THE

RELIABLE POULTRY JOURNAL PUB. CO.
QUINEMLTLL.

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,| WELL-PLANNED HOUSES ON POULTRY PLANT AT U. S. GOVERNMENT EXPERIMENT FARM

The planning and location of houses are subjects worthy of the poultry keeper’s most careful attention. Many prac-

tical, helpful suggestions will be found in the above views on the poultry plant of the U. S. Department of Agriculture
at Beltsville, Md. 1—Colony house for growing stock on range. 2—Cockerel house. 3—Portable colony hover house.
4—Colony house for growing stock in woodland. 5—Gable-roof breeding house. 6—Portable house for adult stock
(breeders or layers) on range. 7—Compartment house for layers or breeders. Feed house at right.

POULTRY HOUSES
AND FIXTURES

How to Lay Out Poultry Plants. Accurate Plans for Constructing Practical,
Economical Laying Houses, Large and Small. Low-cost Construction
for Back Yard Poultry Keepers. Colony and Portable Houses,
Incubator and Brooder Houses, Administration and Other
Special Purpose Buildings. Labor-Saving Interior

and Exterior Fixtures and Equipment

FULLY ILLUSTRATED

EIGHTH EDITION

PRICE, $1.00

Copyright by
RELIABLE POULTRY JOURNAL PUBLISHING COMPANY
Quincy, Illinois
lg19

PUBLISHED BY

RELIABLE POULTRY JOURNAL PUBLISHING COMPANY
QUINCY, ILLINOIS, U. S. A.

SON TENTS

INTRODUCTION

GHAPTER I
Wacatinewand et lamminogile orl tigyasllOUSCS) ee 5 noe ee
CHAPTER II
Meomonucal’ Backs Warduboultry Houses: i... tween sane

on

CHAPTER It
Elotsesmioim Gommuncial, Waryinio sRLOCKS) ee eran rte eae 34

CHAPTER IV
Bayines Elouses to Meet Special, (Gomditioss) sees eee 45

GHA Paves Vi

Comfortable Houses for Breeding Pens ............. eee es Se 37,
2.) (CIRUNIEMNIR IR Wl

iRortable (Golonysand) Broodes louses| ee Saas 65
CHAPTER VII

Permanent Brooder Houses) se) 2 eee ee 70

CHAP RE RAV
Practical) Incubator (eos es ee ee

CHAPTER IX
Administration and) @ther Speciale Building svemeeeses-ccsersceee ses cee tees se ceeneeeee eet 83

CHAPTER X
Intertor sixties fam Gee quip rnd ert eee eee ee tee = Ol

CHAPTER XI

Ex fenlonemixttnessand General Sq uipmlentsss ee ee eee t 104
nidlexe =. Sart: ee he aes See een ct eee eee et 111
Ociz5i2820

MAR 25 1919

a

INTRODUCTION

OULTRY houses correctly planned and built are
vitally important to the success of every poultry
enterprise, whether it is to be established on a
large or a small scale. While such houses must

of necessity be comparatively plain and simple in design,
they also must meet certain definite conditions to be gen-
uinely practical. Regardless of size, every such building,
for whatever purpose intended, must provide not only for
the comfort and well-being of the fowls, but also for the
convenience of the caretaker. And it must do this always
at moderate cost.

To be able to design a house that will meet these truly
important requirements, calls for much practical experi-
ence, for a wide knowledge of what others have tried
and found satisfactory—or unsatisfactory—along the same
lines, and finally, for some knowledge of the general
principles of architecture. It is small wonder if begin-
ners and even experienced poultry keepers, make innumer-
able mistakes in their building operations—mistakes that
must be corrected at heavy expense or remain as perma-
nent handicaps to their future success.

Under such conditions there is an unquestioned need
for a book that shall present, in a fairly comprehensive
manner, the best that is available in practical up-to-date
plans conservatively designed to meet the requirements of
poultry keepers wherever located. It was to supply this
need that “Poultry Houses and Fixtures” was published,
the first edition of which was issued in 1897, and which has
been revised from time to time to keep pace with the
rapid developments that have taken place in this branch
of poultry science since that date. In point of fact, this
development has been so rapid and so radical that in this
latest revision it has been found necessary to employ new
plans and new descriptive matter almost exclusively
throughout all sections of the book.

As the completed work now stands we believe that it
meets the requirements of practical poultry keepers to a
degree unequalled by any similar publication. It contains
complete and thoroughly tested plans for each type of
house that is likely to be required for the use of fowls,
fixtures and general equipment have received special atten-
tion and we have taken advantage of the opportunity
afforded by this revision, to supply a chapter presenting
clearly and in much detail, the general principles of poul-
try-house design and construction, so that the individual
builder, even though he may have had little or no personal
experience, will be able to weigh with reasonable accu-
tacy the respective merits of the different plans, as they
relate to his particular requirements, and also intelligently
to make such modifications as his individual conditions
may render desirable.

The changes in approved types of poultry houses that
have taken place in recent years have been particularly
marked in the case of those provided for laying and
breeding flocks. When “Poultry Houses and Fixtures”
was first published, warmth in winter was regarded as of
the first importance in such houses, and all details of con-
struction were designed p.imarily to “provide summer con-
ditions in winter,” without which profitable egg produc-
tion was regarded as out of the question. These houses
were liberally supplied with glass and often were provided
with sloping fronts, skylights, and double walls carefully
packed with insulating material. All of these added great-
ly to the cost and, as we now know, are entirely unneces-
sary and may even prove injurious to the fowls.

Experience has shown that closed-front houses are
almost invariably poorly ventilated, damp, and unsanitary
in winter, and that fowls in them are especially liable to
colds, roup, and other diseases directly traceable to such
conditions. For this reason, and also on account of the
extra cost of building such houses, their popularity soon
waned and in some sections, notably New England,
scratching-shed houses of the type illustrated on page 34
came into vogue for a time. The scratching-shed house
gave the fowls much better conditions in the daytime
but, with mistaken kindness, still provided a “warm” place
for them at night, the place being, as a rule, a dark, in-
adequately ventilated “dungeon” so obviously objection-
able from a sanitary viewpoint that the popularity of the
scratching-shed house was never more than local. It
served chiefly as a stepping stone in the change from the
old-fashioned warm house to the present curtain-front or
open-front type which undoubtedly meets the require-
ments of adult fowls more nearly than any other now
known.

The practice of using houses with open fronts or
curtain fronts has become almost universal in the last
few years, and it is only under peculiar conditions that
closed-front houses are now regarded as_ practical.
While the terms “open front” and “curtain front,” as ap-
plied to poultry houses, are used rather indiscriminately,
the former, strictly speaking, refers to a front the greater
part of which is left open at all times. The “curtain
front” also has large openings, but these are provided
with curtains or cloth-covered shutters which can be
closed in extreme weather. The “closed-front” house has
all openings covered with glass sash. It is common knowl-
edge now that fowls will lay well in cold houses so long
as they are free from drafts and dampness, and nothing
has done so much to reduce losses from disease and to
make poultry keeping a practical, money-making industry.
as the general adoption of fresh-air houses.

No one person can claim the credit for the develop-
ment of this method of poultry-house construction. It
has been the gradual result of the experience and. obser-
vation of practical poultrymen in widely separated loca-
tions, who have found that still cold is not a serious
obstacle to winter egg production, and that the proper
use of muslin curtains or muslin-covered shutters insures
the best kind of ventilation, at the same time keeping the
house as warm as it is possible to have it and secure the
free ci1culation that now is generally regarded as abso-
lutely essential to the health of the fowls. The famous
Maine Station cloth-front poultry house, illustrated on
page 35 was one of the first houses of this type to be
built, and it has served as a model for thousands of others.

Acting apparently on the belief that if a little fresh
air is good, a great deal is better, some extreme types
of open-front houses have been developed. These houses
serve practically no purpose except to protect the hens
from direct storms, the inside temperature being little if
any higher than outdoors. These extremely cold houses
appear to have been developed through a failure to real-
ize that if fowls lay well in them they do so, not be-
cause the houses are cold, but in spite of that fact. In
other words, there is no advantage in exposing the hens
unnecessarily to extreme cold. On the contrary, it is a
distinct advantage to keep the house as warm as is pos-
sible without interfering with proper ventilation. Sooner
or later poultrymen who adopt radical open-front con-

struction are glad, as a rule, to provide muslin protection
and to utilize it fully on occasion. 3
The foregoing applies, of course, only to winter condi-
tions in cold climates. For warm weath.r it scarcely is
tossible to provide too much ventilation. This is, in fact,
one of the builder’s most difficult problems—to secure
sufficient ventilation in warm weather without making the
house too cold for successful winter use—and in the
north it calls for careful proportioning of window and
muslin-covered surfaces to the total floor space enclosed,

The building plans given in this book are conserva-
tively designed with reference to the amount of glass
and muslin-covered openings provided. These houses, as
illustrated, are intended to meet the requirements. of
poultrymen in moderately cold climates. The only change
that is necessary to adapt them to extremes, either of
cold or heat, is to increase or decrease the size of the
curtains. Glass windows are not required south of the
Ohio River. Some poultry keepers far north of that lati-
tude omit glass sashes, but as a rule. it is doubtful
whether it is true economy to do so. In all northern lati-
tudes there are many cold, stormy days in winter when
the curtains must be down, and the houses will be inade-
quately lighted at such times unless some glass is provided.

Muslin-front construction is applicable to laying and
breeding houses, colony houses, portable houses, and
brooding coops. For permanent brooder houses, which
are used mainly in severe winter weather, conditioning
houses, incubator cellars, etc., other and more suitable
methods of ventilation are provided.

The widespread popularity of the muslin-front house
has resulted in a virtual standardization of poultry-house
construction—one of the most encouraging developments
in the industry. Uniformity and simplicity in house de-
sign mean economy in construction and greater certainty
of results than can possibly be achieved where there are
no established standards to adhere to, and where each
builder feels the need of originating a special type of
house to meet his particular requirements.

There still is, and probably always will be, a tendency
among beginners to try to work out original plans in poul-
try-house construction, but it is one that, in the inter-
ests of economy and efficiency, should be firmly repressed.
The beginner can safely assume that the essentials of
poultry-house construction are now so thoroughly under-
stood that approved general plans now require only
slight modifications to adapt them to special requirements
of location or climate, in practically all parts of the coun-
try; also, that the advantages of adopting standard de-
signs are so great that scarcely any practical condition
will justify radical departures from them.

Many new plans have been prepared expressly for
“Poultry Houses and Fixtures,’ embodying, in each in-
stance, only those designs and details that have been de-
veloped and tested in practical, every day experience. We
have attenipted to present sufficient variety to meet the
requireménts of poultry keepers in all parts of the coun-

try. Throughout the book, however, it will be seen that,
so far as’ laying and breeding houses are concerned, we
have kept close to certain clearly defined standards, so
that there need be no confusion in the mind of the reader
as to just what changes, if any, need be made in a given
plan to adapt it completely to his own conditions, what-
ever they may be. As a rule, complete bills of materials
required in building the different houses are supplied, but
no estimates of constiuction cost are given, or only in the
most general way. Prices of all kinds of materials vary
so widely at the present time that estimates of cost
would serve no practical purpose. g

At the risk of seeming repetition we desire to im-
press upon the prospective builder that, in poultry-house
construction particularly, experiments are costly. Doubt-
less there are possibilities for improvement in the best
plans, but the brightest and most experienced poultrymen
and women in the country have been studying the build-
ing problem for many years. In connection with the
plans here given there is scarcely a modification or change
that is likely to suggest itself to the beginner that has
not been tried out many times and under many conditions,
and rejected for good and sufficient reasons. It is com-
mendable to be on the lookout for better plans—for ad-
vanced ideas, but the practical conservatism that allows
“the other fellow” to try out new things first, saves much
disappointment and expense.

The beginner, therefore, who carefully considers his
needs and requirements, and then selects the house that
most nearly meets his conditions and follows the plans
literally from foundation to roof, will save time and money
and he will be certain of having a building that will not
disappoint him when put to practical test.

In the designing and testing of poultry houses the
various state agricultural.experiment stations have taken
a leading part in recent years. Much of the present stand-
ardization in poultry-house construction, to which refer-
ence has already been made, must be credited to this
source. In “Poultry Houses and Fixtures” we have
availed ourselves freely of the plans given in the various
state and national government bulletins on the subject.

In presenting plans and detailed descriptions from
this source, personal credit has been given wherever pos-
sible, but we wish here to express our especial indebted-
ness for helpful suggestions and down-to-the-minute in-
formation secured through direct correspondence with
many of these government workers, each a recognized
leader in the poultry industry, and each with special fit-
ness for giving instruction in poultry-house design by
reason of elaborate and long-continued experiments in
this particular line.

This edition of “Poultry Houses annd Fixtures” has
been carefully edited by Homer W. Jackson, Associate

‘Editor of Reliable Poultry Journal, who has’ prepared

many of theyplans, and has furnished all of the text not
duly credited to other contributors.

CHAPTER ]

Locating and Planning Poultry Houses

Laying Out the Poultry Plant to Save Time and Labor—How to Design Poultry Houses and Adapt Plans to Meet
Special Conditions—Practical Building Suggestions That Insure Comfort and Health of Fowls at
Reasonable Cost—Details of Carpenter Work Made Easy for Amateur Builders

OWLS are highly adaptable with respect to the
conditions under which they may successfully be
kept. This is extremely fortunate, because the
poultry keeper’s choice of location often is nec-

essarily determined by personal rather than by practical
considerations. There are some conditions as to climate,
soil, market, etc., that are conceded to be ideal for poul-
try keeping, but it by no means follows that success is
out of the question where these are lacking. On the con-
trary, the great majority of successful poultry keepers
have made good in the face of obvi-
ous handicaps. Success, therefore, is
not so much a matter of location as
it is of intelligently adapting meth-
ods to the particular conditions that
are to be met.

Consideration of the numerous gen-
eral problems of poultry farm loca-
tion does not come within the scope
of this work. It is assumed that this
*aportant subject has received due
attention here, and that the reader
already has his farm or plot of
ground, of whatever size, and wishes
now to learn how he can utilize it
to best advantage in the development
of his poultry flock, locating and
planning the buildings with a view
to securing every practical conveni-
ence, at the same time avoiding un-
necessary expense. He will also want
to learn how to avoid making mis-
takes that may prove to be
handicaps in years to come.

It may be well, however, to say that, where choice is
possible, the poultry plant should have sandy or gravelly
soil, for the sake of drainage. The ideal soil for the poul-
try plant is sandy loam—sandy enough to be well drained,
but. fertile enough to hold a sod and produce quick-
growing crops under cultivation.

“It is entirely practicable to keep fowls successfully on
clay soils, but intensive methods are not to be recom-
mended under these conditions. Such soils are much
more apt to become infected with disease germs and they
require quite different treatment from the free and easy
methods that are permissible on sandy soils.

serious

“Regardless of where the houses are located, good
drainage is essential. There is no possible excuse for
building where surface water can obtain access to the
floor, or for locating the house in a place where standing
water is present. If the desired location is low, it should
be filled in and raised at least a foot above its surround-
invs. In damp locations a board floor three or more
teet above the ground is especially desirable, but do not
make this elevated floor an excuse for building over a
low, wet spot. Such a location is positively unhealthful
and will certainly result in disease and heavy losses.

‘In the north. every. natural feature that. will. serve the.

purpose of a windbreak should be utilized to the fullest
Possible extent. A poultry plant or an individual house

duces the labor of caring for the fowls.

sheltered from prevailing cold winds by an elevation or a
strip of woodland, as shown in Fig. 1, gives the fowls a
distinct advantage over others not so protected. Lacking
such natural advantages planting windbreaks of evergreens
should be one of the first steps taken toward developing
a new poultry plant, particularly in locations that are
exposed to high winds.

As a rule, a southern or southeastern slope is de-
sirable. This permits the houses to face the sun without
being exposed to prevailing winds which, in most sections

FIG. 1—WELL LOCATED POULTRY HOUSE, WITH OUTDOOR FEED HOPPER
AND WATER BARREL

It pays to provide neat, attractive poultry houses, located where the fowls

will have plenty of shade and where they will be protected from storms. Con-

venient equipment for supplying feed and water, as shown above, greatly re-
Photo from Purdue University.

uf this country, are from the west or southwest. -A

southern exposure is not to be regarded as imperative,
however, under any-and all conditions. Where the pre-
vailing winds are from same other quarter, and in warm
climates where summer heat is more to be guarded against
than winter cold, it will be much more satisfactory to face
the house in some other direction. Even in the north, an
eastern exposure is by no means undesirable, though in
this case all openings, yard doors as well as windows,
must be suitably protected against the heavy storms that
occasionally come from that quarter. ’

All such as these should, of course,
receive attention in the original selection of the land-on
which the poultry plant is to'be located. The position of
the buildings themselves is, for the most part, determined
by considerations of convenience and of economy in labor
and time.

considerations

Intensive or Extensive Methods

The amount of land required for developing a profit-
able poultry plant depends upon whether the plant is to

.be*6perated on the intensive or the extensive plan; that

is, whether the fowls are to be confined to comparatively
close quarters or are to have practically free range. One

, to two thousand hens may be kept on one, acre of ground,

but the labor of caring for them is much greater than
where more room is provided, and the danger from

54

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FIG. 2—PRACTICAL GROUND PLAN FOR A LARGE COMMERCIAL POULTRY PLANT

In the proportions here indicated this plan calls for about 10 acres, but it can readily be expanded or reduced to
meet individual requirements, without any material change in arrangement of departments. This sketch is drawn to
scale, except the range, which is reduced at broken lines to keep within page limits. Chick nursery and home garden
are to be alternated to keep the soil free from disease germs. Yards and pens are planned for 100-hen flocks but if Leg-
horns are kept the flocks probably will be much larger and most of the division fences omitted. The orchard on the
right side affords ideal quarters for breeding fowls and brooder chicks confined to temporary yards when necessary.
When the chicks are able to look out for themselves they are to be transferred to the larger range in the rear,

en LOCATING AND PLANNING POULTRY HOUSES 9

disease is much greater. Wherever it is possible, land
enough should be provided so that the fowls will not have
to be crowded, and so that other crops can be grown on
the land at the same time. It is much more practical,
more profitable, and far safer to provide ample acreage,
utilizing the valuable fertilizer produced by the fowls in
the growing of profitable crops of some sort. Intensive
poultry keeping involves the supplying of green food by
hand practically the year round; it also necessitates
sweeping and cleaning the yards, constant and lavish use
of disinfectants, and after all this is done, there still is
great danger of soil contamination and the spread of
various forms of disease.

