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DIY Chicken Coop Remodel

     Who doesn't love fresh eggs these days? When we started our homestead we had our own chickens but had to get rid of them last summer.  Of course we missed having fresh breakfast but we also missed having our ladies (that's what we call them) around. But before we could get new chicks we needed a new chicken coop because we weren't able to keep them in the same location.  I'm not sure if you've seen the price of new coops but this Mama keeps her purse strings tight and I wasn't about to fork out that much cash.  So our plan was to build our own coop, that was until I was scrolling Facebook's marketplace.  Not sure who else scans FB marketplace for useful free items but this homestead Mama loves the free stuff.  Back to my story, I came across a free chicken coop that looked promising. Then the hard part convincing the hubby that we needed to stop what we were doing to run into town and pick it up. He was actually easily convinced and we all jumped in the truck and chucked the poop house I mean chicken coop into the truck.

     Once we got it home Mr. Homestead gave it a once over and came to the conclusion that the frame was sturdy we just needed to replace the plywood.  After getting the poop off Mr. Homestead detached the top from the bottom part to make it easier to work with.

Layers and layers of poop.

Now the remodel can commence.

     Next up was stripping the coop of the plywood that was warped and coming apart. Once Mr. Homestead measured how much plywood we would need we made a trip to our local Lowe's store.  To make the rebuild easier Papa took the sides of the coop off gently to keep them in one piece so we could use them as a template. Papa made templates of all the plywood pieces which included all the front and back pieces.

I can't even count how many times we moved this.

Like kindergarten class trace and cut.

     After some easy tracing and cutting the fun part could start for me and the kids, painting. To spend even less money we headed down to a couple different stores with paint departments to find a cheap discounted mis-colored gallon of paint. I was able to find the color I had my heart set on, barn red.  With some paint brushes and rollers in hand the kids and I were set to go.  While the coop went from green to red Mr. Homestead added another nesting box to the coop because it only had one originally. The last part was fixing the chicken wire on the lower part then it was ready for it's new homeowners.  

My little artists painting away.

    We had already figured out where we wanted to relocate the chicks to so next it was just loading up the two pieces and leveling out a spot.  We placed them under a plum tree because one we figured they'd love it when those dropped off the tree and two to help keep them somewhat hidden from any predators.  We also added a little detail to the nesting boxes doors by adding the "X" trim to it. I would suggest painting the doors red and painting the trim separately before nailing it into place.  I made the mistake of not deciding on the color contrast until it was stapled on and it made for painting with tiny water coloring paint brushes. Even though it took extra time I absolutely love how it turned out and I'm sure the ladies appreciate it.  

The Breakfast Barn

     The ladies have moved in and are making themselves cozy.  With just some elbow grease from the homestead crew and less than $100 we have a new coop.  Our ladies are happy and now we just sit back and wait for the first egg.  One of the questions we get all with all the projects we do around the property is how we do it having kids? The answer; we involve them in some aspect, by letting them splash some color around or we simply bring them alongside us and let them play near by.  I know that there are people who don't think their kids can help or are afraid they'll get hurt but you just let them be kids and find appropriate tasks for them.  The kiddos loved helping us with this project and we spent time together doing it which is the best part of it. If you have any questions leave them in the comments and I'd love to hear about your current DIY project. Heading out for some self care and having spending some time with a girlfriend while our kiddos play, talk to you soon.

Angelina White 
Homestead Mama


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