responsibility of opening the door and turning on the light made some neighbors a little nervous about caring for the chickens.  What if they forget?  What if they do something wrong?  What if the chickens need something more?  After automation, the task seemed less daunting.  It was more of a daily egg treasure-hunt than a daily chicken chore.

Since kids at the CSA farm were going to be taking on the chicken chores, we realized we could make it easier to clean the coop.  The indoor coop is off the ground to prevent nighttime predators from simply digging under the coop.  Since the area under the coop is part of the run, the footprint is also used more efficiently.  However, the best feature is the slid out floor allowing quick coop cleaning.  Our original design was a framed piece of plywood that slides through the coop door (see photo).  This worked great and was really simple, but cleaning was not as easy as it could be.   The floor must be slide all the way out or tipped up to clean.  The hidden nooks and crannies around the frame could also house pests and dirt that are hard to remove.  For the new design, we opted for a piece of plywood cut to size with a grab handle.  Without the frame around the edges, the floor only needs to be pulled out about a foot and the dirty coop materials are quickly swept into the run.  Six-year olds are doing this.

For the nesting boxes, the stand alone internal frame design was easy to assembly, but it created a low wall between the coop and the nesting boxes.  This is not a big deal, but it does trap some material in the nesting boxes during cleaning.  The new coop was made with an external frame and a slanted floor.  This eliminated the low wall and allows the nesting material to be easily swept into the coop for cleaning.

The final improvement we made for the cleanability of our coop was sealing the interior surfaces better.  We found out the hard way how many little critters can build a home in every nook and cranny inside the coop.  And during a cold winter, a warm coop is a very attractive place for a critter to squat.  Last winter brought on a pretty nasty mite invasion in our coop and ultimately, on our chickens.  After a deep cleaning in the coop to rid it of mites, we added generous coating polyurethane to all surfaces and caulked all corners with silicone.  This generous coating of polyurethane and well sealed corners now allows us to periodically hose out the whole thing.

Now, cleaning the coop and feeding the chickens takes around 20-30 minutes a week.  Additionally, since it is so easy to clean the coop, we do it more often and more thoroughly.  This keeps infestations at bay and our chickens healthier.  The cleanliness and lack of smell also keeps our neighborhood happier.

On somewhat of a whim, we built a chicken coop and bought a small flock of chickens five years ago.  It has been a lot of fun and a great learning experience.  As you can see, it is an ever-evolving process, but each new improvement makes keeping chickens a seamless part of our life except we get much tastier eggs for it!

The post Designing A Chicken Coop: A Work in Progress appeared first on Homestead.org.

While many of the farmsteads are now abandoned, and the descendants of those farmers dispersed, the churches remain.  Some struggle on with few in attendance, led by a minister who has driven from a central town.  Clergy and parishioners find it disheartening and often beyond their financial abilities to keep a small church maintained.  Many parishes close those little churches, but too often the habitués of the pews do not choose to journey to the town church.

Most church-goers would agree that the small church has to be more than a place to sit for an hour on Sunday.  It is meant to be more than building or a meeting place, or even a gathering of like-minded people; the church has a mission to the world, no matter how small the local gathering may be.

But small churches do need to close, more often than desired.  No minister can be found, or the local population cannot afford to maintain the building.  Isolated buildings may be sold for less than market value; some may be transferred to new ownership for almost nothing.

Churches are interesting structures in themselves, especially the older ones of a century or more.  They are usually timber frame, open to the roof, big spaces for the overall dimensions of the building.  Steeples provide a panoramic view of the countryside, if access is still possible.  Anyone who has spent much time in a country church has daydreamed of the possibilities of using such a space.

The negatives of re-using a church building are that it is probably not insulated, has inadequate heating, plumbing, and kitchen facilities, and may be in a very exposed location, or on poor soil.  My experience with rural churches is that a hundred years or more ago, whoever donated the land for the building was fairly certain the situation was not amenable for anything else.

For a year or so, I attended a colonial-era church, Old Wye Episcopal Church, in Talbot County, Maryland.  It had been restored after World War II, after falling into disrepair in the previous century, and used as a sheep barn.  This is not the sort of use most parishes want to see for a repurposed church building!

In my journeys around New England and Canada, I saw old churches re-used as stores, in a range from thrift stores to antique stores, as studios, tea rooms, workshops, and nightclubs.  The most successful renovations were those used as homes.