Such factors as the price of land, the extra labor cost
of widely scattered flocks and other practical considera-
tions, must all receive due attention in this connection,
and the question of method can, in the last analysis, be
answered only by each individual for himself. It will be
helpful, however, to know that the general tendency
among practical poultry keepers is toward a combination
of intensive and extensive methods as suggested in the
layout on page 8, or the one on page 11. In other
words, the laying flock is kept in comparatively restrict-
ed quarters, while the breeders and the growing stock are
given all the room possible. Estimating land require-
ments on this basis, 10 acres is little enough for 1,000
hens, and 15 acres is decidedly better. The estimate of
10 acres is on the assumption that the soil is sandy and
well drained. With heavier soil the acreage certainly
should be increased.

Planning To Save Labor

No poultry plant can lay claim to being wisely
planned, in which the labor problem has not received
most careful study, and the cause of failure, in a great
many instances, can be traced directly to unfortunate
oversights along this line. In planning the layout and
locating the buildings, therefore, the first consideration
should be to secure every possible advantage to the at-
tendant, in order to reduce the amount of travel involved
in the daily care of the fowls, and to utilize natural re-
sources, such as range, shade, water courses, etc, to the
fullest possible extent. As local conditions enter largely
into these matters, no hard and fast rules can be laid
down, but the principal teatures of the ideal poultry
plans illustrated on page 8 will be found adaptable to
a great variety of locations. It is, therefore, worthy of
close study.

While this layout is designed to meet the require-
ments of a “1,000-hen farm,” it can, without material
change, be expanded to meet the demands of a much
larger plant, or reduced to the modest proportions of a
poultry department to be Operated as a side line on a
farm or elsewhere.

As here illustrated, it has a frontage of about 500 feet
and should have a depth of about 850 feet, the rear por-
tion being reduced for lack of space. These dimen-
sions give approximately 10 acres and provide for a lay-
ing flock of 900 hens, also for the necessary breeding
stock, which should always be housed separately from the
laying flock and given much more range than it usually
is practicable to provide for the latter. Nursery space
is provided for the brooder chicks, range for growing
stock, and abundant ground for supplying the house table
with fruits and vegetables. The west side of the plot,
from the driveway back at least as far as the north end
of the yards, should have a row of quick-growing ever-
green trees to act as a windbreak.

This plan of locating buildings, yards, etc., offers
many important advantages, such as easy access to the
different buildings, limited fencing, few gates to open,
and a comparatively limited amount of traveling in the
daily care of the birds.

In this layout, as in every practical plant, the poul-
tryman’s residence is taken as the center, the different
departments of the work being located and planned with
reference to distance from the residence and convenience
of access therefrom.

A tolerably liberal allowance for lawn has been made,
because a well-kept lawn adds much to the attractiveness
of the home and to enjoyment of it. Moreover, the lawn
need not be waste land, but can be utilized for the young
chicks throughout the brooding season. Neat outdoor
brooders, hen coops, or even colony houses around the
edge of the lawn, detract little from its beauty, and a
smooth, evenly mowed grass plot provides ideal range for
chicks during the first few weeks of their lives.

With light, sandy soil it is practicable to raise chicks,
year after year, on the same plot of ground, without
danger from gapes or other chick diseases. In most
instances, however, the poultiyman will find that much
better results can be secured if his chicks are not brooded
more than two years in succession on the same ground.
In this diagram, therefore, two plots of equal size have
been set aside, one of which is to be used as a chick
nursery and the other as a kitchen garden, alternating
them every two or three years, or as conditions require.
A sod or permanent growing crop of some sort is desir-
able on the plot used by the chicks, and with a little at-
tention this may readily be secured, seeding the ground
with a quick-growing lawn grass mixture, or with scarlet
clover, alfalfa, oats, rye, rape, etc., as season and climate
may dictate.

At the rear of the lawn is located the barn, which
should be of good size, as it is intended to furnish room
for storage of feed, litter, etc. Being within easy access
of all the houses, little labor is required in distributing
supplies from here as needed. Except on large plants,
the plan of using a centrally located. barn for general
feed storage will be found more satisfactory and more
economical than building a separate feed house, it being
understood that each poultry house is to be provided
with suitable bins, boxes or metal containers for storing
small quantities of grain for immediate use.

If dressed market fowls are to form an important
branch of production, a suitable room for dressing and
packing them should be provided in the basement of the
barn, where the incubator cellar also can conveniently
be located, if provision is not made for the incubators
in the house cellar or in a separate house such as the
one illustrated and described in Chapter VIII.

On the east side of the rear lawn may be located
a permanent brooder house. Even where most of the
chicks are to be raised in outdoor brooders or colony
houses, a small permanent brooder house will be found
convenient. Early hatched chicks can be brooded more
conveniently and with less expense in a permanent house
than in scattered colony houses. When the house is not
needed for chicks, it may be utilized for many other pur-
poses, being especially convenient for fattening surplus
market birds, conditioning show specimens, or for any
of the various other purposes for which temporary ac-
commodations are required at more or less frequent in-
tervals the year around.

Next to the brooder house is located the home fruit
garden, which, in the dimensions indicated, will furnish
room for such small fruits as strawberries, raspberries,

10 POULTRY HOUSES AND: FIXTURES

blackberries, grapes, etc., in sufficient quantities for the
use of the average family.

Location of Houses for Adult Fowls

On the west side of the barn and a little back of it,
reached by a continuation of the driveway which leads
in from the street or highway, is located the main laying
house. This house consists of nine pens, each 20x20 feet,
with a capacity of about 100 hens, or 125, if Leghorns are
kept. In the latter case, alternate partitions in house
and yard may be omitted and the size of the flocks cor-
respondingly increased and some expense saved. Double
yards are indicated for each laying pen. These yards are
to be used alternately by the flocks, the vacant ones be-
ing planted to some quick-growing crop to provide green
food. By shifting the hens back and forth, the growing
crop (whatever it may be) will have an opportunity to
renew itself, and an abundant supply of green food is in-
sured during the greater part of the year, at practically
no cost.

Fruit trees should, of course, be planted in these
yards, if there is no other shade, planting in triangles in-
stead of squares, making the rows forty feet apart east
and west, and thirty feet north and south. If desired,
these rows can be double-planted with peach or other
quick-growing trees. The amount of yard room may
appear rather limited, but with double yards less room is
required than would be needed where single yards are
provided. On the subject of yard room for laying flocks,
see Chapter XI.

The plot north of the barn and east of the laying
house can be utilized to best advantage for colonized
breeding pens, or as range for the growing chicks after
they no longer requ're artificial heat. Tnis plot also
should be planted to fruit trees.

Back of the laying yards and the breeding range, the
land will be used for any crops that may be desirable,
keeping in mind that this land is to serve as a range for
growing stock, especially the pullets that are to be next
season’s layers and which, at this stage of their growth,
need all the liberty that can be given them.

In the corner of the lawn between the barn and the
brooder house is located the hospital building. It is
quite the fashion these times to advocate the indiscrimi-
nate use of the hatchet for sick fowls, but the poultry-
man who is anxious to conduct his business along really
practical lines, will find that he can save a large sum each

year by. the timely use of suitable remedies, for adminis-
tering which a separate hospital building is needed. With
a little prompt attention, fowls having various simple dis-
orders or suffering from accidents, can quickly be restored
to health, and with slight trouble. Of course, no practical
poultryman.will return to his breeding flock any birds
that have been sick, nor will he keep any that have con-
tagious disease in any form. But fowls that have suffered
from simple attacks of indigestion or some other similar
ailment, can at least be held until in suitable condition
to be sent-to market. It is safe to say that, on the aver-
age, three out of four sick fowls that are allowed to die
or are dispatched by the hatchet, could be restored to
health if they received proper treatment in time.

A Layout for a One-Man Poultry Farm

In Fig. 4 is shown another layout for a poultry
plant. This has been prepared by the Massachusetts Ag-
ricultural College, and is intended to meet the require-
ments of a “one-man, ten-acre poultry farm.” It is de-
scribed as follows: “This plan is especially designed for
a farm sloping to the south or to the southeast. A row
of large evergreens to serve as a windbreak is indicated
as surrounding the farm, except on the south side, and a
row is placed north of the laying house to furnish shade
to young stock. The orchard consists of two and a half
acres and is to be cultivated. It is intended to serve regu-
larly as a brooding plot for late-hatched chicks and also
as a run for the breeders during at least a part of the
year. The portion labeled ‘breeding department’ is to be
used for this purpose early in the season. The farm
crops are to be alternated, the rotation being corn and
poultry one year, and hay or pasturage the next.

“Utilizing the cornfield as a run for growing stock is
an excellent plan, as it furnishes shade and green food
and protection, with plenty of loose soil for scratching.
The plot at the rear of the farm between the hay and
corn is for the production of succulent food for fall and
winter use.

“The barn recommended for use on this plant is 28x
36 feet, one and a half stories high, and is intended to ac-
commodate one horse, one cow, a shop, a feed room and
room for killing, picking, and packing market fowls, and
suitable tools and machinery. This plant is designed to
accommodate 550 layers, four or five breeding pens, and
to raise eight hundred to one thousand chicks.

“Five hundred and fifty laying hens may appear to be

4
4 |
;
3
i

FIG. 3—A GROWING ORCHARD AFFORDS FINE SUMMER RANGE FOR FOWLS
Photo from Missouri State Poultry Experiment Station.

Ss. een — ee —msS ae

labor.

LOCATING

a rather small flock for one man to care for, but taken in
connection with the growing of the young stock and the
production of the various crops that can be produced on
this land, will keep one man decidedly’ busy ~practically
the year around and, with pROpEX management, will pro-
vide a safe, comfortable living.”

Details of Poultry House Design and
Construction

The general rule applied to the construction of live-
stock buildings calls for one cubic foot of air space for
each pound of live weight to be housed. This means that,
for a six-pound fowl, only six cubic feet of air space are
required, which would be provided in
a house 18 inches high, allowing four
square feet of floor space to each
fowl. This way of stating air re-
quirements is a _ little misleading,
however, as fowls need much more
air than other classes of live stock,
in proportion to their weight. Prof.
King, in “Physics of Agriculture,”
gives the following table, showing CoM
the average number of cubic feet of
air breathed per hour by common et
farm animals: ay

AND PLANNING POULTRY -HOUSES 11

be warmed to some extent by the bodily heat of the
fowls, thus rendering it more comfortable in cold weather,
while a high ceiling or roof wastes heat, causes drafts,
and is more expensive to construct. In extremely warm
climates high ceilings may be desirable as a means of
making the building cooler, but the same result can be
secured in other ways and at less expense.

Cost of Building

Under average conditions the cost of building laying
houses should not exceed $1.50 to $2.00 per hen, yards
With careful management and the
the cost may be kept within

and labor included.
use of low-cost materials,

hy CABBAGE HAY

Cow 2804 cu. ft. for each 1,000 Ibs. 6)

Horse 3401. cu. ft. for each 1,000 Ibs. |(}9 9 GO OD i

Swine 7353 cu. ft- for each 1,000 lbs. | ~ fe 0

Sheep 7259 cu. ft. for each 1,000 Ibs. Gb Sena

Hen 8278 cu. ft. for each 1,000 Ibs. |&¥ atl s Zn
The greater amount of air neces- 6) a ai (7) ( »} ( ye >) Ke y}

sary to meet the fowls’ requirements | Beer DEANE 7 % ~~ orchard

must be secured either by providing hag
for more rapid exchange of air in the AILEY, a

es BS OO Oey ©

house, or by increasing its cubic con-
tents considerably beyond the dimen-
sions called for in the general rule.
In ordinary poultry buildings, how-
ever, all air requifements are not
only met but generally are much ex-
ceeded, as will readily be seen by
estimating the number of cubic feet
in the average laying house with its
7 to 9-foot ceiling. This excess vol-
ume of air is of no real advantage to
the fowls, and in cold weather is a
handicap to them. For this reason
many attempts have been made to
utilize extremely low houses, and repeated proof has been
secured that, so far as the fowls themselves are concerned,
they can be kept auite successfully in buildings no more
than two feet high.

In practical use, however,
double function to perform. It must not only give suit-
able protection to the fowls, but it is just as important
that it provide for the convenience of the attendant and
afford necessary facilities for economizing his time and
A clear appreciation of this fact will prevent
many costly experiments and errors in design, and it
ought also to aid in preventing the too-common tendency
to economize in cost of construction by the omission of
details that are required to make the labor of the at-
tendant really efficient.

The fact that height of roof is solely for the con-
venience of the attendant does not make it an unimport-
ant matter, but there are obvious reasons why the house
should be built as low as practicable. A low house will

FIG.

the poultry house has a

NN.
Awe 5 C ;
POULTRY Cy io) O) ys {3
AND _ Brooding. & Growing c
=) ) )
HOME @ ow oe 5 ©}
GARDEN : Se
—~Y .
DAO Oe Cs
s =
ES J

4—PLAN FOR LAYING OUT A ONE-MAN, TEN-ACRE POULTRY FARM
Designed by Poultry Department, Mass. Agr.

College.

$1.00. Elaborate houses carry with them no advantage,
aside from appearance. Instead, they usually develop
disadvantages which do not exist in simple, plain con-
struction. =

In some of the plans in this book the reader will
find alternative methods of construction indicated or su;:-
gested. What may be called the regular method aims at
providing a substantial, durable building at moderate ex-
pense. The “low-cost” alternatives suggested show how
the same houses can be built at the lowest practicable
first cost where the strictest economy is demanded.

It is true that fowls may not be any more comforta-
ble in a house with concrete foundation and floor and
with No. 1 tongue-and-groove siding neatly painted,
than in one with a dirt floor, with common sheathing
boards covered with a good grade of roofing paper. With-
out doubt, however, the latter style of construction will
prove much more expensive than the former in a period
of ten years, because of the greater amount of labor in-

12 POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

volved in cleaning and renewing the dirt floor, and in
the increased cost of repairs in the building itself.

The man who is limited in capital is far too liable
to make the common mistake of building “makeshift”
structures. There are many conditions under which low
cost of construction is practical and genuinely economical,
but let all cost reductions be carefully considered to make
sure that they are genuine economies and not the pound
foolishness of penny wisdom.

FIG. 5—CORRECT WAY TO DRAIN HOUSE SITE ON
SLOPING GROUND

What Materials to Use

The kind of materials to be used will be decided en-
tirely by relative cost, in most cases. Almost any kind
of sound lumber can be used to good advantage in the
poultry house, though it is well to keep in mind that the
labor cost of working soft woods is much less than where
hard woods are employed. It does not pay to purchase
inferior material where inferiority affects durability, or
where it involves serious waste. As a rule, however,
cheaper grades of lumber can be used than would be
advisable in larger buildings, especially where a substan-
tial concrete foundation is provided and where the sides
are covered with prepared roofing.

Second-hand material sometimes can be purchased to
good advantage, and many poultrymen are able to pro-
vide accommodations for their fowls at comparatively lit-
tle expense by utilizing lumber from wrecked buildings,
railroad cars, etc. Old railroad ties frequently can be
used as sills, and in many similar ways the careful buyer
can materially reduce his lumber bill. In making such
purchases, however, keep in mind the fact that it costs
a good deal more to build houses with second-hand lum-
ber than with new lumber that can be purchased to exact
size. The expense of getting the lumber separated and
sorted, removing nails, sawing to size, and the resultant
waste, all should carefully be estimated before buying
such material.

a How to Order Lumber

In planning poultry houses, special attention should
be given to the dimensions of lumber as obtainable in or-
dinary lumber yards. It would be unwise, for example,
to plan a house 15x25 feet, under ordinary conditions, as
lumber comes in even lengths and there would be con-
siderable waste in cutting timbers to fit these dimensions.
A house 16x24 feet will accommodate the same number
of hens, and can be built with practically no waste in
cutting the framing timbers and boards. Where the
dimensions are in odd feet but in short lengths, it is
possible to avoid loss by ordering double lengths. For
example, in the case of a shed-roof building seven feet
high in the front, five feet in the rear, and ten feet wide,
fourteen-foot studding should be ordered for the front
wall, ten-foot studding for the rear wall, and fourteen-

foot pieces for the ends, each piece making two studs.
The rafters will have to be twelve feet long, though
eleven would answer. In this case it would not pay to
order double lengths of twenty-two feet, as the price of
timbers per foot, board measure, generally advances with
lengths exceeding sixteen feet, and this advance would
exceed the saving in waste.

In the preparation of bills of materials for the plans
shown in this book, the particular grade of lumber to
be used is not specified, as much will depend
on local markets and the preferences of the
builder. For permanent buildings the grade
known as No. 1 common will usually be speci-
fied for rafters, sills and joists, and No. 2 for
studs and plates. For trim lumber and siding
No. 1 common will do, unless it is to be cov-
ered with roofing paper or shingles, in which
case No. 2 common may be used. For sub-
floors and roof sheathing No. 2 common will
answer. Sheathing boards for the roof should
be surfaced on two sides; trim lumber should
—— be No. 1 common and surfaced on four sides.

Where the surfacing must be done to
order, and at extra cost, it may not be prac-
tical to insist on this in all cases, but as it

often is desirable to reverse boards in order to cut them
to good advantage and to hide minor defects, it is desir-
able to have exposed boards surfaced on all sides if pos-
sible. Inside walls can be painted or whitewashed at less
expense if smooth, and prepared roofing will last longer
when laid on a smooth surface.

Dimensions of the Laying House

In planning the laying house, about four square feet
of floor space is required for a hen, where flocks of one
hundred or thereabouts are provided for. In mild climates
where the hens do not have to be confined to the house
for long periods, an allowance of three feet per fowl will
prove sufficient. If the flock is quite small, five square
feet should be provided, and in the case of breeding stock,
six to eight feet per fowl is recommended.

The height of the front must be proportioned to the
depth in order to get sufficient pitch to shed rain, also
to admit sunlight to the back part. The latter, however,
is not regarded
so essential as it e
was a few years =
ago, and many
practical poultry-
men now. are
building houses
16 to 24 feet
wide with what
is known as ae
combination roof
(See Fig. 23),
in which the
front is seldom
more than about
seven feet high. Obviously, this will not admit sunlight
to the back part of the house, even though the openings
are carried clear up to the rafters. As an offset to this
the practice of installing small windows in the rear wall
under the droppings platform is becoming popular (see
Fig. 37). Such windows, while they do not admit
direct sunlight, make the back part of the house light
and more attractive to the fowls.

The extent to which the sun’s rays will be admitted
to the poultry house in different seasons of the year, with

FIG. 6—SQUARING A CORNER

LOCATING AND PLANNING POULTRY HOUSES 13

windows placed 4, 6 and 7 feet high, respectively, is clear-
ly shown in Fig. 7, on this page. In the wintertime, with
the window 4 feet high, direct sunlight will never reach
farther back than 9 feet from the front (see dotted line).
With the window 6 feet high it will penetrate to 13%
feet (see line of dashes), and at 7 feet it will reach the
rear of a 16-foot house (see solid line). In the summer-
time when the sun is higher in the sky, the penetration
will be much less, as shown by the second series of
lines.

