Author: Anna & Mark

Automatic chicken feeder contest

October 29, 2012 Posts No Comments

Homemade chicken feederWe’ve had at least half a
dozen requests for an automatic chicken feeder in the last month. 
While I wish I could say we’ve solved the feed problem like we solved the water problem, I can’t.  But maybe
you can?



How to enter:

Send in your photo(s)
and description for a chance to win your choice of a 10 pack
DIY kit or 3 premade
waterers! 
Either email your entry to info@avianaquamiser.com (one photo per email, please
— multiple emails are fine) or post
it on our facebook page by midnight on November
16.  We’ll choose one winner to receive the grand prize, and
several more honorable mentions to be showcased on our website.



What we’re looking for:

We’re interested in fun
photos and ingenious feeders.  If you’ve bought a commercial
automatic feeder, feel free to enter with your review of their design,
and if you’ve made your own we’d like to see that too.  Our
readers love to hear specifics about dollar amounts and time costs, as
well as anything you wish you’d done differently.  Most of all,
we’re looking for an automatic feeder that solves the problem of
spilled feed, stolen feed, and spoiled feed.


The fine print:
All photos and text entered in our contest become the property of
Anna Hess and
Mark Hamilton.  We don’t care if you use them for other things; we
just want the right to put them up on our website and perhaps share
them with future readers in ebook and CD form.



I look forward to seeing
your feeder in action!

The Easy Breezy Chicken Coop

October 26, 2012 Posts No Comments

Rooster cartoonAre your birds look’en for a
new summer cottage?  Is your old coop in need of
replacement?  If the answer is yes, then this could be for you. 
With money scarce, the cost of gas on the rise, and annual household
income down, stretching the dollar is paramount.  That’s why the
chicken coop featured here today is a good deal and made of mostly used
materials.  I call it… The Easy Breezy.



I live in west central
Florida and it’s classified as a subtropical region.  This coop
may not be suitable for year-round occupancy if you live in colder
climates.  Winter here lasts for only a short period of time and
is generally mild.  In December, I cover the sides with plastic
tarps I staple into place.  In late January a heat lamp is often
needed.



Used materials are:

  • Vertical side boards (used fence slats).
  • Wire leftover from last coop.
  • Cedar shim-shingles leftover from lawn mower shed job.
  • Various hardware came from other jobs.
  • Nesting box base… previously a card table.
  • Door to coop was wood my neighbor was throwing out.

Coop screen floorThe posts were set and
squared up just like the “Poultry
Palace”
project.  Always use “Pressure Treated” lumber when wood comes in
contact with soil.  A must for warmer climates.  I also use
Sack-Crete to stiffen up the ground posts and help anchor the coop in
strong winds.



If you have access to an
air-compressor and nail-gun, this is a good time to use it. 
Constant pounding with a hammer will act to loosen posts and
timbers.  The nail-gun is fast and holds tight.


Framing coop roof

Note the plastic
tarp.  This was to keep my brains from baking in the Florida
sun.  This wood was purchased at a local home building
store.  One of the few things I did purchase.  The homemade
trusses were tied together with nail plates and backed up with plywood
triangle wedges and 3 inch stainless steel deck screws.  I
build’em to last.  Hey, I live in a hurricane prone
zone.



*Note: Stay hydrated and
wear your safety glasses.  Safety is your responsibility. 
That’s the shop teacher in me coming out.


Chicken hutch

Notice the edge of the
nesting box the Barred Rock hen is resting on.  Box is filled with
hay and pine shavings.  The even spacing between the upright
pressure treated fence slats was accomplished by using the same wooden
spacer between each board.



Using smaller nails and
a pneumatic nail-gun made this job a breeze.  Ice tea and sports
drinks played a big part too.  Stay hydrated.


Rooster coop

Every job needs a
supervisor and Angelo fits the bill on this one.  Look closely and
you can see the fly strips hanging from the underside of the
coop.  Not exactly pretty, but efficient.



Tarp coop roofWell… Modern tools have
limits.  The air pressure regulator on the air compressor died,
but not before the seals blew on the pneumatic staple gun I was using
on the roof… Hence the blue plastic tarp as seen on so many Florida
homes after hurricanes.  Look carefully and you can see the the
back side of the nesting box.  It has a tin roof for extra
protection.  These hens are in high cotton now.  We all know
happy hens lay lots of eggs.


Easy chicken coop

Meanwhile, as I wait to
get my pneumatic tools repaired, the blue tarp remains in place and the
hens stay dry.  Building wood projects and keeping busy with my
tools seems to be when I’m the happiest so I’ll keep making
things.  Next project, an old fashioned wooden tool box like my
dad had.



Take care and stay safe
when using tools.

Dave Bove, Ret. Shop
Teacher



Dave Bovee is a retired wood shop
teacher who builds chicken coops for the fun of it.  He’s a
regular contributor to Airboating
Magazine.

Maintaining high humidity in an incubator during hatch

October 25, 2012 Incubation 31 Comments

Wet, new chickAround day 19, when the first chicks could potentially start to pip, it’s time to raise the humidity in your incubator to 65% or more.  High humidity during hatch is essential to lubricate your chicks as they do the hard work of wiggling around, pecking their way out of their shells.  At the same time, you need to keep the vent at least a third of the way open because these hard-working chicks need more airflow to feed their struggles.  But the open vent tends to lower the incubator’s humidity, so that’s the solution?


Increasing humidity in an incubator with a wicking clothYou can buy evaporating card to stick in your incubator’s wells, but the cheaper method is just to use a piece of cloth. If you place part of the cloth or evaporating card in the well and let the rest sit along the bottom of the incubator, water will wick up into the extra surface area, resulting in more evaporation and higher humidity.


For an even bigger dose of humidity to counteract the vapor lost when you open the lid, heat up some water until it’s steaming but is still just cool enough to stick your hand in.  I poured some of this warm water into the wells every time I opened the lid of my Brinsea Octagon 20 incubator, which meant that the humidity rebounded within a minute of me opening and then reclosing the lid.


Opening the incubator lidMost websites will tell you
to be as hands-off as possible during the hatch, opening the lid only once every six to eight hours.  Now that I’ve had a bit of experience, though, I disagree.  I’ve learned the hard way that if a newly hatched chick rolls a neighbor egg so that its pipping hole is facing the floor, the chick still in its shell can expire before you’re allowed to open the lid again. Knowing some tricks to maintain high humidity while still being allowed to open the lid seems to be key to higher hatch rates.

Incubating chicken eggs


After several rounds of trial and error, I figured out the best way to incubate chicks. You can browse through old posts, or splurge on my ebook for the more refined solutions.