Church buildings are sometimes listed by real estate agencies.  There are agents who specialize in church buildings, (loopnet.com, churchrealty.com) but the smaller, isolated, local buildings may be only listed with an area real estate agent, or even just advertised within the denomination.  If an apparently unused church catches one’s eye, it is best to stop in and ask a neighbor to the building.  Rural people know what is happening in their area in more depth than a real estate agent in a nearby town or even in the denomination’s home office.

Buying an old church, no matter what the price, is a more serious undertaking than buying most buildings.  Local people may have a strong attachment to the building as the place where they were baptized, taught, married and said goodbye to loved ones.  Local history may attach significance to a church.  The secular use of a church may offend some neighbors.  A sensitivity to what people remember of that building may influence what potential use the church may have.  Many people were offended when a surplus Methodist chapel was used as a nightclub.  Even the conversion of a church to a private community club offended others, when gambling was allowed in the club.

The process of offering a church for private use begins with a decision, usually made within the local church council, to close the church as a worship facility.  Some may get continued use for Sunday Schools or funeral chapels, but older buildings are expensive to maintain and heat, and eventually, a church council will decide they can no longer make use of the facility.  The church council and the denomination’s governing body will make a final decision.  Most denominations have a process for deconsecrating a church; that is, removing it from its original purpose for worship.   Often, church buildings are then torn down or sold for their components such as timber and windows, but one that is in fairly good structural shape may be offered for sale.  Anyone interested in an unused building that is not yet on the market may have to move fast if the structure is destined for demolition.

It is worth taking the time to get an appraisal from an architectural engineer before negotiations go much farther.  This is an expense, but much less expensive than the major repairs a deteriorating timber frame building will require.  It is best to avoid getting too romantically attached to an old church before purchase; many have been neglected for decades, with inadequate foundations and rot in the structure.  One can take it for granted that the roof will need to be replaced.

Very few older churches have been adequately insulated.  Stained glass windows are not thermally efficient, and are expensive to restore and maintain.  Water supply may be non-existent, or shared with other buildings.  Almost certainly, the septic system—if any—is antiquated.  Assume that the building is nothing but a shell that will need complete renewal and entirely new systems.  That lovely lofty ceiling will eat up both heat and cooling, because of basic Newtonian physics.  Choir lofts and balconies may require new support for safety reasons, and certainly if walls are to be erected in them.   Stairs to upper and lower reaches probably are narrow and dimly lit, with worn treads and possibly with no handrails.

Did I mention bats?

Not all church buildings have steeples.  Some may have separate bell supports, or attached bell towers, or none at all, having never had a bell.  Bells are problematic.  They are usually blessed objects, like altars.  They are not easy to remove, and may remain in the building.  The main problem is that they hang from wooden braces, and are exposed to the elements.   Unless these bell supports have been inspected and maintained, they inevitably rot and the bell comes tumbling down.  I knew a priest badly injured when his bell came through its support and hit him.

As for bats, I recommend a professional to remove and rehome the bats, if possible, and another professional to clean up the guano.

Despite all the trouble and expense in repurposing an old rural church, it can be a meaningful place to make a new life.  As a studio for an artist, stained glass artisan, weaver or luthier, the light-filled space and sense of peace are inspirational.  As a home, a lot of beautiful space can be had for sweat equity.

An old church has all the spacious proportions of an industrial loft apartment, without having to live in a  city.  It has the grace and antiquity of an old barn, without the animal smells.  (Old Wye Church excepted.) Many of my church-going friends said they would love to live in an old church, circumstances allowing.  Even those who are not church-going say they would like to experience the history and art of living in a renovated church building.

Large urban churches are sometimes converted to condominiums or apartments, but since most rural churches are relatively small, seating 100-300 people at most, they are most suitable for single-family homes.  They are also suitable for green alternatives for heating, hot water, and electricity.  Lots of roof, usually oriented east-west (altars are traditionally in the east end of the church), solar panels and basic solar water heating are practical.  Many churches will have oil furnaces; I have served in a couple that still had wood-burning stoves.  With suitable foundations, a Nordic-style tulakivi would be an excellent source of heat and cooking surfaces.

How much of a conversion is needed depends entirely on the potential use and pocketbook depth.   Most rural churches will look great with natural materials for room dividers and flooring.  Old pews can be disassembled for wide boards for walls or furniture.  Pews are often sold separately, but in some areas, there may be very many already on the market, so it is worth negotiating for them if they are still in the building.  Most likely, other furniture will be removed, especially an altar.  But pulpits, lecterns, cabinets and even confessionals may be left behind, as impractical to move or sell.  Any consecrated items left behind (and usually nothing but an altar is truly consecrated) will have been deconsecrated, and are considered just furniture.