It should be understood that in each case these lines
represent extreme penetration, which lasts for but a short
time, and occurs only when the sun is rising or setting
and when the rays have comparatively little power. Pro-
vision for securing direct sunlight on all parts of the
pen floor, therefore, is practical only to a limited extent,
and the advantage of doing so probably is very slight.
It is much more practical to be sure that the window
and shutter openings are placed so as to light and ven-
tilate the house properly and conveniently, without ex-
posing the fowls to drafts, and without being too greatly
exercised over the theoret-
ical advantages of “flooding
the house with sunshine.”

The height of the house,
as has already been sug-

gested, is determined
chiefly by the _ require-
“ments of the attendant.

The rear or north wall sel-
dom need be more than
five feet high, and where
prepared roofing is used,
the front need not be over
seven or seven and a half
feet, up to a width of
twelve feet. If fourteen to
sixteen feet wide, the front
should be eight feet high,
where a shed roof is provided, and about nine feet with a
twenty-foot house. For a width of sixteen feet or over,
a combination roof generally is recommended, usually
with a seven-foot front and a ridge about nine feet high.

In order to insure a dry floor it should be six inches
to one foot above the ground level, whether it is of earth
or concrete. If a board floor, it should be elevated at
least one foot above the ground level, and in damp loca-
tions, three feet or more. When the house is built on
sloping ground, the site should be leveled, with a ditch on
high side, to drain the water off after rains (see Fig. 5.)

FIG.

Squaring the Foundation

In squaring the foundation the method shown in Fig.
6 will be found convenient and practical. In using this
method three stakes (a, a, a) are driven at each corner,
about one foot outside of where the permanent wall is to
be located, and about three feet apart, connecting them
at the top with strips of board (b, b) about four inches
wide, after which a cord should be looped around small
nails (c. c), driven into the boards, as indicated in draw-
ing. The points at which the cord crosses itself repre-
sents approximately the corners of the building.

Now, taking one corner as a trial corner, measure
from the point where the cords cross (d) to a distance of
six feet on one side (e) and eight feet on the other (f).
With these two dimensions.secured the corner will be
exactly square when the distance between the points e
and f, measuring diagonally, is just ten feet. If the diag-
onal line does not measure exactly ten feet, change the

7—DIRECT SUNLIGHT IN THE POULTRY HOUSE

position of the nails holding the cord until the correct
measurement is secured. With one corner established in
this way, it is an easy matter to square up the others in
a similar manner. The corner strips should remain in
position until the frame of the building is up, so that no
matter how many times the cord may have to be removed
for convenience in construction, it will always exactly in-
dicate the corners when looped over the nails.
Concrete Foundations

The foundation of the poultry house should be sub-
stantial and well made. Only in the cheapest and most
temporary structures is it advisable to build without a
foundation, and there seldom is any economy in setting
the house on wooden posts. If it is not desirable to pro-
vide a solid concrete foundation, at least place the build-
ing on concrete posts, which cost but little more than
wood and are practically indestructible. 4

Where the soil is firm, the simplest and easiest way
to build a concrete foundation is to excavate a trench
about eight inches wide and deep enough to extend below
the frost line, filling in to the ground level with concrete,

Sun’s rays from Where the soil
Recteaiat. is not firm, the
trench. should

be wider to ad-

Sun's rays E
mit form boards.

at Dec. 21st Wherever practi-
cable the trench
should slope to the lowest

point, from which a line of tile
may be laid to provide outlet
for any water that may ac-
cumulate within or under the
foundation walls. In damp
locations it is a good plan to
lay a line of two-inch tile
underneath the foundation, all
around the building, or to puta
few inches of coarse broken stone in the bottom of the
ditch, starting the concrete wall on top of this.

Where field stones are available, dig the ditch a foot
wide and fill it in with stone to a few inches below the
ground level, on top of which an eight-inch concrete
foundation is to be placed. Under ordinary conditions the
foundation should extend six to twelve inches above
ground level, being built by the use of form boards spaced
about six inches apart. See Fig. 8 Fig. 10 shows an-
other method of building the foundation where a wide
footing is desired.

Where stone is easily secured, foundations of this
material may be used at less cost than concrete. Stone
walls should be about twelve inches wide, and should be
carried down to the frost-line, and underdrained as de-
scribed for concrete foundations.

If wooden foundations are desired, cedar, locust, ca-
talpa, or chestnut posts will be found most desirable.
These should be placed at least two to three feet in the
ground, and spaced not over eight feet apart. All wooden
posts should be treated with creosote to prevent decay.
There are few conditions, however, under which it is de-
sirable or economical to use wooden posts. If a solid
stone or concrete wall is considered too expensive, or if
the building is to have a board floor elevated off the
ground so that a solid foundation wall is not necessary,
it will cost little if any more to provide stone or concrete

_posts than wooden ones.

Where wooden foundations are used with earth
floors, it is common practice to provide subsills of 2 by

14 » y- -POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

6 or 2 by 8 planks. These are sunk into the ground some-
what less than their entire width with the regular sills
resting upon them. The purpose of the subsill is to keep
the frame sill above the ground, thus protecting it from

decay to some ex-
tent, and also, pre-
ee il Toper --—srventing rats from
r FINISHED FLOP, obtaining access to
el GxSIiisine theab wali Ue
poe mee a en SELVES) these pur-
TESS Ser CROUNE POSES only imper-
fectly at best, how-
ever, and in prac-
tical use has little

to recommend it.

Earth Floors
FIG. S-CONSTRUCTION OF CON- Earth floors are

used in many poul-
try. houses, their
chief recommendation being that they are inexpensive.
Where earth floors are to be used, the house should have
a solid concrete foundation if possible, carrying it up
ten to twelve inches above ground level, the space en-
closed being filled in nearly to the sill.

CRETE FOUNDATION

In order to keep the earth floor dry and warm, there
should be a layer of four or five inches of gravel or
broken stone at the ground level, with earth filled in on
top. Where such floors are used it 1s necessary to re-
move all soiled material at least once a year, and replace
it with fresh earth brought in from outside, a laborious
and expensive job. Hens confined on earth floors’ will
soon form wallows that may reach to a depth of a foot
or more, and it is extremely difficult to keep the surtace
of the floor smooth and even—another objection to this
method of floor construction.

Clay Floors

Where stiff clay is. available, an excellent and inex-
pensive floor can be made by filling in between the foun-
dation walls with a few inches of broken stone, on top
of which is spread a layer of two or three inches of clay.
This should be wet down until it becomes pasty, and
while in this condition should be thoroughly tamped, after

FIG. $—POULTRY HOUSE WITH HARD
CLAY FLOOR

which it is smoothed off and left to dry undisturbed.
When dry, this layer of clay. will be very hard, and if
protected from moisture and not undermined by, rats, will
last for many. years without. 1enewal or repairs. The
house shown in Fig. 9 is, proyided, with a clay floor

which has been in use many years, giving complete sat-
isfaction.
Concrete Floors

For general use no material is as desirable for poul-
try-house floors as concrete. It is indestructible, when
properly made, is rat-proof, easy to clean and sanitary,
and is dry and warm when properly insulated.

. There are various plans for constructing concrete
floors, depending upon the-nature of the materials avail-
able, but under most conditions the method shown in
Fig. 11 will be found satisfactory. . Concrete floors
should be six to twelve inches above ground. level, de-
pending upon the nature of the soil. In sandy or gravel-
ly locations, six inches may be high enough, but. in damp
locations or on heavy. soils, it is better to have the sur-
face of the floor ten or twelve inches above ground level.

Concrete floors should always be insulated to avoid
dampness, As a rule, a layer of several inches of gravel
or broken. stone is sufficient. In- especially damp loca-
tions it is advisable ;
to spread. one -ply

7 - TOP OF
tarred paper ontop — “f FINISHED FLOOR
of the stone or 1"x)0" al xy Wee
gravel filling, with oy7; t4-——p ‘
the concrete laid Fonn YOY re ae
directly on this. Ae / , 4" WALL
Concrete floors for “y

poultry houses

should be about SaaNGE
two and. one-half 10" to/2" WIDE
inches. thick, with

an additional half-
inch topping of sand
and cement.

Where cinders are
obtainable, they can
be used in_ place
of stone or gravel,

FIG. 10—CONCRETE FOUNDATION
WITH WIDE FOOTING

both for the insulating layer and
for the concrete base. A concrete floor of cinders is
not as strong as when stone is used, but is warmer, Do
not use fine ashes from the kitchen stove or the house
furnace for this purpose, but the coarse cinders produced
at mills and factories generally.

In laying concrete floors, always provide expansion
cracks by dividing the floor into suitable sections and
cutting through with a trowel or other instrument.. A
common practice in laying floors is to divide the surface
into’ squares, and lay alternate ones, which are allowed
to set before the remaining ones are filled in.. Where
this is done, the expansion cracks are automatically taken
care of. See Fig. 12.

Do not attempt to Seaice on foundations and
floors by skimping in the thickness of the material or the
percentage of cement, thus securing a surface that will
crack and give way in use. Neither is it wise to lay a
concrete floor unless a suitable concrete foundation is
prov ided to support the outer edges and to prevent rats
from burrowing underneath.

Vc os Concrete Slab Floors~

A simpler method of providing a concrete floor for
the poultry house is by the use ‘of a “concrete slab.” The

“method of constructing this is described by Prof. F. C.

Elford, Poultryman for the Dominion of Canada, as
follows:,

“No trenches are dug for the foundations. The floor
is laid upon the ground, top of the floor being from 10
to. 15. inches. above, the surrounding level. To form a

LOCATING AND PLANNING POULTRY HOUSES 15

“slab,” take enough boards to reach around the outside
of the building. Boards one inch thick will do,,and as
wide as the height of the floor above-the: surface, Set
these boards on edge and stake them in position. so that
the inside of the boards is the exact size of the house.

Tarred Foper
Broken Stone Or Cinders
5" Fil

Ground Level

Wall

FIG. 11—CORRECT METHOD OF LAYING CONCRETE
FLOOR :

Conerete floor laid over a few inches of well-tamped
broken stone or gravel and a layer of tarred paper, will be
dry and comparatively warm. Note method of anchoring
building to foundation by means of bolts.

Level the top edges, and nail a six-inch board lightly to
the top edge so that it will project in over the floor.
In this six-inch strip bore holes every 6 to 10 feet to
take a 5¢-inch bolt. These bolts are for the purpose of
-holding the sills and- should- extend above the finished
floor far enough to go through a 2x4 scantling and leave
room for a nut. When the heads of these bolts become
secured in the concrete, remove the six-inch boards that
hold the bolts in position so that the straight edge can
be used to level the surface of the floor.
“When the frame is leveled and secured, the stone
may be filled in. This could have been dumped on the
_ giound before with less trouble except that it might in-
terfere with the leveling of the boards.
Stone, brick, plaster or anything of a
like nature should be used to fill up to
about. two inches from the top of the
floor. In filling in, there should be sev-
eral inches left around the inside of the
frame to allow for concrete being placed
there to form the outer surface of the
wall. Fill in with concrete to the inside
of the frame, and to within 34 or one
inch of the finished floor surface. The
finishing coat of cement is then put on,
leveled with the straight edge to the
top of the frame or retaining boards,
and smoothed off with a trowel.” *

Board Floors

Board floors?are used by mdny and*
are satisfactory, especially where it is
desired fo have the floors elevated above
the ground level. Board floors should
always be elevated above the ground at
least enough to allow the air to circu-
late underneath, in order to insure dry-
ness, also to give cats and dogs access

.-to the enclosed space which, otherwise,
is certain to become a rat harbor.

It is a decided advantage, in. damp -

‘locations, to have the main floor raised several, feet.
Where this is done, the foundation of the building usually
- consists of concrete or stone pillars, set. about eight feet
apart, and the space underneath the floor is tightly en-

* Extract from Bulletin 87, Canadian Dept. of Agriculture.

closed on three sides with regular weatherboarding. As
be less-than three feet high, and preferably five feet, as in
the house illustrated on page 52. Where the floor is less
the house illustrated on page 52. Where the floor is less
than three feet above ground, it is difficult to clean out
underneath, as should always be done at regular inter-
vals. It also is quite inconvenient when-the hens make
their nests under the floor, as they usually insist on
doing. For these reasons, if the wooden floor is raised
short distance from the ground, it is better to
enclose the space and keep the hens out.

only a

Board floors are liable to be cold and drafty unless
carefully laid, and it usually will be found best to double-
board them, as shown’in Fig. 14, with a layer of water-
proofed building paper betwéen the top and the sub-
floor. The latter may consist of the cheapest’ boards,
though large knot holes and decayed spots should be cut
out or filled in with sound material, or covered with
pieces of sheet iron or tin. It will add to the strength
of the building if this sub-floor is laid diagonally. The
top floor should always consist of tongue-and-groove
boards, driven up tight together and well nailed. Port-
able houses should always be provided with double board
floors, with diagonal sub-floors which brace the building
and prevent its being racked in moving.

Framing the Poultry House

There are various ways of framing the sills for poul-
try houses, the one shown in Fig. 13 being most gener-
ally used with board floors.. In such cases the inside sill
will be notched to engage corresponding notches in the
ends of the joists. A simpler plan, and one that calls
for less sawing and is just as good for practical pur-
poses, is to use one 2x8 sill, spiking a 2x4 on the inside,
along the lower edge. Notch the joists so that they will
rest on the 2x4, with the top even with the top of the
2x8 sill.

FIG. 12—PROVIDING EXPANSION JOINTS IN: CONCRETE FLOOR BY
LAYING ALTERNATE SECTIONS
Photo from Mo. State Poultry Exp. Station

In houses -with;solid foundations and concrete floors,
the sill is of comparatively little importance, and usually
consists of a-single 2x4, or, in some instances, two 2x4s
spiked together. Houses with concrete floors should be

-anchored, so that they cannot be shifted by the wind.

16 POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

For this purpose, half-inch bolts should be set in the
foundation wall at intervals of about ten feet. These bolts
should be about one foot in length, with washers for
both ends. The bolts should be embedded in the con-
crete, with the head down, and the threaded end extend-
ing three or five inches above the top of the foundation,
depending upon whether a single or double sill is to be

used. This method of anchoring the sill is indicated in
Fig. 11. The joists
in board floors

should always be
bridged by the use

of diagonal strips,
as shown in Fig.
15, which. stiffen
the floor and add
greatly to its
strength.

Various methods
are used in con-

structing the frame
work. It is possible
to frame a building
very cheaply, especially where upright boards are used for
the walls. Fig. 19 shows a cheap but practical frame,
consisting of a single 2x4 sill, single studs at each cor-
ner, with wall studs every five to ten feet to support the
top plates and girders or stringers, one of which should
always be provided midway between sill and rafter plate
to stiffen the walls and prevent warping of the boards
used for siding. Under ordinary conditions, a building
constructed in this way, with the outside covered with a
good grade of prepared roofing, will answer, though it
is too light for a permanent building or one of large size.

Where tongue-and-grove siding is to be used, the
method of framing illustrated in Fig. 16 is commonly
employed, the wall studs being spaced two feet from

FIG. 13—FRAMING SILLS FOR
BOARD FLOOR

y if Y
-Svb Floor Of

10° Sheathing Boards

FIG. 14—LAYING A DRAFT-PROOF BOARD FLOOR

center to center. Doubling studs at corners, doors, and
windows, as indicated in illustration, is customary among
carpenters, but rarely is necessary in poultry-house fram-
ing. The horizontal plate shown in middle of back wall
is to support the rear edge of droppings platform.

The framing of a house with combination roof does
not differ from a shed roof house except in the rafters.

house is shown in

One method of framing these is shown in Fig. 17.
The plan of supporting the ridge and preventing side-
thrust by means of short tie pieces should prove entirely
satisfactory with houses not over 16 feet wide, but where
the width is 20 feet or over, especially if the house is
a long one, the ties should reach substantially from front
to rear plate to give strength, or they may be entirely
omitted except at partitions, and a girder-and-post sup-
port provided instead, as in cross section shown in Fig.
73, page 42.

Constructing the Walls

For cold climates, also for permanent buildings, it
will be found more satisfactory, as a rule, to use tongue-
and-groove siding, which makes a tight, fairly draft-
proof wall, and in a term of years will cost less for up-
keep. Only under extreme conditions need the walls be
ceiled.

In all cases where a double wall is provided, special
attention must be given to making the house rat-proof,
as it is practically impossible to dislodge rats after they
have once established themselves in such a building. If
the house has a concrete foundation, and the first few
inches of the walls are filled in with concrete, it will be
impossible for the rats to obtain entrance.

One method of constructing the walls of a poultry

STi accactcdiuriinipedcaidc mutant tier eg
SSS SSH

FIG. 15—BRIDGING JOISTS TO STRENGTHEN FLOOR

Fig. 18, consisting of tongue-and-
groove siding lined with paper, held in place with strips.
In lining a new building the paper may be secured with
less trouble simply by tacking it to the outside face of
the studs before putting on the siding. This construction
is practical and satisfactory where fowls do not have ac-
cess to the paper. Where this is the case, no matter how
carefully it is nailed on, they will soon tear it off.

In some sections the poultry-house wall consists of
sheathing boards covered with waterproofed building
paper, over which shingles are nailed. This is excellent
¢onstruction, but rather expensive. (See Fig. 20.)

With most of the buildings illustrated in this book
there is no necessity for bracing, except as indicated in
special cases. However, where the house is to be ex-
posed to severe winds, it is safer to put braces at
all corners, and, in the case of long houses, to put in in-
terior braces, locating them at partitions, so that they
will not be in the way.

Different Types of Poultry House Roofs

The types of poultry-house roofs in common use are
shown in Fig. 23. Choice between them is determined
by the width of the building, the use to which it is to
be put, and the personal preference of the builder as to
appearance, etc. Shed roofs are by far the most com-
mon, with gable roofs probably second in popularity.
Monitor roofs are seldom used except where there is to
be a passageway through the middle of the house with
pens on each side. The combination roof is employed
mainly on wide houses, the object being to secure suf-
ficient pitch with minimum height. The semi-monitor
roof provides a means of getting direct sunlight into the
rear of the house in combination with a low front.
A-shaped roofs are in use mainly on small colony houses.
(See Fig. 52.)

LOCATING AND PLANNING

The poultry-house roof must, of course, be water-
tight, and should have sufficient pitch to carry off rain
promptly. A common mistake made by amateurs is to
provide too flat a roof. In such cases it is quite difficult
to make the joints entirely watertight without the lav-
ish use of roofing cement, and it is better to provide
a good slope in order to make certain that there will be
no trouble from this cause.

