my chicken tractor

19 years ago

I built a chicken tractor myself (I'm female) and it took me only about 2 hours. I've included a link below to the Garden Gallery site (on GardenWeb). We had 10' conduit laying around so I don't know how much it cost. I used 4 pieces of 20' 2x4 (you could also use 2 4x4s at 20' or a bunch of 8' 2x4s staggered and nailed together).

I nailed them together into 2 long 4x4 pieces. Then I drilled 1" holes roughly 3' apart (I eyeballed it), just make sure you make them in the same place on both by laying them together when you mark them out. I didn't use a flat bit drill bit, but a hole saw, and only sawed part way down, leaving the center part attached. This helped to hold the conduit in, later.

I bent the conduit with a pipe bender, but if you didn't have a bender, 2 people could probably bend a looser bend around a telephone pole or something. Then I just dropped the conduit into the wood pieces with some gorilla glue and wrapped the whole thing around the sides with chicken wire and put netting on the top for lightness and then a tarp at one end for protection from rain.

I put a rope at one end with 4 1/2" eyebolts going through the wood. I can pull it myself (I wrap it behind my back and walk backwards 20' to the next spot). We just lift it up to let the chickens out at night, but there is a 'door' of chicken wire across the front, tied at the top to the conduit and fastened closed with carabiners (clip latches). Piece of cake.

Here is a link that might be useful: chicken tractor

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Comments (3)

Macmex
19 years ago
That's beautiful! Thanks for the idea on construction.

George
Tahlequah, OK
mokevinb
19 years ago
The only recommendations I can make is if you were going to build another one, lay the two 2x4 runners side by side and use a straight edge to mark the centers of your holes for your conduit bows. It will insure they line up. I would recommend using deck screws instead of the nails because they have greater holding power. You also should think of adding one or two 2x4's for cross bracing and one at each end for end bracing. The bows could also use two 1x's on the top to add longitudinal bracing, and rather than Gorilla glue I would have drilled in from the side and secured them with sheetrock screws.

You could also adapt this for use in the garden by using clear plastic over the bows to make a mini greenhouse, or by using spun polyester material for insect/sun protection.

Each of us has ways to do things, and I think GG's concept is great! I hope my suggestions will improve on what she came up with.
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guineagarden
Original Author
19 years ago
Well, thanks, mokevinb, but I wasn't really looking for 'help'--though I guess I set myself up by admitting I was a woman, eh?

We are quite pleased with the chicken tractor. FWIW, I *did* lay the runners side by side to ensure they lined up, that's what I said in my original post, perhaps it wasn't clear enough for you.

In addition, I chose NOT to use cross-bracing throughout or end-bracing, because I wanted it to be light enough for me to pull by myself, AND, I'm not having any problems related to the lack of cross-bracing or end-bracing.

I also do not see a need for longitudinal bracing, I've had no problems in that regard either. I did consider drilling and screwing the ends of the conduit, but that would split the 'center' that was left in from the hole saw, and which adds to the stability of the uprightness of the ribs.

One thing I have added is a piece of conduit at either end at the bottom of the chicken wire, which 'latches' under a nail at either end. This keeps our clever chickens from escaping out the bottom of either end.

All in all, it's been very sturdy, lightweight and easy-- *just* what I had in mind when I designed it.

I'm sure yours would be a fortress. That was not what I had in mind. LOL.