Sometimes a church to be sold will lose its stained glass windows; sold separately or moved to another church.  This is getting less practical with high expense for refitting or repairing windows.  True stained glass, of glass pieces fitting into a metal frame, is both long-lasting and incredibly delicate.  Good stained glass is expensive to maintain, as it needs regular tightening.

I would recommend getting an appraisal and repair estimate about stained glass before purchase.  Plexiglass panels are often fitted on the outside of stained glass windows to help protect and support them; again, if this has not been done, it can be a big expense.  They are, on their own, very drafty.  Painted “stained” glass is usually of regular window panes, but the glass may be old and thin.  Painted glass still needs some sort of storm window or plexiglass protective panel.  And just to let everyone know right now: do not clean painted glass with ammonia-based cleaners.  The detailing will dissolve.  Regular soap and hot water, followed by a soft, lint-free cloth is all that it needs.

Many older churches are basically a timber-frame shell into which the new owner will put rooms, appliances, and furnishings.  Some churches may actually have restrooms to which a shower or bath can be added, and a full kitchen.  Often these are commercial type kitchens.  Be prepared to deal with a monstrous black gas range and industrial sinks, or a tiny alcove with just the basics installed for meeting time coffee and sandwiches.  Churches are great repositories for outdated appliances and furnishings, and likely, no one is going to reclaim them before the sale.  I suggest checking the usability of all appliances that are conveying.

One of the oddities of buying an old church is that the purchaser and potential homeowner may be living with a cemetery in the yard.  Most denominations will not sell a building for re-use on that site if the cemetery is still in active use and they anticipate more burials there.  But some cemeteries have been closed for burials, and may be old enough that immediate family of the deceased no longer have a continuing interest.  I have lived in rectories with cemeteries surrounding the property and lawn.  This does not bother me.   But the idea may need good, hard consideration before undertaking.  An historic burial ground on one’s property probably needs to be fenced and notice posted that it is private property and permission must be obtained before entering.  And I hope it goes without debate that the graves should be left undisturbed, and the cemetery maintained with mowing and perhaps a little ornamental flower planting.  I would follow the English model of putting sheep in a fence on the cemetery.  They will keep it trimmed without damage, and are happy with a basic shelter off to one side.

A rural church is a symbol of peace and rest.  Often set in bucolic surroundings, a repurposed church building can be a refuge in the country.  The interior can be as elaborate and luxurious as one can afford; there is one big space to be creatively converted.  Or it can be plain, rustic, or beautifully stark.  Living with stained glass saints can be a way of keeping wonderful company.

Gimme Shelter (And I’d Like it to Look Like…a House, Please)

The post Rescuing Rural Churches appeared first on Homestead.org.

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Some people swear by meditation; others tout the virtues of cutting up your credit cards, or joining a cult, but for me simplifying life is all about fence.

That’s because a fence is all about keeping the critters out of your garden, keeping the neighbor’s critters out of your critters, and keeping your critters off the highway. However, merely securing the food supply, staying on good terms with folks up the road, and avoiding lawsuits aren’t the only things that fencing can achieve for you. Fence can mark your property boundaries, and in certain instances even become your boundaries. Keeping these things in mind, you can see that fencing may well be the most important construction on your property.

Fence can also cost a lot of money, but it doesn’t have to. As a rule of thumb, the lower the cost, the more maintenance is required. If you have a small garden spot you want to protect, then you might not mind doing a bit of routine maintenance to keep the groundhogs out of the greens, but if you have a few hundred yards of livestock fencing adjoining a busy highway, animal, and even human lives, can depend on your ability to keep your animals off the roadway 24/7/365.

Of course, there are about as many kinds of fence as there are fencing materials. (We’ve even seen a fence made out of old bicycles.) However, I’ve put together a collection of some of the more significant styles of fencing that might be of interest to the small landowner. The first group is timeless and cheap and the second group keeps your livestock out of traffic about as securely as the current state of the art allows.

Traditional Fencing

When you’re looking for ways to get by cheaply, there’s a lot to be said for looking at techniques that have been in use longer than money. Traditional fence methods make heavy use of the materials most readily at hand.

Stone

Arguably the first fencing material, stone endures in fences and walls, even if you have to replace a rock now and then. It’s easy to look at all the stone fences in Europe and New England and conclude that people these days simply don’t work as hard as they used to. That may be the case, or perhaps it’s just because stone fences can last for centuries, so there are a lot of them still around. At any rate, hard work notwithstanding, it’s a wonder to me that more landowners don’t build stone fences in places where rock is abundant.