Under ordinary conditions shed roofs are cheapest
and most practical up to a width of about sixteen feet.
Houses sixteen to twenty feet in width can be built with
shed roofs, but combination roofs are generally preferred

FIG. 16—A SUBSTANTIAL FRAME FOR SHED-
ROOF HOUSE
This diagram shows in detail the ordinary

method of framing a shed-roof house to be cov-

ered with tongue-and-groove siding. The use of

double timbers for sills, plates and corner studs is
optional. Reproduced from Ohio State University

Extension Bulletin.
for wide houses, as they provide sufficient pitch without
naking the front excessively high.

Where a straw loft is to be provided, a gable roof is
most satisfactory, giving it approximately one-third
pitch. By one-third pitch is meant a roof in which the
perpendicular distance, or the “rise” from the top plate
to the ridge, is one-third the width of the house. For
example, one-third pitch in a building twelve feet wide,
would call for a ridge four feet higher than the top plate.
Shingles should not be used where the pitch is less than
one-third. Metal roofs are seldom
used, as they do not last long, are cold
in winter and hot in summer, and offer
no special advantages.

In some sections of the country it
is customary to use unsurfaced sheath-
ing boards for the roof, but the prac-
tice is not truly economical. Prepared
roofing will wear better on smooth

HOUSES 17

POULTRY

FIG. 17—FRAMING HOUSE FOR COMBINA-
NATION ROOF

Note method of tying front and rear rafters to
prevent spreading. In wide buildings many pre-
fer to use girders under the ridge, with supporting
posts. Reproduced from Ohio State University
Extension Bulletin.

corrected in any other way. See to it also, that there
are no nail heads sticking up, and cover all knot holes
and weak places in the boards with pieces of tin. Im
cold climates it pays to use T & G
boards for sheathing, as the open cracks
left between the edges of unmatched
boards will permit serious waste of heat.
The great majority of poultrymen use
prepared roofing, and this material is
entirely satisfactory for the purpose, if
of good grade. It seldom pays to use
cheap roofing, especially tarred paper
in which the upper or weather side is
liable to shrink and draw away from the
nails, making a weak place in the roof
and causing its rapid deterioration.
There are various methods of finish-
ing the eaves of the roof, some of which are shown in
Figs. 21, 22, 24 and 34. A common method is to omit
the eaves altogether, as in Fig. 22, simply lapping the
roof down over the edges all around. This method of
construction results in all the roof water running down
the sides of the building, which may or may not be ob-
jectionable. It is a cheap and easy method and makes

LINED WALL

surfaces; moreover, surfacing reduces
the boards practically to uniform thick-
‘ness, which is a distinct advantage.
When unsurfaced boards are used
there often are sharp corners resulting
from joining boards of unequal thick-
ness, which will quickly cut through

STRINGER

PREPARED
ROCFING

the best of roofing fabric. The sheath-
ing should be looked over carefully be- ‘
fore the roof is laid, and all sharp cor-eRoonn |.4
ners should be smoothed off with a sete
block plane if the trouble cannot be

10099209 9 0900000 q00000

CONC RETE

FIG. 19—PRACTICAL METHOD OF LOW COST CONSTRUCTION.

18

the upper part of the building draft-proof,
but nothing can be said for it from the
standpoint of appearance.

The method of construction shown in
Fig. 24, in which the rafter is cut off
square with the plate—the only eave pro-
vided being a four or five-inch projection
of the roofing boards—is simple, makes a
tight joint all around and looks better than
the method shown in Fig. 22. Where a
wider eave is desired, the plan shown in
Fig: 21 is satisfactory and can be secured
with the minimum of labor in sawing and
fitting the rafters. With this method it is

necessary to notch the siding boards to FIG.
secure a tight joint at the rafters. In some A, shed
monitor;

instances, this precaution is omitted and
the space between the top plate and the
roof boards is left open for ventilation, but this practice
is not to be recommended, as it usually means a cold,
drafty house in winter.

A convenient way of providing an eave for a water-
shed without extending the rafters is by laying a double

FIG, 20—COLONY HOUSE WITH SHINGLED WALLS

layer of shingles which project a few inches beyond the
side of the building. If the sides of the building are cov-
ered with prepared roofing, the upper edge should be
lapped over onto the roof sheathing before the shingles
are laid, thus making a thoroughly draft-proof joint.

No provision has been made for eave troughs- or
spouting either in the plans or bills of materials pre-
sented in this book. It is highly desirable to provide
such, however, especially along the fronts of permanent
laying and brooder houses. When this is done the fowls
and chicks will have a dry strip outdoors in rainy
weather, of which they will make full use. When this
Provision is neglected, they invariably get badly soaked
by the drip. If earth is graded up along the front for
any reason, as in the case of a house located on sloping

FIG. 21—RAFTER EXTENDED
TO FORM EAVE

roof;

SIDING
CIAY BE USED WHEN COVERED
WITH R°°FING PAPER

22—A ROOF WITHOUT EAVES

POULTRY.HOUSES AND FIXTURES

Oy (ee
Mibpec

23—DIFFERENT TYPES OF POULTRY HOUSE ROOFS

monitor; E, semi-
Bulletin 574,

B, combination roof; C, gable; D,
I’, A-shaped. Reproduced from Farmers’
U. S. Department of Agriculture.

ground (see Fig. 5), the eave drip will soon wash the
filling away, making access to yard doors more difficult
from the outside, and may weaken the foundation or
floor.

Doors and Windows

All poultry-house doors should be of ample size for
ease in carrying in food, litter, etc., and in cleaning out.
If the house consists of more than two pens, the door
should be wide enough to admit a wheelbarrow. Poultry-
house doors, as a rule, may be of simple construction,
consisting of tongue-and-groove boards nailed perpen-
dicularly, with a batten at top and bottom and a cross
brace. If hung to swing out, such doors may be made
storm-proof with little trouble. See Fig. 26.

There are various types of yard doors in use, one of
which is shown in Fig. 25. This door slides up and
down, and when properly constructed, will be found very
satisfactory. Some will prefer to have these doors hinged
to open on the side, and where this is done it will be
more convenient, as a rule, to have them open out rather
than in. 7.

Where passageways are provided, it is desirable to be
able to operate the yard doors from the Passageway by
the use of cords and pulleys, in which case the door shown
in Fig. 29 will be found satisfactory. This door is hinged
at the top and slopes back, so that when released it will
drop into place by its own weight. It seldom is Possible
to arrange tight-fitting sliding doors that will not stick
in wet weather. This sloping door, however, may be
made fairly tight and can be depended upon to work at
all times. While it can be pushed open from the outside,
it is not at all likely that any animal will do so, as it
bears too close a resemblance to a trap.

North of the Ohio River, windows are desirable in all
types of poultry-house construction and should be prop-
erly located and of sufficient size to furnish ample light
and vetitilation. A simple and satisfactory method of
framing the windows is shown in Fig. 28.

The bottom of the sill of this window is sixteen inches
from the floor line, which is a satisfactory height, and in

FIG, 24—RAFTER CUT FLUSH;
EAVE FORMED BY ROOF
BOARD

LOCATING AND PLANNING POULTRY HOUSES 19

all cases where practicable, a two-sash window is recom-
mended, as shown. There are various methods of plac-
ing window sash, but none that are any more convenient
or practical than where the upper sash is hinged to the
lower so that it can readily be opened for additional ven-

tilation. f
No special framing is required, aside from having

two studs on either side of the window and allowing the
siding to extend one inch beyond the studs. The lower
sash of the window
is held tight against

\ A; SS

Xe PD Ba the siding by a
MxM" Cleat Pareles? Weather strip, and
FIG. 25—SLIDING YARD Door ‘he upper sash is
This illustration shows position held in place by a
of door, which slides in grooves }gok or wooden
formed by siding, studs, and one-
inch cleats. button. The lower

rail of the top sash
and the upper rail of the lower sash should be sloped as
shown, in order to make a water-tight joint. It pays to
provide a substantial sill for all windows.

Where a single sash is used, a convenient way to in-
stall it is illustrated in Figs. 30 and 32, the latter
showing the manner in which the sash is dropped when
the window is to be opened. The sill (A) should be
high enough above the floor to permit upper sash rail
(F) to drop below inside edge of sill. B is a weather
strip holding bottom of sash (E) in place when closed,
while C holds the top rail. D is the side stud to which
strip G is nailed,
the purpose of the
latter being to hold
sash in place when
it is opened.

It is not desir-
able to have win-
dows down too near
the floor. If low
enough to let the
hens see out, it will
make them restless

when they must be

| Hasp confined. Low win-

t \s dows also tempt the

8 \] 3s hens to huddle in

x ° in; the sunlight in front

| i of the window, thus

= | ‘ exposing them to
sf drafts.

F When warm

weather comes in

ay the spring, the win-

‘jl Hinge dows should be re-

moved entirely in
order to provide ad-
ditional ventilation.
For this reason the
front of the win-
dow opening should
be covered with 34-
inch poultry netting

wamb

(a
Se
) ae ae

Cc BS VIP IIS ZZ SSSA

Hasp T Step Hinge to keep the fowls
FIG. 26—DETAIL OF DOOR in and to prevent
FRAMING sparrows from en-

Poultry house doors should be hung tering. If sashes

to swing out and not in. Door illus-
trated above closes tight against sill
and, with drip cap properly installed
over the top, is practically storm-
proof. If no casing is used around the
opening, door can be hung flush
with siding.

with large panes are
provided, the inside
of the window also
should be covered

with netting in order to avoid breakage, which is liable to
result from the fowls flying up against the windows.
About one square foot of glass to fifteen square feet
of floor space will be found ample for lighting the poul-
try house. In cold
climates it may be
desirable to increase
this to one foot in
ten. .More than this
is not advisable un-
der any condition.
Sufficient light is
provided by the
proportion of glass

|} 7a

xi" Strip real

27—CONSTRUCTION OF YARD

FIG.

just suggested, and DOOR

anything in excess Door is built up of 4-ineh T & G
eae _ boards, with edges bound by 1-inch

of this is not only cleats.’ An easier but less attractive

method is to nail 2-inch cleats across

an added source of back of door at top and bottom.

expense, but is det-

rimental, causing irregular temperatures. On bright days
the large amount of sunshine admitted makes the pens
unnecessarily warm, while at night the heat is radiated
rapidly, creating a cold house, and condensing the moist-
ure in the building, causing dampness or “sweating.”
The same objection applies to skylights. Being at the
highest part of the room usually, they allow warm air

to escape, and in warm weather make the house hot;
also, they almost invariably leak.
In the case of houses sixteen feet wide or more,

windows in the rear
wall under the drop-
pings platform are
desirable. They light
up what otherwise
is a comparatively
dark section of the
floor, and _ where
they are provided
the troublesome ten-
dency of the litter
to work back to the
rear of the room is
checked.

1" Mesh Netting i

Muslin Shutters and

I" Mesh Netting

Curtains

The use of mus-
lin shutters for ven-
tilating poultry
houses is now well-
nigh universal, and
no better method is
known. With the
east, west, and north
walls of air-tight
construction, good-
sized openings can
be provided on the

ENLARGED CRoss SEcTIoN
OF Situ

south side, giving oars
the fowls ventila-
tion, sunlight, etc.,

with complete pro-
tection from drafts.
These openings are
protected by mus-
lin shutters or cur-
tains, to be closed
in stormy weather
and at night. Mus-

28—CONSTRUCTION OF
WINDOW

Sash closes tight against siding,
which overlaps opening one inch all
around, making a tight joint and re-
ducing cost. Where the sashes come
together, bevel the edges to slope out-
ward and make water-tight joint, in-
stead of leaving them level as shown
in illustration.

FIG.

20 POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

lin affords fairly good ventilation in cold weather, though

it does not provide for a very rapid exchange of air in
warm weather and is practically air-tight when wet.

In order to get the best results with curtain-front

houses, more or less adjustment of the curtains or shut-

ters is required. Muslin

retains a. great deal of

heat when the sun is

shining, even when. the

‘ thermometer is very low,

for which reason it sel-

' dom is necessary to keep

SSSI

Hinge / the shutters or curtains
Door , closed on sunshiny days,
5 wen even in the coldest
Tp’Staip weather. In _ stormy

-

c SINGLE FLOOR

weather or on cold nights,
however, there usually
will be sufficient air cir-
culation with the shutters
down, and in such cases
there is nothing whatever
to be gained by leaving
them open.

In a properly constructed house there is little danger
of fowls being injured by cold, so long as the temperature
does not drop down to zero or below. However, the
amount of cold that the fowls can stand without injury,
or without having the egg yield affected, depends largely
upon whether or not they have been properly accustomed
to open-front conditions.

For the section lying between the Ohio River and
the Great Lakes, one square foot of muslin to ten or
twelve feet of floor space generally will be found satis-
factory for laying houses that are constructed as directed
in this book. This is with the understanding that the
shutters or curtains will be left open all the time in warm
weather, and when the sun is shining even in winter
weather, so long as the temperature does not drop lower
than ten to fifteen degrees above zero. In
stormy weather or in lower temperatures, the
openings must be closed.

South of the Ohio River it is safe to omit
all sash and increase the proportion of muslin-
covered openings to one square foot to eight
of floor space. Several different methods of
installing fronts have been tried out, but noth-
ing is as satisfactory as the use of frames
made of 1x3 inch strips, and hinged at the top
so that they can be swung up inside and held
out of the way by means of hooks and eyes.

These frames, being of rather light con-
struction as a rule, should not be too large.
3x4, 4x4 or 4x6 feet are practical sizes. Noth-
ing is better for covering than a good grade
of heavy unbleached muslin. There is no ad-
vantage in using waterproof muslin unless the
opening is directly exposed to severe storms.
The material used in the waterproofing closes
the pores and practically defeats the purpose
for which the muslin is used.

Where the top of the opening is consid-
erably below the rafter plate, a convenient
way of hanging the shutter so as to have it
entirely out of the way when open, is to
use side strips long enough to reach to the plate, hing-
ing them as shown in Fig. 31.

With hinged shutters there usually is no way of ad-
justing the size of the opening, the shutter being kept

FIG. 29—SELF-CLOSING
YARD DOOR

closed or wide open. In a house having several shutters, a
degree of adjustment may be secured by leaving some
closed, opening only as many as are necessary. One way
of making the shutters adjustable is illustrated in Chap-
ter VII, on page 77. In this case the shutter is made
in two parts, hinged together so that the upper part may
be left open while the lower half is closed. Another
method of securing an adjustable shutter is shown in
Chapter VI, where the frame is arranged to slide up an¢

igs Top Plate

yee of Shcvteer

Muslin Covered
Shutter

2'' Frame All Around

FIG. 31—MUSLIN-COVERED SHUTTER WITH
EXTENSION RAILS

down, and may be fastened at any desired height by
means of a hook screwed into the top, and catching in
the netting back of the shutter.

The house shown in Fig. 34, one of the buildings ,
on the Poultry Plant at the University of California,
provides for an unusual degree of shutter adjustment.
Each shutter is made in four narrow vertical sections
hinged on the side to swing out. By opening one or
more of these, any desired adjustment in ventilation may
be secured. In windy weather the sections that open
back against the wind can be fastened in posi-
tion to act as windbreaks. All the sections
of a shutter are enclosed in a substantial frame
which is hinged at the top to swing out. When
fastened in the position shown on the right
side of illustration, the shutter acts as a sun-
shade. This style of shutter is well adapted
for use where the summers are hot, or where
wide variations in temperature make an
unusual degree of adjustment especially de-
sirable.

Substitutes for Shutters

“Ourppnts ¥xe

Where large openings are to have muslin
protection, loose curtains are considered more
desirable by many. As a rule, these are pro-
vided with small metal rings at suitable in-
tervals, top and bottom, these rings sliding on
wires. With the curtains on the outside of
the building, they do not flap much in the
wind, but are simply blown back against the
wire netting which encloses the opening.
These curtains appear to last almost as long
as the muslin on inside frames. The house
shown on page 49 is equipped with muslin
curtains in the manner just described.

One of the objections to the use of muslin shutters
and curtains for ventilation is that they require frequent
adjustment in changeable weather. Failure to open
them on warm days, or to close them promptly when the

LOCATING AND PLANNING POULTRY HOUSES 21

temperature drops suddenly in win-
ter, may lead to more or less serious
consequences. As a means of secur-
ing ventilation without the necessity
for making such adjustment, louvered
ventilators (shown in Fig. 35) are
recommended by the Missouri State
Poultry Experiment Station. These
ventilator openings are adapted in
size to the dimensions of the house.
For one having four hundred square
feet of floor space and accommodat-
ing one hundred to one hundred and
twenty-five hens, the Missouri Sta-
tion recommends four ventilators
each three feet square. The _hori-
zontal slats are 1x6 inches, set at an
angle of forty-five degrees. The dis-
tance between each of the slats is one and one-half inches.

It is claimed for these shutters that the storm will
not beat in, while ventilation is unobstructed at all times.
Ir practical use, however, it has been found that snow
will sift through un-
der some conditions
and in exposed loca-
tions there is trou-
ble from drafts, for
which reason the
openings sometimes
are fitted with mus-
lin shutters for win-
ter use.

ieee As a means of
securing the ad-
vantages of the Mis-
souri shutter with-
out the above-noted
objections, the Poul-
try Department at
Cornell University
has originated the
Cornell Wind Baf-
fler, illustrated in
Fig. 36. In a house
having approximate-
ly five hundred
square feet of floor
space, three of these
bafflers are recom-
mended, making
them three feet deep
and cutting the slats

277% inches long.

ENLARGED Cross SECTIONSecure the slats in

4 OF SILL place by nailing
them through the

side pieces, using
No. 5 finishing nails.
The bafflers, after
they are made, are
slipped into open-
ings between studs
suitably spaced and
are held in place by
a few small nails.

The following bill

FIG. 383—CROSS SECTION OF 5
SHUTTER OPENING of lumber will sup-
Allow siding to overlap stud one ply material for

inch on each side to make a tight :
joint around shutter. : e three wind bafflers

FIG. 34—LAYING HOUSE WITH DIVIDED SHUTTERS
Photo from University of California,

of the dimensions just noted, which will provide sufficient
ventilation for a house 16x30 feet. .

11 pieces, 3 inch x 3 inch, 16 feet long.

6 pieces, 3g inch x 1% inch, 16 feet long.

1 piece, 9-16 inch x 4 inch, 10 feet long.

1 piece, 9-16 inch x 4 inch, 12 feet long.

One serious objection to both the Missouri shutter
and the Cornell wind baffler is that neither one admits
much light, for which reason it is necessary to provide
considerably more window space than is required where
muslin shutters are used.