Dry-masonry—the art of stone construction without mortar—has been practiced since before the time of the Great Pyramids. If you’ll just keep certain givens in mind, such as rain, ice, and frost-heave, you’ll find that you can, without gaining an excessive amount of education on the matter, construct rock walls that will contain sheep or cattle very well without great expense.

Although stone walls seem to be the epitome of immovable strength, they actually offer quite a bit of flexibility in that the shepherd or cattleman, rather than maintain some sort of movable gates, accesses the fields simply (or laboriously) by dismantling the wall where a gate is desired, moving the livestock from—say, the winter pasture to the summer pasture—then rebuilding the fence. When your life is measured in seasons rather than minutes, this would be a workable solution, but most applications require an easier/quicker gate than this.

Wattle

Wattle fencing is a technique so old and so simple that it has evolved independently all over the world. Over 6,000 years old, wattle fence involves placing stakes in the ground and weaving smaller branches or slats between them. It is the basis of the construction method called wattle and daub, which sounds like a Hobbit law-firm, but is actually wattle fencing covered with mud—concrete, morter, stucco, or whatever.

Wattle fence is basket-weaving in a single plane; it’s particularly handy for containing smaller animals, especially in dryer climates where the upright posts are less likely to rot in a season or two.

If you have lots of brush on your property, and a few crude tools, you can make wattle fencing for little or no cost. You’ll want to use green wood from flexible species like willow, bamboo, chestnut, or hazel for your wattle.

Split-rail

Split-rail is the fence of early America. Long-lasting, flexible in design, and effective, once you’ve done the seriously hard work of splitting the rails, you’ll have an enduring, low-maintenance fence that can be moved about according to your whims.

Rails are split from durable, straight-grained woods such as white oak or hickory. Unlike most of the photos you may have seen, log-splitting is not done with an ax, but with a splitting maul and steel wedges.

The rails are then arranged in a zig-zag pattern with a flat stone placed under each corner. Split-rail fencing has been used to contain all sorts of livestock, even boisterous, destructive, large hogs.

State-of-the-Art Modern Fencing

Traditional fencing is certainly unparalleled for low cost, but sometimes cost needs to take second place behind security, as, for example, when your pasture fronts on a busy highway. Not only are you at risk of losing your livestock, but stray animals on the roadway can easily cause an accident, placing you in considerable legal liability. Here are three types of modern fencing that can come as close to worry-free containment as you can probably hope for.

Electric Fence

It’s hard to beat a solar electric fence as a way to secure a small area. Theoretically, it needn’t be that small, as a single charger can electrify several miles of fence line. However, since the landowner needs to keep the fence from being shorted-out by weeds or fallen limbs, there is a practical limit to what can be maintained. Of course, how much maintenance is required depends on, among other things, how high off the ground the bottom wire will be. If used to keep livestock in, it doesn’t need to be that low, but if your fence is designed to keep small animals out—of the garden for example—it needs to be only two or three inches from the ground, so running a string-trimmer under the bottom line needs to be done every three or four days. A less-environmentally friendly technique would be to spray herbicide on the grass growing under the wires.

Using a solar fence charger and reusable t-posts means you can locate your fence as far from the house as you want since it makes its own electricity. I’ve had very good luck protecting my garden with three lines of hot wire: first, one about three inches off the ground, or the height of a groundhog’s nose; then another line at about eight inches off the ground, in case the ground-hog, or a rabbit, or squirrel, decide to jump the first line (although it’s true that after one bite from the fence, most critters get and stay far away from the area). Above that, around four feet from the ground, the third wire is about the height of a whitetail deer’s nose. The reason I “aim” for the nose is that the typical animal will first spy the white line of electric tape. His curiosity aroused, then he immediately moves in to investigate, which he first does by touching his nose to the hot tape. When a grown deer touches the tape, he’ll be out of sight and still running only a millisecond later, and most animals won’t be back to test the line again for a long while.

In days gone by, before electrical poly-tape was invented, steel wire was used. Wire works well enough at doing its job, but the poly-tape, besides being much easier to work with, is much more visible both to animals and humans, which is a definite benefit to both.