Rear Wall Ventilators

In poultry houses that are equipped with muslin
fronts or slatted openings, no other ventilation is required,
except in hot weather, when rear ventilators, such as are
shown in Fig. 37, page 22, will be found decidedly
helpful. These ventilators extend the entire length of
the building, close up under the eaves, and in the south
may open directly into the room and may be made as
much as twelve inches wide. The perches, however,
should be far enough below the opening so that the
fowls on the roost will not be in a direct draft. In the
north this opening is made four to eight inches wide,
and the wall and ceiling about the perches should be
ceiled as shown. The ceiling boards should be of sound
tongue-and-grooved stock and should extend from the
underside of the droppings platform up the rear wall
and along the rafters to a point twelve to eighteen inches
in front of the outer edge of the platform. The ceil-
ing must be carried around the rafter plate on short
furring strips, reaching diagonally from the rear wall to
the rafters, so that there will be no obstruction to the
circulation of the air. The outside opening should be
provided with doors that can be closed tight in cold
weather. These doors may consist of inch boards of
suitable width. They should not be over six to eight
feet long, as a rule, as they are liable to warp if too long,
and in that condition will not close the opening tightly,
which is quite important in cold weather. When glass
sashes are provided under the droppings boards, these
may be removed in hot weather, adding greatly to the
comfort of the fowls. For cross section of house equipped
with rear ventilator, see Fig. 62, page 37, also see Chapter
X for detail drawing.

Straw Lofts

In cold climates, straw lofts are especially desirable
and well worth the additional cost of providing them.
A practical type of straw loft is indicated in Fig. 79.
This heavy blanket of straw not only retains warmth,

22 POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

FIG. 35—LAYING HOUSE WITH LOUVERED VENTILATOR
Photo from Mo, State Poultry Exp. Station.

making the house more comfortable in winter, but also
makes it cooler in summer. The straw also absorbs
moisture and helps to keep the house dry. Where straw
lofts are used, louvered ventilator openings should always
be provided in the gables, thus permitting the gradual
passage of air through the straw and out at the gables.
See pages 45 and 46 for plans for a straw-loft house.

King Ventilating System

In brooder houses and in buildings of special con-
struction, where muslin fronts are not desired, the method
of ventilation shown in Fig. 38, known as the King Ven-
tilating System, will be found practical and satisfactory.
In this the air is admitted to the intake near the ground
and passes up between the inner and outer walls, where
the building has a double wall, or in a specially provided
flue in single-walled buildings, and thus enters the build-
ing near the ceiling, as indicated by the arrows. A cen-
trally located flue, the opening to which is about a foot
above the floor, carries the foul air out through a louvered
ventilator in the roof. Where this system of ventilation
is adopted, the cross section of both intake and outtake
should provide about four square inches per adult bird, or

WIND GAFFLER

ieeanes oe LAMY wind
“ “)) Passe rou apflek
+ 4241 = Sali f EE

FIG. 36—CORNELL WIND BAFFLER

in that proportion. The air circulation is controlled by
the adjustable doors at the top of the intake flues, and
a door is also provided in the outlet flue near the ceiling,
for supplementary ventilation in hot weather.

Building Temporary Poultry Houses

The labor cost of building poultry houses always
amounts to a large part of the total expense, though this
fact is often overlooked when the poultryman himself
does the work. In fact, the common tendency to place
no money value on special work done by the poultryman
or his assistant leads to a great deal of wasted effort.
tt is a good plan, therefore, to form the habit of placing
a definite valuation on time, either by the day or the
liour, systematically charging the same against all work
performed. This practice will bring about a very differ-
ent estimate of the actual worth of things done and par-
ticularly will be found to discourage temporary expe-
dients, which invariably cost all
their practical value.

For example, in planning cheap, temporary buildings
or shelters, the poultryman should consider not only the
actual cost of materials, but of his labor as well, and also
should make a careful estimate of the length of time that

out of proportion to

FIG.

37—REAR VENTILATOR AND WINDOWS
House here

illustrated is provided with rear venti-
lator extending entire length of building, immediately
under eave. Also has single-sash windows next to floor.
This greatly improves the lighting under droppings plat-
form, and with ventilators and windows both open in
summer the house will be about as cool as it is possible
to make it. Photo from Mo. State» Poultry Exp. Station.

they may be expected to last, and the cost of keeping
them in repair during that time. If this is done there
will be vastly fewer of the makeshift structures that dis-
figure so many poultry plants at present. There is no
question about the fact that, under average conditions, a
well-built, permanent house is cheaper in the long run
than the succession of cheaper structures that would be
required to answer the same purpose for the same length
of time. It is not meant by this to condemn as imprac-
tical, all temporary structures for poultry uses. There
are many practical conditions under which these are re-
quired; but both sides of the matter should be looked
into before making such investments.

The poultryman who has decided that a temporary
building is needed, should consider carefully the kind
and quality of materials that are to be used in it. It is
as impractical to use high-grade lumber or heavy roofing
on a building that is only expected to last two or three
years, as it is to use the inferior material or one-ply
roofing on one that is expected to be permanent. In the
one case material is wasted, and in the other, labor. In
putting up temporary structures, true economy lies in
placing a definite estimate upon the period for which they
are.to last and then selecting the cheapest suitable ma-
terial which will give that length of service.

LOCATING AND PLANNING POULTRY HOUSES 23

Hardware

In the various bills of materials presented, the kind
or quality of hardware required is not specified aside
from a few details such as hinges, hooks, etc. A few
general suggestions on the subject here may prove help-
ful to the inexperienced. In setting up ordinary framing
timbers 20-penny nails are regularly used, though a few
40-penny spikes come in handy now and then. For nail-
ing sheathing boards, T & G siding, and 7-inch lumber
generally, 8-penny nails are used. For rough, unsurfaced
boards, which run one inch or over in thickness, it is
better to use the 10-penny size. For ™%-inch lumber, such
as strips for cracks, etc., use 6-penny nails. Shingles are
laid with 4-penny nails, galvanized if obtainable. Lathing
nails (2-penny) are handy for a variety of uses and a
few should always be on hand. Size mentioned above
apply to either wire or cut nails, the former being em-
ployed almost exclusively, as they are cheaper, easier to
use, less liable to split the lumber, and more readily ob-
tainable.

There is little occasion for using casing or finishing
nails in poultry-house construction, but when neat work
is to be done they will be called for. In making shutter
frames, feed hoppers and, in general, wherever thin lum-
ber or narrow strips are to be employed, box nails which
are of smaller diameter than ordinary nails of the same
length, can be used with less “danger of splitting the
wood. Where they cannot be obtained it sometimes is
practicable to use casing nails which also are of smaller
diameter then headed nails.

For attaching light-weight poultry netting to fences,
etc., ordinary netting staples are satisfactory, but if wire
Reavier than 16 gauge is used it is better to get regular
fencing staples. On shutter frames and generally where
the lumber is liable to split, double-pointed carpet tacks
are much more desirable than netting staples. They hold
the netting securely and do not split. For tacking mus-

— > OUTLET

FIG. 38—KING VENTILATING SYSTEM

lin to frames, 4-oz. carpet tacks are heavy enough, but if
duck or burlap is used it will be better to employ the
8-o0z. size. Cut tacks are preferable to wire tacks as the

latter have very thin heads and are hard to pull out when
making repairs. For fastening windows, etc.,
screw hooks and eyes are invaluable, and the 2-in. size
is most convenient in a majority of cases. For adjusting

d oors,

FIG. 39—CROSS SECTION OF STRAW LOFT HOUSE

swinging windows, various attachments are obtainable,
but about the cheapest convenient plan is to use a suit-
able length of light, flat-link chain, obtainable at any
good hardware store.

The various styles of hinges used about poultry
buildings include butt hinges, with either tight or loose
pins, T-strap hinges, and strap hinges. Butt hinges are
employed on all narrow strips, frames, etc. As the
screws which fasten these hinges in place are close to-
gether and near the edges of the boards, they are quite
liable to split out and it is not advisable, therefore, to
use them if strap hinges can be employed instead. Loose-
pin butt hinges are used only where it is desirable to be
able to remove the hinged section without taking out
screws, and where the hinges are in a vertical position.
Be particular to specify tight-pin butts in hinges to be
placed horizontally, as in windows, shutters, ete. For
partition doors between pens, it is desirable to use dou-
ble-acting hinges. The smaller hardware stores, as a
rule, only handle the heavy, expensive styles used in
dwelling houses, but comparatively inexpensive ones are
made and can be secured on direct order if the pur-
chaser insists upon it. For large outside doors, strap
or T-strap hinges are commonly used. If,the door is
regularly framed, loose-pin butt hinges (4 to 5-inch size)
may be used, but are more trouble to install. A 6 to 8-
inch safety hasp usually is preferred to any other form
of door fastener.

Paint

The_improvement in appearance which results from
having well-painted buildings would alone be a sufficient
reason for painting all exposed wood work. In addi-
tion to this, however, paint adds greatly to the, life of
the building, particularly if cheaper grades of lumber are
used. Such lumber will deteriorate rapidly if not pro-
tected. It is true economy, moreover, to use paint of
good quality, mixed with linseed oil, rather than to ap-
ply cheap paint which always is composed of distinctly
inferior materials. ‘“Cold-water’’ paints, whitewash, etc.,
may be used and will add appreciably to the appearance
of buildings, fences, etc., but have not the preservative
value of good oil paint, and require renewal at more
frequent intervals.

“Whitewash can be made by slacking about ten
pounds of quicklime in a pail with 2 gallons of water,
covering the pail with cloth or burlap and allowing it to
slake for one hour. Water is then added to bring the

24 POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

whitewash to a consistency which may be applied read-
ily. A weather-proof whitewash for exterior surfaces
may be made as follows: (1) Slake 1 bushel of quicklime
in 12 gallons of hot water; (2) dissolve 2 pounds of com-
mon salt and 1 pound of sulphate of zine in 2 gallons
of boiling water; pour (2) into (1), then add a gallon
of skim milk and mix thoroughly. Whitewash is spread
lightly over the surface with a broad brush.” *

A cheap and fairly satisfactory “paint” can be made
by stirring Portland cement into skim milk until the
mixture reaches the consistency of thick cream, when it
can be applied with an ordinary paint or whitewash
brush. It can be made in various tints by adding lamp
black, venetian red, ochre, and various other coloring
substances as desired.

Tools

The poultry keeper usually does more or less of
his own carpenter work, as he finds that, with a little
experience, he can do satisfactory work, and at much less
expense as compared with the cost of having it done by
a carpenter. Most persons, however, make the mistake
of attempting to do such work with a too-limited assort-
ment of tools, or with tools of inferior quality. The
poultry keeper cannot afford tg neglect providing a com-
plete outfit of tools, and should have a_ regularly
equipped workshop if at all possible.

Attempting to do carpenter work without the proper
tools, or with tools that are dull, rusty and generally un-
fit for use, is not true economy under any condition.

To be able to do any kind of construction work ef-
ficiently, the following tools will be found practically in-
dispensable: ax, hammer, hatchet, set of chisels, from
Y% in. to 1% in., mallet, brace and set of bits, 2 screw
drivers, large and small, block plane, jack plane, spirit
level, plumb bob, steel square, rip saw, crosscut or hand
saw, compass saw, monkey wrench, pliers, oil stone, 2-
foot pocket rule, portable iron vise, %4-pt. oil.can, chalk,
chalkline, drawknife. i

In the shop there should be a good-sized carpen-
ter’s work-bench with a wooden vise, a bicycle grind-
stone, and a small geared emery or carborundum stone.
In order to be able to take care of the various repair
jobs that often are called for about the average home

* Extract from Farmers’ Bul. 574, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture.
x

and poultry plant, a few metal-working tools will be
found convenient, particularly a set of drill bits in small
sizes: ¥%-in. and 1-in. cold chisels, metal or tinner’s
shears, medium-size pipe wrench; small set of S wrenches.
The tools when not in use should be kept in a wall cab-
inet provided with suitable shelves and hooks. It will
aid in observance of the important rule of “a place for
every tool and every tool in its place” if the cabinet is
provided with glass doors so that if any tool is not in
its proper place this fact can hardly escape notice.

The foregoing list may appear to be a rather formid-
able one, but on the average poultry plant every tool
mentioned should pay for itself, in time and money
saved, before the end of the first year. Having provided
these tools see that they are properly cared for. If care-
lessly used, left lying around, or put away while damp,
they will deteriorate quickly and soon become compara-
tively worthless. . It is true economy to get good tools
and then keep them in good condition. This includes
keeping all edged tools sharp. Dull tools are strength
and time-wasters and usually result in much wasted ma-
terial also. The grindstone should be operated by power
if possible. If it must be turned by hand or foot it is
doubly important to have a geared emery or carborundum
stone for use where the ordinary grindstone cuts too
slowly.

Plans Given in Other Books

In order to present the subject of poultry house con-
struction in such a manner as to meet the building re-
quirements of the greatest number, it has been found nec-
essary to limit the plans illustrated and described, to
houses for fowls. Permanent brooder houses being an
essential feature of every well-equipped poultry plant,
these are fully represented, also a number of plans for
portable colony houses which can be used for adult fowls,
brooder chicks or growing stock. Those who are especi-
ally interested in houses of the latter type, however, also
in brooders, brood coops, chick runs, and chick-raising
equipment generally, are referred to our books on “Arti-
ficial _Incubating and Brooding” and “The Chick Book.”
Plans for houses especially designed for ducks, will be
found in our book on “Ducks and Geese.” Houses for
turkeys are described in “Turkeys, Their Care and Man-
agement.” See page 112.

AN ANNOUNCEMENT

At an early date, we expect to issue
a book on “Poultry Plant Construc-
tion,” devoted primarily to the re-
This
working

quirements of
book will give
plans, architect’s specifications, bills

Jarge plants.

complete

of material, etc., for modern, down-
to-date poultry houses of every kind
required on large breeding and com-
mercial plants. It will be printed
on extra-size pages, which will make
it possible to reproduce plans on a
scale large enough to biing out clear-
ly all necessary details of design and
The need for a book

of this character is unquestioned, and
we anticipate a large demand for it.
Announcement of exact date of pub-

construction.

FIG. 40—SUMMER SHADES FOR OPEN FRONT HOUSES.
Photo from Purdue University

lication will be given later through
the usual channels.

CH APT oRe Lt

Economical Back Yard Poultry Houses

Back Yard Poultry Keeping is Profitable When Well-Managed—Laying Out the Plant so as to Utilize Space to the
Best Advantage and Protect Health of Fowls—Complete Plans for Building a Number of Inexpensive
Houses—Avoid Makeshift Buildings—Even Low-Cost Houses May Be Made Neat and Attractive.

NDER many conditions the back-yard poultry
flock can be made an important means of reduc-
ing the high cost of living and may also be util-

WW) ized as a source of revenue.

Where they are given proper care and attention, the
number of fowls that can be kept on a small tract of
ground is surprisingly large. Extremely intensive methods
of poultry raising are not to be recommended for general
adoption—especially for large-scale operations, but it is
entirely practicable to follow this method on a_ small
scale, and with good success.

Where a back yard is available, a good-sized flock
can be kept to excellent advantage, and the space pro-
vided by the ordinary back
yard can frequently be util-
ized with more profitable re-
sults in poultry keeping than
in any other manner involv-
ing no greater outlay.

Few persons realize how
much may be accomplished
in the space of an ordinary
back yard in the production
of eggs and fowls for the
home table. In one year, a
dozen pullets or young hens,
fed largely on scraps from
the kitchen, should produce
120 to 180 dozens of eggs.
having a market value of
$50.00 or more, at average
prices. If desired, it is prac-
ticable to go a step farther
and, in the space of the aver-
age back yard, raise a few
broods of chicks that will
furnish spring and summer
frys and roasting fowls for
fall and winter use, thus
keeping the table supplied
with this delicious and whole-
some meat a good part of
the year and reducing the
butcher’s bill to a small frac-
tion of what it otherwise
would be.

Fowls can be kept successfully in quite limited
space, and where it is desirable to do so, the average
back yard affords sufficient room for a flock large enough
to form an important source of additional income through
the sale of surplus eggs and fowls to the neighbors, many
of whom will be glad of an opportunity to buy these
special quality products, and will cheerfully pay an ad-
vance over the ordinary market price for them. All the
work of caring for such a flock may be done outside of
regular work hours and the time will scarcely be missed.

There are other ways of deriving an income from the
back-yard flock, such as the production of standard-bred,

exhibition-quality fowls and the sale of eggs for hatch-:

ing, also day-old chicks. Not only may substantial sums
be realized in this way, but the experience thus gained

FIG, 41—AN ATTRACTIVE BACK-YARD POULTRY
HOUSE is

Even though only a very limited amount of room is
available, it. will pay to give the fowls an outdoor run.
Above illustration shows how to make a small yard look
neat and trim with but little trouble or expense.

may be made the basis for the development of an ex-
tensive poultry business that will enable the poultryman
to drop less profitable or congenial employment and give
his entire time to this interesting and comparatively easy
work. Many of the most successful breeders of today es-
tablished their prize-winning strains and laid the founda-
tions for their success within the limits of an ordinary
back yard. Remember however, that it is especially im-
portant to avoid overcrowding where breeding fowls are
kept in close quarters.
Laying Out the Back Yard Poultry Plant

There are various ways of laying out the back yard

to accommodate a small flock of fowls, but one convenient

manner of doing this is
shown in Fig. 42.
Special attention should

be called to the fact that
the back-yard poultry plant
does not necessarily have
to be an evesore. The poul-
try house can be built in a
neat and attractive manner
at only a slight increase in
cost over ramshackle con-
struction, and when this is
done the owner is much
more likely to retain his
interest in the work.

Temporary, inconvenient
structures. hastily and care-
lessly built, have been re-
sponsible for poor results
and for loss of interest in
thousands of cases where
suitable buildings would
have encouraged the owner
to continue in thts most in-
teresting and profitable
work. A_ good illustration
of neatness in back-yard
poultry house construction
given in Fig. 41. It
costs a little more to build
in this manner than to put
up a “shack,” but when
built such a house should
require no repairs for many years and without doubt it
adds substantially to the value of the property.

Fig. 42 shows how the back yard can not only be util-
ized for a flock large enough to supply the family table
with eggs and fowls practically the year round, but also
to produce a surplus for sale at good prices. This can be
done without sacrificing the lawn and without making the
back yard unattractive.