In case you’re wondering, electric fences are not harmful to animals as some city folks seem to think. If you want a good demonstration of this, simply grab hold of the hot wire/poly-tape yourself. You’ll find that this action will provide you with an indelible memory of your experience, yet you won’t be permanently harmed or altered in any way (other than perhaps deciding to stop taking my advice). Since the electricity comes in pulses, you’ll be able to let it go (and quite rapidly) which is another safety feature.

Once you’ve enjoyed all the direct current you need to come to this conclusion, you can test your fence in the future by pulling a blade of grass and holding it to the line. If everything is connected properly, you’ll feel a slight tingle, but not really a shock.

Welded-steel Corners and T-posts

Here’s a fence design that will contain everything from a (reasonably good-natured) 2,000-lb. bull to baby lambs. The photo below shows one strand of barbed-wire over a 48” woven-wire, but this strong framework will support any sort of wire fencing, and will last for the rest of your life in most conditions. The posts, in this case 5” steel pipe and t-posts, are driven into the ground and braces and caps are welded in place.

After the wire is stretched taut with winches or hydraulics, this results in a very strong fence.

In the past, cattle fences were made with wooden posts and fewer lines of barbed-wire. Some old fences only consisted of two strands of wire, but those were simpler times when a stray animal wasn’t that much cause for concern, and local laws tended to support free range. These days, five lines of barbed-wire is the rule for cattle fence, and six lines and up are used more and more.

Some animals are just naturally hard to fence in, particularly goats who are curious, smart, dexterous, and quite a pain when they learn the weakest points in a fence. But there’s a solution: here’s a photo of a fence that’s designed to hold in both cattle and goats. Goats are a particular problem because their tendency to climb things breaks down woven wire, so if this use of 11 strands of barbed-wire seems pricey, it is less so compared with the welded-wire fence that goats would normally require. Notice the use of rigid hog-panel to keep the goats from climbing over the stone cairn.

Of course, there are lots more types of fence. Many types are suggested by readily available materials; in the American west, where the stone is such that it’s possible, they make fence posts for barbed-wire out of long shards of the native rock. Then there are the living fences fashioned from dense, thorny growing plants like hedge-apple (Maclura pomifera) that can be maintained for generations. Whatever style or type you choose, will be a major improvement to your property, and you’ll sleep easier at night.

The post Nothing Simplifies Rural Life Like Fencing appeared first on Homestead.org.

We have a house we are selling.

Our next step is to move all our stuff and us over TO the land and build our home.

Although we love to camp, and in recent history here in Texas, we could lay out all of our stuff in the naked meadow after June 1st without fear of a raindrop touching it before October, some sort of shelter seems prudent.

*This article is not about LIVING in a Ger (yurt), but about the choosing, research and shopping end of the process. The assemblage and living part is another story…

Unless you have found a place with a home already on it (my last two homesteads have been one of these), or have a lot of money lying idle and can afford to build your new house while living in your old house (I’ve heard some people can actually do this, although no one in my social circle can claim such high finance), you’ll be faced with the dilemma of where to live in the “between time”.

Mainstream Americans put most of their stuff in storage and either rent a place for the 6-8 months it takes for their builder to put up their house, or buy a little mobile home and set it out yonder while the builder does his thing then have it hauled off when they are done. A few daring folks will live in a camper, and a few will move in with relatives.

None of these options are open to us because:

No one in their right mind would rent to someone with over 100 critters

Mobile homes come equipped with things like appliances and kitchen counters—things we are bringing with us and it would be redundant to put ours in storage while paying for theirs

We don’t have access to a camper, plus, with our health issues and the time it will take to build our permanent house, more room and comfort will be necessary to keep a semblance of sanity

We really want to maintain good relations with our relations. This requires a respectful distance at all times.

And our plans are to build our permanent house. Not “hire a builder, choose a plan and pick out colors and faucets” kind of building. More of a “design it out on graph paper, accumulate the supplies, learn and assemble as we go” sort of building. So our timeline is a little different. My conservative estimate is five years from start to finish, paying as we go. Granted, life may get in the way of this plan and cause it to be amended, but that’s the plan today, and we’re sticking to it.

After hearing “So what’re ya’ll gonna do? Live in a tent?” for the thousandth time from friends and acquaintances, Ward looked at me and said, “You know, I’ve always thought yurts were neat”.

Thus began “YurtQuest”.