This plan provides for a poultry house of three pens,
each of which will accommodate twenty-five fowls. The
amount of yard room allowed is comparatively small, but
if the yards are regularly swept and occasionally spaded,
they will keep clean and free from odor and, with proper
care, the fowls will do as well as on free range. The
lawn and the small, separately fenced plot in the rear

26 POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

will provide room for raising pullets os
Rear]

enough to renew one-half the flock
each year.

hi

It is planned to utilize the lawn
at the side and at the rear of the

dwelling for brooding young chicks.
If they are not kept here too long,

and the brooders are moved at fre-
quent intervals, the lawn will not be

injured in any manner by such use.
When the chicks are large enough

to take care of themselves, they are
to be removed to the plot in the rear

where small colony houses are pro-
vided for them, and where they are

to run until the pullets are ready to
go into the laying pens in the fall.
The cockerels can be kept here, also,

es lal Peas

| (oRe Ba

a a AT A EE OT OE EO AE TT a

until they reach broiler age when,
ordinarily, they should be disposed

[> \ b¥
mS,

——

FIG.

mI ney ! YU r 1 "
i" ap to Cinigi ls
=e SBE LS aoc sae alge

‘embers

&

Boos)

Dee er.
oe REP
rhe =

ABS

44 ts

te emer ae ge
st
oes

FIG. 42—PRACTICAL METHOD OF LAYING OUT BACK-YARD
POULTRY PLANT

This sketch shows how to lay out a good-sized back lot where chicks are
to be raised, and laying or breeding fowls kept in sufficient numbers to make
them a source of income. AA are outdoor brooders; B, the laying house; C, C, L,
outdoor runs for hens; D, S, colony houses; BE, yard for growing stock after
the young birds no longer need artificial heat; F, F, hedge on each side of the
lot, affording windbreak and shade; G, the home garden,

43—FLOOR PLAN OF ELEVATED POULTRY HOUSE

of, the amount of ground provided
being insufficient for raising large
aumbers of chicks to full size.

As sketched in Fig. 42, there is to
be a hedge on both sides of the lawn,
and the garden plot is cut off from
the lawn by a neat screen, to which
poultry netting can be fastened if it
is desired to make it chicken-tight.
The fencing about the poultry yards,
of course, will be wire netting, four
to six feet high, depending upon the
variety of the fowls kept. Fruit trees
should be planted in the yards, but
probably will not be wanted in the
garden. Flower beds can be provided
to suit individual taste, and if the
plan is carried out as here indicated,
the fowls will not interfere in any
way with having a most attractive
lawn, nor will they make trouble for
the neighbors.

In this plan the laying house is
located at a convenient distance from
the dwelling. It should be hidden by
grouping shrubs in the rear, or by
a grape trellis as shown. The vari-
ous features of this back-yard poul-
try plant are indicated by letter as
follows:

AA are outdoor brooders; B, the
laying house; C, outdoor runs for
hens; D, colony houses; E, yard for
growing stock after the young birds
no longer need artificial heat in the
brooders; F, hedge on each side of
the lot, affording windbreak and
shade; G, the kitchen garden.

Many town and city poultry keep-
ers do not have a lot large enough
for a poultry plant of even the mod-
est dimensions here shown, and must
modify their lay-out accordingly.
Some may even be reduced to the
necessity of using no more space than
is occupied by the house and -yard
illustrated in Fig. 41, and still may
find both pleasure and profit in a
well-managed flock. On the lot just

ECONOMICAL BACK YARDPPOULT RY HOUSES 27

FIG. 44—SMALL ELEVATED POULTRY HOUSE,

referred to, no chicks at all can be raised, but a good-
sized laying flock is maintained by purchasing early
hatched pullets in October, or by November Ist at the
outside, and feeding heavily for eggs until production be-
gins to drop off in the summer. Then the layers are
killed for table use, and a new flock purchased in the fall.
The plot of ground here utilized probably is not over
12 to 15 feet square but, as here utilized, will accommo-
date a flock large enough to supply all the eggs that
will be used by an average family and enough more to
pay the cost of all feed purchased.

ELEVATED POULTRY HOUSE
A Low-Cost House With Sheltered Exercising Room
Underneath Affords Comfort for the Fowls
All the Year.

Where a small flock only is to be kept, simply to
supply the home table with fresh, high-quality eggs and
possibly a few young fowls for spring and summer frys,
the house shown in perspective in Fig. 5 will be found
convenient and economical to build.
This house stands three feet above
the ground, with the space under-
neath closed on three sides, afford-

mer to make the house cooler and more comfortable.
An entrance for the fowls may be provided in the front,
if desired, but the rear trap door should always be avail-
able for the use in stormy weather, when the fowls will
remain below indefinitely rather than
entrance.

Fig. 43 gives a floor plan of this house, Fig. 45 givesa
sectional view lengthwise, and Fig. 44 shows a general
view. While the dimensions can be varied to suit in-
dividual needs, the house as planned is 8x12 feet on three-
foot posts. The walls are five feet high and the ridge is
eight feet. It will accommodate twenty to twenty-five
fowls, or even thirty in a pinch. The following bill of
materials will be found sufficient to construct it:

use an outside

BILL OF MATERIALS FOR BACK YARD POULTRY HOUSE

Size L'gth No.of Bd.
Use Inch. Feet Pieces Meas. Remarks
Sills .... 2X6 12 2 24
Sills . 8 2 16
Joists . 8 4 32
Joists . 8 1 5
Studs 10 5 33 1 piece cuts 2.
Plates 12 3 24
Plates 8 4 21
Support
pings platform....2x4 8 1 5
Window sills 8 1 5. Surfaced and
milled.
Perches 8 2 11 Surfaced, upper
corners rounded.
Ratters) ® 10 7 47 1 piece cuts 2.
Sheathing boards...1x10 .... oe 640
Matched flooring....1x4 Ses ES 175

34% squares prepared roofing.
100 s. f. sheathing paper for floor.
2 plain rail window sashes, 14-in., 6-light, 10x12-in. glass.
20 s. f. of 11-inch mesh poultry netting.
10% s. f. of muslin.
8 4-inch locust or cedar posts, 5% ft. long.
1 pair 8-in. T-strap hinges.
1 door latch.
3 pairs 2-inch butt hinges.
1 chain sash adjuster.
2 2-inch hooks and eyes.
Nails, paint, ete.

With a little more expense, the house can be built with
tongue-and-groove siding nailed horizontally. Trimmed

ncatly and given a couple of coats of paint, it may be
made very attractive in appearance and will last a life-
time.

ing a scratching pen for the hens at
practically no additional cost. The

space is reached from the floor above
by an incline at the back.

In order to make this house warm
and free from drafts the floor should
be doubled, the sub-floor consisting
of sheathing boards laid ‘diagonally,
then covered with good, waterproof
building paper, and_ tongue -and-
groove flooring laid over this.

This house is to be built with plain
boards nailed perpendicular and coy-
ered with prepared roofing. The
perches are along the west end, as-
suming that the windows and open-
ings face the south, as will usually be
found most satisfactory.

Ventilation is secured by providing
a muslin-covered opening, also two-
small openings in the gable, which
should be closed in the winter-time
by tacking a heavy piece of cloth
over them, but left open in the sum-

HE at

Fi a
ae
f ws) Mi)
oY MH

\

FIG. 45—LENGTHWISE SECTION OF ELEVATED HOUSE

28

HOUSE FOR ADULT FOWLS OR BANTAMS

A Practical House for Small Back-Yard Flocks. Has
Muslin Ventilation, and Well-Protected Perches. ,
Just Right for a Pen of Bantams.

By E. L. POTTER

The drawings at the foot of this page illustrate a
convenient and practical house suitable for a small back-
yard flock of eight to ten fowls. This house will prove
especially convenient for a bantam flock, though it may
be used for large fowls with entirely satisfactory. results.
The curtains in front of the perches should be omitted,
as they are of little use except in extremely cold sec-
tions of the country or for fowls having extra-large
combs. If this house is used as a colony house, it will
accommodate twelve to fifteen Leghorns, about twelve
fowls of larger breeds, or twenty bantams. It may be
built for a small sum, depending somewhat upon the
locality and the price of lumber.

In our climate this house has proved warm enough,
but in cooler climates I would advise the use of thin
sheathing or ceiling, nailed on over a tar-paper lining,
or the house may be covered on the outside with roofing
material, placing the strips on up and down and using
bands on the seams, or simply cementing the edges and
nailing it on in the usual way. Following is the com-
plete bill of materials required for building this house:

13 pieces of either 2x8-inch or 2x2-inch spruce for the
sills, joists, corner posts and intergirts, also rafters.
3 pieces, 1%xl-inch furring, 14 feet long, for frame of
screens and supports for nest bases and roosts.
1 piece, 2-inchx8-inch furring, 14 feet long, for perches.
350 feet of tongue-and-groove flooring, either pine or
spruce.
4 pounds of 8d wire nails.
22144 feet of one-ply prepared roofing.

1 gallon of paint.
2 sashes (6-in: x 8-in. lights), 2 ft. 6 in. x 2 ft. 6 in.
110 feet of 2-inch mesh poultry netting if yard is to be
covered on top, or in case of only a fence, 94 feet
will be enough.
pounds of staples.

9 -

Floor Peaw Scares = 1’

POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

pieces, 38-inch x l-inch furring, 12 feet long, for top
of yard posts.

pieces, 38-inch x 8-inch cedar posts.

pieces, 3-inch x 1-inch furring, 13 feet long, for gate.
6-inch x 1-ineh spruce boards, 12 feet long, for bot-
tom of wire.

6-inch x 1-inch bo-rds, 18 feet long, for bottom of wire.

The muslin screens in the upper part of the front
are movable and should preferably be hung from the top
on hinges, so that they can be hooked up out of the
way when not in use. In this house the windows should
be hinged at the bottom so that they can be dropped in

FIG. 46—CROSS SECTION OF HOUSE FOR 20 FOWLS

Reproduced from Ohio State University Extension
Bulletin.

from the top for additional ventilation and during warm
weather should be entirely removed.

In a house as narrow as this it is difficult to use
muslin shutters without exposing the fowls to direct
drafts when on the perches, and for this reason it would
seem that the perch curtain should not be omitted. A
practical method of protecting the fowls from drafts un-
der such conditions is to fasten the curtain in the posi-
tion shown in the diagram, so that it will act as a screen,

PLans Or Powter House

FIG. 47—COMPLETE PLANS FOR BUILDING SMALL HOUSE FOR LAYERS

VRRINS

\ Four 3" Fuarins
i, Two 6° SPRvce

°

&

PF 2" MESH
Pov.tar NETTING
Sin #" CEAQER

BOARDS 12'Long
Two 18° Long

DETAILS
SCALE

Derars Scare f'=5'

OR BANTAMS

ECONOMICAL BACK YARD POULTRY HOUSES ! 29

without confining the fowls or seriously restricting ven-
tilation.

For numerous plans for small, portable houses which
also are adapted to the requirements of back-yard poul-
try keepers, see Chapter VI.

7
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ZXA STUDS 240.6

FIG. 48—FLOOR PLAN OF HOUSE FOR 20 FOWLS

Reproduced from Ohio State University Extension
Bulletin.

A HOUSE FOR TWENTY FOWLS*
An Attractive House for Small Back-Yard Flocks.
tical and Complete in Every Important Detail.

Prac-

The house shown in Figs. 46, 48 and 49 has been de-

signed especially to satisfy the needs of the poultryman
who keeps only a small flock for the purpose of produc-
ing poultry and eggs for the home table. It provides suf-
ficent room for twenty fowls.

This house is also well adapted for use as a breeding
house. If equipped with heavy runners and a board floor,
it makes a convenient colony house which may be moved
easily by one team from one part of the farm to another.

CLOTH WINDOWS HINGED
AT TOP TO SWING UP.
NOTE- ALL YVINDOWS OPENINGS
COWERFD WITH | MESH WIRE
NETTING.

4-6

FIG. 49—A HOUSE FOR TWENTY FOWLS—FRONT
( ELEVATION
Reproduced from Ohio State University Extension
Bulletin.

If used as a permanent house, a concrete or tile floor
should be used. Two houses of this size and type set
close together and connected by a runway, may be used
to good advantage with a colony brooder stove for brood-

* From Ohio State University Extension Bul., Vol. 12, No. 2.

FIG. 5}0—A TWO-PEN HOUSE FOR BACK-YARD FLOCK

ing purposes. One house, in which the stove is set, is
used as a nursery room. The other house, which is heat-
ed only by the warm air from the nursery which passes
through the runway, provides a well-ventilated exercising
and feeding room.

BILL OF MATERIALS

Sills (doubled)—84 linear feet, 2x4 in.

Plates—48 linear feet, 2x4 in.

Studs—8 pieces, 2x4 in., 6 ft. long; 8 pieces, 2x4 in., 4 ft.
long; 10 pieces, 2x4 in., 6 ft. long. F

Rafters—6 pieces, 2x6 in. 12 ft. long.

Outside sheathing—280 feet B. M. drop siding.

Roof sheathing—130 feet B. M., 1x8 in.

Thim lumber—200 feet 1x4 in. pine, dress.

For screens—50 feet, 1x2 in.

Two window frames with sash.

Two squares prepared roofing.

100 feet dressed and matched sheathing for ceiling back of
perches and overhead.

This does not include roosts, brood coop, ete.

A TWO-PEN BACK YARD HOUSE
A Modern Curtain-Front Two-Compartment House Es-
pecially Well Adapted to the Needs of Back-
Yard Breeders.

A thoroughly satisfactory house, where two or more
flocks are to be kept, is illustrated in Figs. 50 and 51.
It can be built in any length, but is shown here with two
pens. The house is twelve feet in depth and eighteen feet
in length, making each pen nine feet wide and providing
room for about fifty hens, or seventy-five in a three-pen
house. Such a house as this should be built about seven

LEE
ELL LL LLL LEE LL

FIG, 51—FLOOR PLAN OF TWO-PEN HOUSE

Nests are ,placed under droppings platform. Perches
are supported on cross bars, hinged at back to swing up.
For details of construction of partition, nests, and water
platform, see Chapter X.

feet high in front and five feet high in rear, with shed
roof and concrete wall and floor. The windows and mus-
lin-covered openings are designed for a moderately cold
climate, such as is found in the latitude of New York or
Chicago. For use in colder climates the size of the mus-
lin-covered openings should be somewhat reduced, while

POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

30

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ECONOMICAL BACK YARD POULTRY HOUSES 31

for warmer climates they may be increased and the glass
windows omitted entirely if preferred.

This house, as planned, is to be built of tongue-and-
groove siding, nailed to studs placed two feet on centers,
and the rafters are to be cut off flush with top plate, and
roof boards extended four or five inches beyond the side
wall for eaves. Partitions should be made as in Fig. 53,
which also gives a general idea of perch construction,
droppings platform, nests, water vessels, etc. Fig. 51
shows the floor plan. Whether the concrete floor shall
be finished level with the top of the foundation, or
dropped two or three inches below, as in Fig. 53, is
largely a matter of personal preference. Dropping it as
shown affords some additional protection for the sills in
damp locations.

To build this house (two pens) the following bill
of material is required—totalling about 1,500 sq. ft. of
lumber. For three or more pens, materials will have to
be increased proportionately.

BILL OF MATERIALS FOR 12x18 FOOT LAYING HOUSE

Size Length No.of Bd.

Use Remarks

Inch, Feet Pieces Meas.
Sills, sides .... 18 2 24
Sills, ends . 12 2 19
Plates) -.-2-:..- 18 2 24
Studs, front 14 5 47 1 piece cuts 2
Studs, ends’ .. 10 5 33 1 piece cuts 2
Studs, ends d
headers a 14 7 54 Cut to fit.
Studs, partition. - 14 2 19 1 piece cuts 2
USEC OTS) (ee cnes-secaceeecccez 2x5 14 10 117
Support for drop.
plates front 2...2-.- 2x4 18 1 12
Support for drop.
1x4 18 1 6
---2x4 8 4 21 Upper corners
round, surfaced
four sides.
Sills for windows..2x5 6 1 5 Surfaced 4 sides
Sills for shutter and milled.
opening, 22 2x5 8 1 i Surfaced 4 sides
and milled.
Roof board's! —.......-- 1x10 280
aca Gusidine 1x6 410
Flooring boards for
drop’gs platform,
doors, partitions
and ceilings ........ 1x4 185
Facing, casing, ete..1x4 == 22 160 lin. ft. Surfaced
Outside dr. frame..1x5 see x2 20 Se ss es s
Frame for muslin
Shutter, e222. 1x3 25 “ ‘ ae “
Strip under shut-
HOTS IE Soe cence een onssece 1x2% 8 C ee as a
Strip under win-
OWS) fone ree gS a LS Abs es ate 5 ia “s a os
Strips for small
doors and win’s..1x1 ae Aes 25 sf << My ee

2% squares prepared roofing.
4 plain rail window sashes, 1%4-in., 6-light, 8x12-in. glass.
40 sq. ft. 1-inch netting for doors and ventilators.
30 sq. ft. muslin for curtains.
4 anchor bolts, %x12-in. with 2-in. washers on each end.
1 pr. 8-inch T-strap hinges for outside door.
1 pr. 6-inch hinged safety hasps.
1 pr. 2-way spring hinges for partition door.
4 pr. 2-inch butt hinges for muslin frames and windows.
2 pr. 4-inch strap hinges for ventilator doors.
2 chain sash adjusters.

MATERIAL FOR NESTS
Size Length No. Bd.

Use Inch. Feet Pcs. Meas.
Front base : 8 2 8
Doors: ==: 1x7 8 2 9
Partitions Dx 12 2 22
Base, back . 1x4 8 2 5
Strips for top of nests.. 1x2 8 2 3
Bottom boards .......... 1x12 8 2 16
Running boards 8 2 5
Uprights 12 1 1
Brackets 8 2 4

This house may be built more cheaply by omitting
practically all studs and using rough boards nailed on up
and down, and covering the outside wall with a good
grade of prepared roofing.

A concrete foundation and floor are particularly rec-
ommended for back-yard flocks, making them as shown
in Fig. 11, so rats will be completely excluded. The house
will be warm and dry and it can be easily cleaned and dis-
infected.

A-SHAPED BACK-YARD HOUSE
This A-Shaped House is Neat and Inconspicuous.
Not Be Out of Place On Any Back Lawn.

By Cc. C.

Will

HOLMES

Recently we moved from a small town where land is
plentiful and cheap, to a large city where poultry raising
is almost impossible for lack of proper facilities, and it
has been a serious problem to us as to how we could
overcome the difficulties. f

After making several sketches in my attempts to de-
vise a suitable poultry house I have come to the conclu-
sion that an 8x8-foot house such as is illustrated here,
is most practical for the back-yard poultry keeper who
has to live within city limits. It is convenient, mod-
erate in cost, quite neat in appearance, and if made in
sections and hinged as indicated, may readily be taken
down and moved to a new location.

As the accompanying drawing (Fig. 52), is quite com-
plete, it will not be necessary to go extensively into de-
tails. The floor plan indicates the way in which the win-
dows are arranged to swing in. As will readily be noticed,
the droppings board does not extend entirely across the

N
N
N

Possess

CEMENT FLOOR...
GRAVEL OR

BROKEN STONE.
< CEMENT FOUNDATION —~

FIG. 53—PARTITION FOR TWO-PEN BACK YARD
HOUSE

This is a good type of partition to use when the
laying house is to be divided into two or more pens.
It protects the fowls from drafts, both on the perches
and on the floor, but allows free circulation of air
through. the house. Note that the foundation is carried
up above the ground level and the cement floor is thus
making it warm and dry. Floor is two inches below
the top of foundation and the corners are rounded to
prevent filth collecting at this point.

back of the building, but a space is left between it and
the side walls to give access to the nests, which are
reached by doors opening out into this space. There are
four nests, two on each side, and the hens enter them
from the back, under the droppings board. The upper
part of the front is enclosed only with poultry netting to
be covered in winter with muslin or cheese cloth, where
winters are extremely cold, or for more complete pro-
tection of valuable breeding fowls with extra-large combs.

As here illustrated this house is to be built in sec-
tions, held together by means of hinges and hooks as
shown in detail drawing in upper right-hand corner. Un-
less the building is to be moved long distances, however,
it will be stronger and more durable if firmly nailed to-
gether in the usual way.

There was enough waste allowed to build the drop-
pings board, the nests, etc., and the cost of material at
the time this house was built was $13.00. The cost of

32 POULTRY

FRONT ELEVAT/(ON

FIG. 54—FRONT OF INEXPENSIVE HOUSE FOR
BACK-YARD FLOCK
Reproduced from blue print furnished by Poultry Div.
of U. S. Department of Agriculture.

hardware was about $6.00, making a total cost for my
colony house about $20.00. At war-time prices of lum-
ber and hardware this house could not be built for that
sum, but it should be possible for any one to approxi-
mate it under fairly normal conditions.

The materials required for a colony house like the
one I have illustrated are as follows:

325 Sq. Ft. matched flooring.
Three 2x4’s, 16 ft. long.
Four 2x2’s, 8 ft. long.
Sixteen 1x4’s, 16 ft. long.

6 sq. ft. 4-inch wire netting.
8 pair of hinges.

4 hooks and screw eyes.

10 Ibs. of nails.

8 ft. galvanized iron ridge.
1 lock.

3 sashes glazed.

Editor’s Note: There are a number of good points
about this house that commend it to the back-yard poul-
try keeper. One of particular features aimed at by Mr.
Holmes was to make the house attractive in appearance,
but inconspicuous. In this he has been quite successful,
producing a house that is not only neat and trim, but
also low so that it may readily be hidden by shrubs or
vines if desired.

One good feature of A-shaped houses in general is
that, in proportion to the floor space provided, they in-
close a smaller number of cubic feet of air space than
houses with any other style of roof affording comfortable
headroom. This means that less material is required to

6 - oO"

J"x12" BOARDS

FND ELEVAT/ON
FIG. 55—END ELEVATION OF HOUSE FOR BACK-
YARD FLOCK

Reproduced from blue print furnished by Poultry Div.
of U. S. Department of Agriculture.

HOUSES AND FIXTURES

build them, also that they will be warmer in winter,
other conditions being equal. Incidentally, this makes
A-shaped houses particularly desirable for brooding young
chicks early in the season when ordinary lamp-heated
hovers make little impression on the general room tem-
perature of larger buildings.

There are some difficulties that are peculiar to A-
shaped houses, such as weak frames, difficulty in locating
perches, nests, etc., but Mr. Holmes has taken care of
them very ingeniously. A few additional suggestions,
however, may be helpful to other builders.

The plans shown in Fig. 52 do not indicate the ex-
act height of the house and we would suggest that the
roof boards be cut long enough so that the ridge will
be fully 7 feet from the floor (7% feet is better still) in
order to give sufficient headroom for the attendant. The
low sides of the A-shaped house will not be particularly
inconvenient if the ridge is high enough.

The front is always the weakest place in these houses
and particular attention should be paid to its construc-
tion. The pieces that form the frame of the door should
be spiked securely to the floor, and the tops securely tied
together by a short piece of board. It is a misfortune

TAR PAPER COVERING ——~

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SECTION THRY HOUSE
FIG. 56—CROSS SECTION OF INEXPENSIVE HOUSE
FOR BACK-YARD FLOCK.

Reproduced from blue print furnished by Poultry Div.
of U. S. Dept. of Agriculture

to have to locate nests on or close to the floor, thus
occupying valuable space, as has been done in this plan,
though it is true that there are important difficulties in
the way of placing them higher up. One method of sav-
ing floor space often employed is to put them entirely
on the outside of the house. An additional advantage of
outside nests is that the eggs then can be gathered with-
out entering the house. If this plan is adopted, the
work must be carefully done to insure that the nests
will be storm-proof. In this house our preference would
be to locate them in the rear, with suitable openings for
the entrance of the fowls, under the droppings platform.
Outside nests should always be fastened in place with
hooks so that they may be easily removed for cleaning.

No matter how much of the front of A-shaped houses
is left open there is little movement of the air in the
back part in warm weather, for which reason they are
liable to be uncomfortably hot at this season. This dif-
ficulty may be overcome by providing a small door or
window in the rear: An opening 12 to 18 inches square
close up to the ridge, to be kept tightly closed in win-
ter but open in warm weather, will add greatly to the
comfort of the fowls.

ECONOMICAL BACK YARD POULTRY HOUSES 33

INEXPENSIVE BACK YARD POULTRY HOUSE

This House is Especially Planned to Secure Low Cost.
Is About As Inexpensive As it is Worth While
to Try to Build.

A plan for a small house that can be built about as
cheaply as it is worth while to build at all, is shown in
Figs. 54 to 57. This house was designed by the Poultry
Division, U. S. Department of Agriculture. It is 8x8
feet and will comfortably accommodate 10 to 15 fowls,
or even 20 with a little crowding. Such a house, prop-
erly constructed of good materials, will be servicable for
many years with little cost for repairs.

PSR

BIRT FLOIOR

FLOOR PLAN
FIG. 57—FLOOR PLAN OF INEXPENSIVE HOUSE FOR
BACK-YARD FLOCK

Reproduced from blue print furnished by Poultry Div.
of U. S. Department of Agriculture

The average person will find it desirable to make
both front and back six inches to one foot higher than
as shown in plan, and if the house is intended to be
portable it will be much better to put in a board floor.
If to be used in a damp location a board or concrete
floor is a necessity.

Where the 2 inch strips used in covering the cracks
are expensive or hard to get, as is often the case, it is
better to omit them and cover the walls on the outside
with a good grade of prepared roofing. In cold climates
it will pay to provide one six-light glass sash in the
front or at one end, to light the house on dark days
or when the muslin shutter must be left closed on ac-
count of severe cold.

The only really esential fixtures for this house are
perches, droppings board, and nests. It will pay, how-
ever, to provide a feeding platform also, where the water
vessel, dry mash, grit and shell hoppers may be located.
The width and length of this platform will depend upon
the dimension of the vessels or hoppers used, but should
be roomy enough to give the fowls convenient access to
them. It should be about two feet above the floor so
that there will be scratching room underneath and so
that litter will not be thrown into the vessels. Those
who have not tried elevating the water and food hold-
ers can hardly realize how much time and trouble is
saved by so doing.

BILL OF MATERIALS

The following list includes everything needed to build
this house as here described:
8 brick, stone, or concrete block piers, or solid concrete
foundation.
4 pieces 2 m. x 4 in. 8 ft.
3 pieces 2 in. x 4 in. 10 ft.
5 pieces 2 in. x 4 in. b0 ft.
5 pieces 2 in. x 3 in. 8 ft.
supports, etc.
275 feet, bd. meas. % in. x 12 in. boards,
for walls, sheathing and nests.
25 feet bd. meas. % in. x 4 in. flooring boards, for drop-
pings platform.
160 lin. ft. 4% in. x 2 in. strips for cracks.
75 sq. ft. prepared roofing.
180 sq. ft. %-in. mesh poultry netting, for windows.
1 pr. T-strap hinges, for outside door.
§ inch hasp

long, for sills.

long, for corner studs and msls.
long, for rafters.

long, for perches, drop board,

surfaced 2 sides,

1
1 pr. 2%- che butt hinges, for Raalin’ shutter.
1 pr. 4-inch strap hinges, for perch support.
1 pr. 6-inch strap hinges, for ventilator.

Neue -inch hooks and eyes.
ai

ls, tacks, staples, paint, etc.

About the cheapest and simplest nests that can be
installed are made of orange boxes as illustrated in Chap-
ter X, but a better way is to build the nests substantially,
of good smooth lumber, and place them under the drop-
pings board (see Figs. 116 and 120), where they - will
occupy no floor space, will keep clean, and will afford a
degree of much-desired seclusion for the layers.

Preventing Drafts in Small Houses

Back-yard poultry keepers often find difficulty in
protecting fowls on the roost from drafts or air currents
in cold, stormy weather, particularly when the wind is
blowing more or less directly against the front. This
is due to the fact that their houses usually are small and
narrow, and the fowls consequently are close to the win-
dows or other openings. This is one reason why it is cus-
tomary to keep the shutters or curtains closed in much
milder weather than is necessary or desirable in houses
of standard depth—that is, 16 feet wide or over.

Houses of this type are greatly improved for winter
use by the provision of some means of adjusting the size
of the open front to meet varying weather conditions.
The muslin-covered shutters commonly employed admit
of no adjustment, but must either be left wide open or
closed tight. One method of providing for this adjust-
ment is to make the shutter in two sections as shown on
page 77, so that the upper section may be opened while
the lower one remains closed, or both may be opened
together when desired. Another way is to arrange the
shutter to slide up and down on the outside, working in
grooves on each side of the opening, as provided in the
house front illustrated in Fig. 125, on page 68. This shut-
ter can be adjusted to give an opening of any desired size,
being held in place by a hook which engages the wire
netting back of the shutter.

Whatever method of ventilation is adopted, if it per-
mits air currents to follow down the rafters and strike
directly upon the fowls on the perches, a screen should
be provided. This may take the form of a stationary
shutter in front of the perches, or it may be hinged at
the top to hook up out of the way when not needed. Fre-
quently it is more convenient to provide a curtain at-
tached to a pole, to be allowed to hang straight down from
the ceiling when in use, and rolled up and fastened to the
rafters when not needed.

Light-weight burlap is the best material to use for
this purpose, as it will prevent drafts without restrict-
ing ventilation to a marked extent. The purpose of this
screen is not to keep the fowls warm, but merely to pro-
tect them from drafts, and for this reason it should not
extend lower than about the level of the front perch, and
should be employed only when actually needed.

CaHUA et EAR

Li

Houses for Commercial Laying Flocks

Advantages of Curtain-Front and Open-Front Houses for Laying Flocks—Muslin Curtains the Best Known Means of
Securing Good Ventilation Without Discomfort to Fowls—Plans for Building Single Compartment
Houses at Moderate Cost—Suggestions for Special Low-Cost Construction.

HE type of hovse commonly described by the term
“open-front” is generally conceded to be best
suited to the requirements of the laying flock and
is now used, almost exclusively, by practical poul-

try keepers in all parts of the world, from the tropics to
the far north. When properly designed and constructed,
such houses are dry and comfortable, affording the great-
est degiee of warmth that can be secured without re-
stricting ventilation to an injurious extent. Ventilation
may readily and quickly be adjusted to meet changing
weather conditions, and the houses are simple and com-
paratively inexpensive in construction.

The term “open-front,” in common usage, is applied
indiscriminately to all houses having extensive openings
in the front wall, whether provided with muslin shutters
or curtains, or protected simply by means of wire net-
ting. The great majority of these
houses, however, ‘have muslin cur-
tains or shutters for additional pro-
tection in severe cold or storms, and

curtains hooked up and doors between sheds and pens
When it begins to freeze at night, close the cur-
tains in front of the sheds, but still leave doors between
pens and sheds open. These doors (including slide door),
are never closed excepting on nights of severe cold,
say five to twenty degrees above zero; for zero nights
close all doors and windows, also the curtains in front
of roosts. To keep the fowls enclosed when the curtains
are raised, cover the front of shed with wire netting. The
doors from sheds to pens swing into the pens and are,
of course, out of the way of the curtains.”

open.

The Maine Station House
While conditions in scratching-shed houses were
greatly improved as compared with those of the closed-
front type, poultrymen were not long in discovering that

it will be less confusing to speak of
such as “curtain-front” houses, re-
serving “open-front” for the type of
house having no such protection.

The Scratching Shed House

The curtain-front house was devel-
oped as the direct result of efforts to
find some means of overcoming the
serious objections to the old-style,
warm, glass-front houses, to which
reference is made on page 5. Dur-
ing the transition period a typepyq 5
known as the scratching-shed house
attained some measure of popularity,
chiefly in New England States. It had some advantages
over the older type, but it was soon replaced by the cur-
tain-front house. One of the best of these houses is
illustrated in Fig. 58, and is thus described by the de-
signer, the veteran A. F. Hunter:

“The plans here given are for a continuous eae
house with alternating pens and sheds, the sheds having
curtained fronts and all the space within the house being
utilized by the fowls. Each combined pen and shed is 18
by 10 feet, the shed being 10 by 10 feet and the closed
roosting pen being 8 by 10 feet, affording room sufficient
for 25 fowls of the American or 30 of the Mediterranean
varieties. No walk is required, because the walk is
through gates and doors, from shed to pen and pen to
shed, and so on to the end of the house.

“The ventilation (so much desired) is varied, and can
be adapted to the different seasons in half-a-dozen dif-
ferent ways. In summer the doors and windows are all
wide open and the curtains are hooked up against the
roof out of the way. (It is understood that the doors be-
tween two pens are never left open; they are always kept
closed except when opened for the attendant to pass
through.) When the nights begin to be real frosty in the
fall, close the windows in front of pens, but leave shed

CURTAINED-FRONT
SCRATCHING SHED

ENGLAND SCRATCHING SHED HOUSE—FORE-RUNNER OF
THE MODERN CURTAIN-FRONT HOUSE

the close, poorly ventilated roosting room had little prac-—
tical value and in use proved to be only an added compli-
cation as well as a needless expense. From this it was
only a short step to the general type of house now in
common use.

No single individual can lay claim to having given the
poultry world the open-front or curtain-front house.
However, one of the first houses of this type was built
at the Maine Experiment Station, and it served for years
as a model for others in all parts of the country. This
house is illustrated in Fig. 59. The following descrip-
tion of it is condensed from a Maine Station Bulletin:

“This building was erected in 1903 and is 14 feet wide
and 150 feet long. The back wall is 5 feet 6 inches high
from floor to top of plate inside, and the front wall is 6
feet 9 inches high. The roof is of unequal span, the ridge
being 4 feet from the front wall. The height of the ridge
above the floor is 9 feet. The sills are 4 by 6 inches and
rest on a rough stone wall laid on the surface of the
ground. A central sill gives support to the floor, which
at times is quite heavily loaded with sand. The floor
timbers are 2 by 8 inches and are placed two feet apart.
The floor is two thicknesses of hemlock boards. All of
the rest of the frame is of 2 by 4-inch stuff. The building

HOUSES FOR GOMMERCIAL LAYING FLOCKS 35

is boarded, papered and shingled on roof and walls. The
rear wall and four feet of the lower part of the rear roof
are ceiled on the inside of the studding and plates, and
are packed, very hard, with dry sawdust. In order to
make the sawdust packing continuous between the wall
and roof, the wall ceiling is carried up to within six
inches of the plate, then follows up inclining pieces of
studding to the rafters. The short pieces of studding are
nailed to the studs or rafters. By this arrangement there
are no slack places around the plate to admit cold air. The
end walls are packed in the same way. The house is divided
by close board partitions into seven 20-foot sections, and
one 10-foot s@ction is reserved at the lower end for a
feed storage room.

“Each of the 20-foot sections has two 12-light out-
side windows screwed onto the front, and the space be-
tween the windows, which is eight feet long and three
feet wide, down from the plate, is covered during rough
winter storms and cold nights by a light frame, covered
with 10-ounce duck, closely tacked on. This door, or cur-
tain, is hinged at top and swings in and up to the roof
when open.”

After giving the house a thorough and severe win-
ter’s test, Prof. Gowell, who was in charge of the Poultry
Department at the Maine Station at that time, wrote re-
garding it as follows:

“T wish I had delayed writing the bulletin till now,
for we have just gotten through the coldest weather
ever known in this section and the cloth-front house has
proved itself equal to the demands made upon it. The
300 pullets were not put in * * * until December 6th,
but by the end of that month they had gotten under way
and increased every week regularly in egg production all
through January and February, and have from 160
to 180 eggs every day this month. They came down from
the perches and engaged in digging a breakfast out of
the straw litter in a way that showed that life was worth
living. Every head was blood red. There
even a snuffle heard or seen in that house.”

laid

has not been

The above description was written a good many
years ago, but, in the main, it fairly represents the exper-
ience of poultrymen generally with the curtain-front
house, other conditions being equal. It should be noted
in this connection, however, that while in this particular
house 10-ounce duck was used for the shutters, poultry
keepers generally consider a good grade of unbleached
muslin amply heavy for the purpose.

CURTAIN FRONT LAYING HOUSE FOR 100 FOWLS

A Practical House for Commercial or Farm Flocks. Is
Well Ventilated, Convenient and Comfortable
for the Fowls.

There is no room for argument over the statement
that hens will give better average production when housed
in comparatively small flocks. The experience of practical
poultry keepers, however, is that the saving in labor
which results from keeping hens in large flocks more
than offsets the decreased production resulting from this
practice. The point at which lower labor cost is met and
overbalanced by decrease in production has never been
clearly determined, but the general practice among egg
producers is to keep fowls of the large breeds, such as
Plymouth Rocks, Wyandottes, etc., in flocks of about 100.
On large commercial egg farms, where Leghorns are kept,
this number often is greatly exceeded, flocks of 500 being
common.

To provide sufficient room for 100 hens there should
be about 400 square feet of floor space. This require-
ment is approximately met by the house here illustrated
and described, which is 16x24 feet. In its general out-
lines it meets the requirements of the average poultry
keeper to an unusual degree. For houses of moderate
size, a width of sixteen feet is almost invariably preferred,
and there are sound practical reasons for doing so. A
house much narrower than sixteen feet brings the perches
too close to the front, and the hens on the perches are
exposed to direct currents of air when the curtains are
open. Narrow houses cost more to build than those of
medium width and are more difficult to care for. On the
other hand, extremely wide houses call for heavier fram-
ing timbers and more bracing. In long compartment
houses a width greater than sixteen feet often is consid-
ered desirable, but it is of no advantage in single-pen
houses. Even for use on commercial farms where ex-
tremely large flocks are the rule, there are many who pre-
fer buildings not’ over sixteen feet in width.
eral plans, with all needed etc.,
in Figs. 60, 61, 62 and 63.