How We Began Buying a Yurt

(Adding being very aware that we are, in fact, sitting front row/center of Tornado Alley, we will not be moving into our yurt without first having in place a storm shelter. We may be eccentric, but we ain’t crazy)

Yurts are the traditional homes of nomadic tribes who make their livelihood following their flocks across a forbidding landscape. A yurt is designed to be a permanent, movable home, which only sounds contradictory. The original yurts (Mongolian Gers) are assembled from local materials (saplings, cotton cloth and lots and lots of felted wool) and have been fine-tuned over the last 3,000 years or so to be cool in the hot summer sun, warm in the frigid winters, as well as stay upright and strong through the flat line winds coming from the steppes.

Here in the US, yurts have been adjusted, updated and built large scale by three companies: Pacific Yurts, Ranier, and Colorado Yurts.

All three come recommended by actual American yurt-dwellers as having quality products and very good, to excellent, customer service.

After looking at all three sites, and using the handy (and fun) price quote estimators, I called both Ranier and Pacific, whose friendly sales staff sent out informative packets. The packet from Pacific was more in-depth and flashy, so being a creature drawn to such things, and the fact that their yurts priced out as less expensive, I’ve been working with and talking to Scott at Pacific to get the Yurt of Our Dreams.

The yurts built by one of the above companies are sleek, clean-lined, and beautiful in simplicity—unlikely, yet wonderful, crosses of “Girl Scout Sleepover Camp Platform Tent” and “Yuppie Renovated Warehouse on the River Loft”. They use state of the art materials to ensure a non-leaking, comfortable, very livable space that is as strong as something made mainly of cloth can be.

I was happy. I had a plan. I knew what I was doing.

Then my friend Dawn skipped in and ruined it all.

It came as an innocent looking email titled, “Look at THESE”.

And my world tilted flat off of its orbit.

Gers. Authentic Mongolian Gers made by Authentic Mongolians. And importable to the US.

Where the U.S. Yurt is sleek, a Mongolian Ger is touchable—like a teddy bear. They are decorated outside by embroidery around the doorway and inside by each…and… every… rafter being painted with elaborate designs and set off by carvings which match the carvings on the door and toono (circular opening at the top of the roof). The wood is painted in bright colors, which is appealing to me. The outer cloth, inner cloth and felting are really cloth and felt, which is appealing to me. The fact that the Mongolian Ger—made and painted to order in the same way they’ve been made for thousands of years is CHEAPER even shipped from the other side of the planet than the ones made in a factory in Oregon is WILDLY appealing to me.

So I contacted three companies selling “Authentic Mongolian Ger” and got a response from one of them. Heloise Rey is very helpful and patient, sending a lot of pictures and answering all my questions to the best of her abilities.

I also joined a Yahoo group, and was instantly embroiled in the (previously unknown to me) vicious war between ‘”Traditional” and “modern” yurt/ger owners.

Traditional ger enthusiasts say that the U.S. made yurts are flimsy, plastic mutations of a time tested and loved building form. They say if a yurt is not surrounded by felt, it’s not a yurt—it’s a tent. And there’s nothing wrong with a tent—just don’t call it a yurt. They say that if a yurt is built with solid walls and windows, it’s not a yurt—it’s a round house. And there’s nothing wrong with a round house—just don’t call it a yurt. A traditional ger’s lattice is it’s bones, and the felt is it’s muscle— stabilizing and holding the ger intact in wind storms so they don’t need “snow and wind kit” add-ons like the modern ones. A traditional ger stands on the ground—solid earth beneath it (covered with rugs), natural wood and wool on the sides and the sky open through the toono. One door. No windows (although the Mongolian companies will add them to appeal to the American market). Traditionally, air is circulated by simply rolling up part of the side, causing the cooler air on the ground to ooze in and rise up and out the toono as it gets warmer. The door is solid wood, sometimes bracketed by narrow windows; decoration and carvings showing the status of its occupants. Inside, the placement of furniture and living areas are strictly adhered to from ger to ger. This ger is made to be taken down in a few hours’ time, strapped to the back of a yak, and re-built in the same amount of time at the new grazing grounds.

Modern yurt enthusiasts say that the traditional gers are poorly made imports and fall apart in our climate. They say that the felt gets moldy and attracts bugs and mice. They extol the strength of their airline cable tie-downs, beauty of having windows all around, ease of care of the waterproof poly/vinyl exterior, and snug their yurts down on wooden platforms that are everything from a deck a foot above ground, to way high up in a tree—but they MUST be placed on a deck. They can be simple one-room shelters or homes with electric/plumbing, partition walls and (in the bigger ones) loft living areas. With the wind and snow kits attached, they are as stable in high winds as a lot of brand new mobile homes (rated for up to 90mph). The modern yurt can be taken down at the end of summer/hunting season in a few hours time, strapped to the luggage rack of your minivan, and stored in the garage till next year OR lived in full time—in my cyber-wanderings, the longest yurt dweller I’ve come across has been living in her Pacific yurt with her family in Minnesota quite comfortably for seven years. In the US made yurts, insulation is provided by a “reflective medium” that looks like bubble wrap coated with tin foil. Although the manufacturers claim that it works by reflecting the heat OUT in the summer and IN in the winter, the real life yurt dwellers have given mixed reviews. I’ve looked at alternatives to the bubble-stuff, from natural fiber insulation sheets made of recycled cotton/denim to recycled plastic heat-bonded to Styrofoam on rolls, and heard of folks using everything from straw stuffed in-between layers to garage sale blankets sewn to the sides.

Then there’s a whole ‘NUTHER faction who builds their own…

It boggles the mind.

With my eyes and brain slightly crossed, I’ve attempted to figure out not what’s “right”, but what’s right for my family in my climate and in my circumstances.

To their credit, not a single resource person on either side of the Yurt Debate has been outright demeaning to the other side. They just think their side is better, and have told me why, calmly and rationally. It’s been great fun and wonderfully educational to talk to people from Oregon to Mongolia to New York City to Holland to Spain, and I’ll happily share what I’ve found out.

Although Mongolia can get very hot, very cold and very windy, it’s very dry (it’s in the Gobi desert—guess I slept through that class…), and the materials used to make the traditional gers are not grown, or made in, or made FOR a damp environment. The other side of the planet is very far away, and your average Mongolian cannot comprehend the humidity of East Texas, just as I did not realize that Mongolia was arid. As mentioned before, Heloise in Mongolia did answer my questions, but admitted while doing so that these answers were to the best of HER knowledge, not necessarily what WOULD happen when the ger was assembled and exposed to this climate. What I’ve gathered is that when the imported ger meets the southern American humidity, the glue has issues, the paint has issues, the felt has issues, and the material has issues. This does not mean they are cheap imports, it means they are built for, and in, a different environment.

Now, there are people in Europe (and if you join the yurt Yahoo group, you will meet them), who are making “traditional Mongolian ger” using the measurements and structure of Mongolian gers but with materials that will hold up to a more humid environment. But again, there’s still a big ol’ pond between Europe and here, and the gentleman I talked to in Holland (Froit—nice man, very helpful and patient) couldn’t comprehend WHY I need my ger to be tight sealed on the bottom. I don’t mind it being on the ground, but crawlie things shouldn’t be able to get in. He suggested we get a cat. Apparently, things like poisonous spiders, scorpions, and snakes (not to mention skeeters as big as a fry pan) are not a problem in Holland. He also stressed that a ger needs to (as in MUST) be moved at least every six months for its health. And the wait time on one of these “improved traditional European gers” is right at or just over six months.

IF we were not needing this structure to sit securely in place for at least five years, and IF we didn’t have health and comfort requirements to consider, we’d happily wait for a traditional ger. In fact, at some point in the future, I’d love to get a small one to be a little retreat we would move around from one favorite spot to another—from the top of the hill, to the creek bank, to the back high corner overlooking the marsh, etc. depending on the season.

But that’s not what we need right now.

Which brings us right back into the lap of Scott at Pacific Yurts, who did not hold my brief fling with the Mongolian ger against me. In fact, he helpfully admitted that if we wanted to stencil decorations over the doors/windows, we could use latex house paint without compromising the integrity of the waterproofing. And that the wooden parts come oiled, not varnished, and would hold any oil-based decorative painted designs we might want to add to them. Now if I could only get him to carve a dragon into the front door….

The post Gotta Getta Ger: Buying a Yurt for the Homestead appeared first on Homestead.org.

Figure Out Your Flock

Perhaps the most obvious question people ask themselves when launching into a new chicken coop project is how many chickens are going to live there. Deciding on the size of a flock, especially a starter flock, can be a thorny question, but the most important thing to know is that chickens are deeply social creatures, and having any fewer than three birds is usually a recipe for lonely chickens. It’s also good to remember that the size of a flock in January isn’t necessarily the same as in December; even the best-kept chickens can die suddenly from diseases, predators, or accidents.

Once you have settled on the size of your flock, though, there still remains the question of how big the coop needs to be. This varies depending on what kind of birds you’re intending to keep. The general rule of thumb is that standard-sized chickens need four square feet of space each if they’re allowed outside, and ten square feet each if they aren’t. However, there are a number of variations to this rule for different types of hen, so it’s always good to read up on the needs of your specific breed before calculating a square footage for the coop.

Make a Plan

Once you know how many and what kind of birds you’ll be getting, it’s time to figure out the nitty-gritty details about what the coop is going to look like. This can include aesthetic decisions about, literally, what the coop is going to look like, but much more important are the logistic decisions about where things should go and what models or designs will work best for your birds.

Perches should be at the highest elevation in the coop because chickens are prey animals that like to sleep on the highest available surface. If that isn’t the perches, the hens are likely to end up roosting in their nesting boxes, which is a recipe for the mother of all messes.

Another consideration is what kind of floor to install. The easiest option is simply to not install one and leave the dirt under the coop as the floor. This works fine but can be troublesome in colder climates because it’s so hard to keep dry. A wooden floor might be a better option, as long as there are no narrow gaps between the slats where poop can build up and begin to fester.

Choose Your Materials

With the blueprints drawn up, the next step is figuring out what materials you want to use to make it come to life. While there’s a lively debate amongst chicken keepers between plastic and wooden coops, when building from scratch it’s almost always easier to use wood, but, that still leaves the question of what kind of wood to use. Pressure-treated lumber is often recommended for outdoor builds because the “pressure-treated” bit means the wood is more resistant to rot, humidity, and termites.

However, pressure-treating also impregnates the wood with copper compounds that can leach into the soil and harm the chickens. A naturally resilient tropical hardwood or treated softwood product is probably a safer bet.

The last wood product you’ll need is usually some sort of plywood for the walls, both internal and external. Internal walls can get by with standard exterior use plywood, but outer walls will need something more rugged, like marine-grade plywood (the gold standard for durability, but also expensive and sometimes difficult to source) or medium-density overlay plywood.

Whichever products you choose, remember that a good (non-toxic) sealant and paint job is crucial to keeping out the moisture and ensuring you’ve built a long-lived chicken coop.

Build the Coop

This might seem like the most straightforward bit, but there are a few extra things to take into account when assembling a chicken coop beyond the usual carpentry considerations of choosing screws versus nails and making sure the edges are flush. (It should be noted that flush edges and tight seals are especially important in chicken coops. Even though the hens won’t appreciate the craftsmanship, a tight coop will help keep out red mites and other potentially deadly parasites.)

The most important consideration is predation and setting up the coop to be a fortress against chicken hawks and foxes. Burrowing predators are the easiest to defend against here, as they can usually be stopped by sinking any walls or fences at least a foot into the ground. Make sure, too, that any fencing material is fine enough not to let anybody through; hardware mesh is ideal for this. Another consideration, especially for aerial predators, is location. Building the coop away from any tall trees or overhanging branches will make it less of a tasty target, and cutting back bushes and tall grass near the coop will also make it harder for ground-based predators to sneak up on their next meal.

Moving Chickens into the New Coop

Now that the coop is finished and looking spick and span, the question still remains of how to actually get the chickens to live in it. This is especially difficult if you’re moving your flock from one coop to another on the same property; chickens have a strong desire to return “home” at night and will want to return to the old coop to roost unless and until they’ve adjusted to the new one. The solution to this is actually delightfully straightforward: lock the chickens in the new coop for a week. Although being cooped up like this will limit their exercise, it’s a benefit in the long run because the birds will be adjusted to living happily in their new, more-appropriate coop.

Getting them into the new coop in the first place is a little trickier, but it’s made easier by the fact that humans are bigger than chickens, and chickens are deep sleepers. Therefore, the best way to get the flock into the new coop is simply to sneak into the old one when the hens are sleeping and carry them to their new home. As long as you’re reasonably quiet and careful in resettling the chickens in roosting spots, they’re unlikely to awaken until after they’ve been successfully transferred.

For moving chicks into their first coop, the nighttime subterfuge is unnecessary, but the same transition period of a few days locked in the coop still applies so they can feel comfortable in their new home and will be ready to return to it when night falls.

With any luck, your finished product will be a comfortable, durable, and charming addition to the backyard. And even if your chicken coop isn’t the most impregnable structure in the world, once you’ve built it once, you’ll be more than capable of repairing and rebuilding it as necessary. The good news is that chickens aren’t picky tenants, even if the paint job is sloppy or there aren’t any south-facing windows. They’re just happy to have a roof over their heads.

The post Coop Considerations: Quick-Start Guide to Building a Chicken Coop appeared first on Homestead.org.