The details of lighting and ventilation in this house
are planned to meet the requirements of cold climates,
but these can readily be modified to suit a wide range of
climatic conditions. Where extreme cold is to be ex-
pected, it will be found desirable to reduce the size of the
curtains and increase somewhat the amount of glass pro-
vided. In warmer climates glass windows will be omitted

The gen-

dimensions, are shown

FIG. 59—THE HISTORICAL MAINE
The curtain-front house shown in above illustration was one of the first houses of this type to be built.

been in successful use at the Maine Experiment Station for

ing, which takes the place of an inside passageway.

STATION CURTAIN- FRONT HOUSE

It has

many years. Note raised platform in front of the build-

36 POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

and the curtains made larger, possibly substituting frame-
less folding curtains, as shown in Fig. 89, in place of
hinged shutters. In the extreme south the curtains also

may be dispensed with and the entire front left open.
The estimated capacity of 100 hens is based on a

If milled sills for the windows and curtains can not
readily be secured, they may be made of ordinary 2x5 or
2x6-inch lumber, setting them to slope outward. Do not
use one-inch material here, as is often done. Such sills
soon warp and split and must be replaced in a short time

if the building is to be kept in good

repair. It is a common error, es-
pecially among beginners and those
who are doing their own carpenter
work, to try to effect petty economies
or to do careless, hasty work in con-
nection with these minor details, re-
sulting in defective construction

which allows deterioration to set in

almost as soon as the building is

completed. Like a chain, the poultry

FIG. 60—FRONT ELEVATION OF CURTAIN-FRONT HOUSE FOR 100 HENS

floor allowance of four square feet per hen. When Leg-
horns are kept, and in mild climates where the fowls
seldom need to be confined to the house, this number may
be increased 25 per cent or more.

Most of the details of construction in this plan, such
as building up foundation and floor, window and door
framing, rafter cutting, etc., will be found fully illustrated
and described in Chapter I, pages 13 to 24, which the
builder is urged to read carefully before undertaking the
construction of any poultry house, small or large.

A concrete foundation and floor are recommended,
as they undoubtedly are most economical in the long run.
No special skill is required in doing concrete work, and
where the sand and gravel or stone are readily obtain-
able, it is comparatively inexpensive. Even where pro-
fessional labor is employed, or the work regularly con-
tracted for, the cost will be repaid in a few years in the
saving of labor which will be effected in the daily care
of the building, and in the much lower rate of depre-
ciation.

As here planned, this house is framed with single
sills and rafter plates; studs and raft-

house is no stronger than its weakest
point, and whether the annual depre-
ciation on it is to be ten per cent,
five per cent often depends upon whether such details as
the window sills, for example, have received proper
attention.

The boards for the droppings platform are cut to run
the short way of the platform and are nailed securely to
2x4-inch stringers, front and rear. The platform is sup-
ported in front on 2x4 posts spaced about eight feet apart.
These platforms sometimes are made in movable sections
so that they can be taken out for cleaning and disinfect-
ing. The advantage of being able to do this is more
theoretical than actual, however, and the boards ordinar-—
ily are nailed. In fastening them in place, do not drive
them up tight together, but leave room for them to swell,
as they are certain to do when the house is in use. Where
this precaution is neglected the platform will buckle and
pull many of the boards loose, necessitating repairs in a
short time. :

The construction of perches, nests, etc., will readily
be understood from the plans shown herewith, but are
illustrated and described in detail in Chapter X. If plat-
form nests are preferred instead of wall nests, directions

ers are two feet on centers, and the

walls are covered with a good grade

of six-inch tongue-and-groove siding.
The roof is sheathed with ordinary

roofing boards, which should be sur-
faced on both sides, if such are ob-

tainable without too great additional
cost. They may be of No. 2 grade
or No. 2 common, as they are to be
covered with fairly heavy prepared
roofing. No lining or ceiling is pro-
vided except about the perches.
Whether to use tongue-and-groove
siding, or rough boards to be covered
with prepared roofing, is largely a
matter of individual preference or
necessity. Where cough boards are
used, they generally are nailed on up
and down, omitting most of the wall

eS 0 ort

studs, as shown on page 17. The

omission of studs and the use oi
cheap siding that could not be util-
ized without an outside covering, may effect an important
saving in cost. If regular grades of lumber are to be
bought, however, it will be found that boards covered
with roofing will cost more than T & G siding and a
house so constructed will depreciate more rapidly, be-
sides being unsightly at all times.

FIG. 61—FLOOR PLAN OF CURTAIN-FRONT HOUSE FOR 100 HENS

for building them will also be found in that chapter, like-
wise directions for building trap-nests, and bill of ma-
terials needed. Hinged yard doors may be substituted for
sliding doors if preferred, hinging them to swing out
rather than in, as a rule.

The bill of materials given includes everything nec-

HOUSES FOR COMMERCIAL LAYING FLOCKS 37

essary to build this house, with a reasonable allowance for
shrinkage in the lumber estimates. On the average place,
however, there are always a number of uses for good
lumber when it is at hand, and it usually happens that
boards are taken for various purposes not contemplated
in the original plan. It is advisable, therefore, to add a
little to net estimates to meet these requirements.
Materials for the concrete foundation and floor are
estimated on the basis of a six-inch wall, two and one-half
feet from bottom to top. The floor is to be three inches
thick, with a four-inch layer of insulating material.

BILL OF MATERIALS FOR HOUSE FOR 100 HENS
Sfze

Length No. of

Use Inches Feet Pieces Remarks
Sills, sides 12 4
Sills, ends ... 16 2 T
Rafter plates 12 4
Studs. front ... 16 6 One piece cuts 2
Studs, back .... -. 2x4 10 8 One piece cuts 2
Studs, ends and misc. 2x4 16 12 Cut to fit.
Ja ol Sy of) See ee 2x6 18 13
12 4
12 6
12 1 One piece cuts 2.
12 1 One piece cuts 2.
= = 500 ft. bd. meas. Sfed. 2 sides
G siding... 600 ft. bd. meas.
Flooring for ceiling,
droppings platform
and doore ... -- 7x4 400 ft. bd. meas.
Door frame -- %yx5 16 lin. ft Surfaced 4 sides.
Trim lumber -- Bx4 200 lin. ft Surfaced 4 sides.
Curtain frame .. -%x2% 40 lin. ft Surfaced 4 sides.
Strip under shutter....%x2% 12 lin. ft. Surfaced 4 sides.
Strip under window....%x1% 10 lin. ft. Surfaced 4 sides.
Weather strips for
windows & doors....%x% 30 lin. ft. Surfaced 4 sides.

6 squares prepared roofing.

6 window sashes, 44-inch, 6 lights, 8x12-inch glass.

80 sq. ft. 1-inch mesh poultry netting for curtains and
windows.

sq. ft. heavy unbleached muslin for curtains.

anchor bolts, %x12 inches, with 2 2-in. washers for each.

pr. T-strap hinges for outside door.

hasp for outside door.

pr. 2%-inch butt hinges for shutters.

pr. 2-inch butt hinges for windows.

pr. 3-inch strap hinges for rear ventilators.

pr. 4-inch strap hinges for perches.

2-inch screw hooks and eyes.

ft. chain for sash holders.

box 4-oz. carpet tacks for curtains.

lb. double-pointed tacks for netting.

Nails and paint.

MATERIAL FOR FOUNDATION AND FLOOR

7 bags Portland cement.

0 cu. ft. sand.

0 cu. ft. crushed stone or gravel.

0 cu. ft. cinders or stone for insulation.

wo
ao

a
RPOOCONNwWwhHreH

«

MATERIAL FOR WALL NESTS—3 SETS
(See Chapter X)

.-%x10 inches 30 lin. ft.
%x10 inches 50 lin. ft.
inches 40 lin. ft.
inches 30 lin. ft.
inches 30 lin. ft.
inches 30 lin. ft.

Top boards ..

FIG. 62—CROSS SECTION OF HOUSE FOR 100 HENS

FIG. 683—END ELEVATION OF 100-HEN HOUSE

Partitions = inches 25 lin. ft.

Front boards, bottom . %x4 inches: 30 lin. ft.

Front boards, top ......... %x2 inches 30 lin. ft.

Support for running boards. %x4 inches 25 lin. ft.

Strips --%x% inches 25 lin. ft.
All boards to be surfaced two sides.

6 pr. 1-inch butt hinges.
12 2-inch screw hooks and eyes.

MATERIAL FOR PLATFORM NESTS

If platform nests are preferred instead of wall nests,
the following material will be required for 4 sets of five
nests each:

Size Length No.of

Use nches Feet Pieces

Door 12 2
Front strip 12

Bottomh === 7x12 12 2

Rear strip, bottom Wex4 12 2

Top strips x2 12 4

Partitions _.... 7x11 10 3

Running board . yx6 12 2

Brackets 7x4 8 5

All boards to be surfaced two sides.
4 pr. 2%-inch T-strap hinges.
For bill of materials for trap-nests see Chapter X.

Building Temporary Houses

The poultry keeper who has only a limited amount
to invest in his poultry house often finds it necessary
to omit some features that otherwise would be consid-
ered desirable and important. Where this is necessary
the plan just given can be reduced to simpler terms, and
still cheaper construction provided for. If this is done
it must not be expected that the house will prove as con-
venient or as permanent as a more expensive house, but
it may still be made comfortable for the fowls.

One of the first steps in reducing cost is to provide
a post foundation and dirt floor. The foundation may
consist of posts of some durable material such as cedar,
locust, or chestnut. These should be 3 feet long and
set 8 feet apart with about 6 inches projecting above the
: i ground. The sills are to be spiked
directly to the face of the posts
with top of sill 2 inches above top
of post and the enclosed space
filled in with earth or sand to the
top of the sill. If at all possible,
it is recommended that a concrete
or stone foundation be provided
instead of posts, as wooden sills
cannot be expected to last more
than a few years when in direct
contact with the ground, and it is
a difficult and expensive operation
to replace them.

Plain boards of cheap grade may
be used for siding, nailing them
up and down as shown in Fig.
19 on page 17, which does away
with the necessity for studs ex-
cept at the corners, middle of each

38

end and at 6-foot intervals on the sides—enough sim-
ply to stiffen the frame and give something substantial
to which to nail plates and stringers. The ceiling
around the perches may be omitted, also the droppings
platform. Instead of the latter set up a 10-inch board

<

FIG. 64—CROSS SECTION OF COMPARTMENT

HOUSE FOR COMMERCIAL FLOCKS

on the floor, about 12 inches in front of the first
perch and extending the entire length of the house.
This will confine the droppings under the perches and
keep them out of the litter. For nests, orange
may be used (see Chapter X), fastening them to the wall
by means of screw hooks or pieces of wire bent over
nails so that they may be readily removed for cleaning.
Perches may be arranged as in Fig. 64 or supported on
trestles or on wires attached to the rafters.

These modifications in the regular plan will materi-
ally reduce the first cost of the house, but it would not
be fair to hold out the impression that such a building
will prove as satisfactory in everyday use as a house
constructed after the regular plans. The beginner can
safely depend upon it that, where experienced poultry
keepers ale practically unanimous in the adoption of cer-
tain details of poultry house construction, there is a
thoroughly good reason for doing so. a

The following bill of material provides
needed for constructing a 16x24-foot house
style of construction is to be followed:

LAYING

boxes

everything
where this

BILL OF MATERIALS

Size Length No.of ;
Use Inches Feet Pieces Remarks
SS UMS HA Si CC eeeeersncanct ccc ocronweccecs 2x8 12
Sills, ends . .-2x8 16 2
Plates, 25: 2x4 12 4
Studs, front 2x4 16 6 One piece cuts 2
Studs, back . 2x4 10 2 One piece cuts 2
Studs, ends .... 2x4 8 3
Stringers and misc. x 10 8
Rafters 22) 18 13
Sheathing boards for roo &
and eisid esi pe ore 1x10 1050 feet, bd. meas.
Door battens, braces, ete..1x4 25 lineal feet,
Sills for windows and
curtains .2x3 20 lineal feet.
Frame for shutters... 45 lineal feet.

10 squares of prepared roofing.

6 window sashes, 14-inch, 6-light, 8x12-inch glass.
0 sq. ft. 1-inch mesh netting for openings.

1 pr. 8-inech T-strap hinges for outside door.

1 safety hasp.

5 pr. 2-inch butt hinges for windows and shutters.
6 pr. 4-inch strap hinges for perch supports.

2-inch hooks and eyes.

Nails and tacks.

POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

A SIX-COMPARTMENT LAYING HOUSE

Designed for Use of Commercial Poultry Keepers.
Looks Well, and the Low Front Makes it Extra
Comfortable in Winter.

It

This house is designed to meet the requirements of
those who are keeping fowls on a large scale and who
want a complete and practical house capable of being ex-
tended to any desired length. While the house as here
described consists of six pens, having an average capacity
of 100 hens each, the number of pens may be reduced or
increased to meet individual needs. If Leghorns are kept
and large flocks are wanted, the wire partitions and base
boards may be omitted.

In long houses unbroken by partitions, especially
houses with open fronts, there are always liable to be air
currents, and it is chiefly for the purpose of protecting
the fowls from drafts that tight partitions are provided
at the back of the pens where the perches are located.
This is the principal reason, also, for making the front
partitions solid to a height of two or more feet. If it is
desired to throw several pens into one, the rear partitions
should be retained and extended two or three feet farther
forward into the pens. In addition to breaking up floor
drafts, they divide the house into smaller sections, giving
the fowls at least a little feeling of privacy, which they
greatly enioy.

The combination roof indicated for this house is rec-
ommended regularly for all laying houses over sixteen
feet in width. Shed roofs are sometfmes used on twenty-

T
= See

66—END ELEVATION OF COMPARTMENT LAYING
HOUSE FOR COMMERCIAL FLOCK

FIG.

foot houses, but they offer no advantages other than that
they are a little easier for the inexperienced builder to
construct and, as they make the front considerably higher,
they give opportunity for additional ventilator openings
up under the front rafter plate. This extra height is an
advantage in warm climates and a disadvantage where
the winters are cold.

A combination roof may be built with supporting
posts, as shown in this plan, using rafter ties only at par-
titions, or the supporting posts may be omitted and ties
used on each pair of rafters. The builder may take his
choice of methods, but it is well to remember that when
Leghorns are kept in houses with tied rafters it is neces-

FIG. 65—PART OF FRONT ELEVATION OF COMPARTMENT HOUSE FOR COMMERCIAL LAYING FLOCKS

HOUSES FOR COMMERCIAL LAYING FLOCKS

sary to enclose the space between each tie and the pair
of rafters above it with netting or strips, in order to pre-
vent the fowls from roosting there instead of on the regu-
lar perches.

Fig. 67 shows the floor plan for a complete section
or pen and a portion of the opposite end section. , All
sections are made identical with the one shown. Perches
are provided as shown in Fig. 67. For detail drawing
showing rear ventilator (not indicated in Fig. 64), see
Chapter X. This ventilator will be found a great aid in
keeping the house comfortable in summer and should
never be omitted. It does not seem to be commonly un-
derstood that fowls suffer as much from extreme heat as
from cold, and their productiveness is affected by either.
It is almost as important, therefore, to protect the fowls
from severe heat as from cold. The average laying house
is unnecessarily hot and uncomfortable in the summer

39

While not provided for in the plans or the bill of
materials, it is recommended that two six-light windows
be supplied for each pen, to be located in the rear wall
under the droppings platform. These windows are espec-
ially desirable in twenty-foot houses, as they light up what
otherwise is a comparatively dark section of the floor.
In the summer, with the sash removed, the openings will
be found to assist greatly in keeping the house cool. Of
course, there must be no open cracks about these win-
dows in winter, to expose the hens to drafts.

Fig. 64 shows a cross-section at partition. In ex-
posed locations it may be necessary to build every other
partition solid in order to prevent floor drafts, but, as a
rule, the two-foot baseboard will protect the fowls suffi-
ciently, and open partitions make the house much cooler
in summer. Fig. 66 shows an elevation with slope of
roof and location of outside door.

Se eninge

Sane
iL _4inedts | 9) | Painebrs Lifineets | 21]

SP lO Mecec- ee ee

BO! Oita eeeenee—

FOOD HOPPER

i FOOD HOPPER
\
Preps] @ 4" 4" Post
arte:
+ oy £ LM ™.
0. oe”
8 we
Sie .
ie
Eee
)
eet
iN
ayo
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foe ee oe me sta" —--- fa o=n Aim Mima samen GLB
vio ig
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ae zd}

FIG.

simply because provision is not made for sufficient ven-
tilation. As a result of this there is little circulation of
air, especially in the back part where perches are located,

With an opening under the eave six to twelve inches
wide, depending on where the house is located, there will
be a constant circulation of air from front to back or
back to front, as the case may be, and the ceiling around
the perches will protect the fowls from direct drafts. In
some instances a narrow door running the entire length
of each pen is placed in the inside wall at the angle where
it joins the roof ceiling. This is to be opened in hot
weather, thus securing direct air circulation in the roosting
compartment. If this is done, the doors must be made to
fit tight, as there should be no suspicion of a draft here

in winter.

The outside opening should run the entire length of
the building and is provided with hinged doors not over
six feet long. Use sound, well-seasoned boards for this
purpose in order to reduce the tendency to warp. The
doors are to be held open with screw hooks and eyes, but
should be closed in cold weather and fastened securely in
place with wooden buttons.

67—FLOOR PLAN OF COMPARTMENT LAYING HOUSE FOR COMMERCIAL FLOCKS

Fig. 65 shows front elevation and is self-explanatory.
The size of the muslin-covered openings may be increased
or decreased as local conditions require, remembering,
however, that with the shutters closed the fowls will go
through extremely cold weather without suffering any
injury, even though the surface to be so protected may
seem quite large.

The accompanying bill of materials gives everything
that is required for the construction of this house as de-
scribed. In estimating quantities needed, reasonable al-
lowance has been made for waste. Estimates on siding
and ceiling provide for 25 per cent shrinkage and on
sheathing boards about 10 per cent. However, as there
often are changes to be made to meet individual require-
ments, and as some of the building material 1s almost in-
variably taken for other purposes, it will be wise to order
a little extra. This is particularly true in the case of
7x4-inch trim boards for which the poultryman usually
finds an astonishing number of extra uses.

Material for the concrete foundation and floor is es-
timated on the basis of a 2%4-foot wall, six inches thick;
floor, three inches thick, and a four-inch insulating layer.

40 POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

BILL OF MATERIALS FOR 6-PEN COMPARTMENT

HOUSE
- Size Length No.of
Use Inches Feet Pieces Remarks

Sills, side 2x4 10 48
Sills, ends 2x4 10 8
Plates -.-....-. -. 2x4 10 48
Studs, front . 2x4 14 18 One piece cuts 2.
Studs, back . 2x4 10 30 One piece cuts 2.
Studs, ends Sar x 16 Ly Cue tore
Studs, partitions - 2x4 10 30
Miscellaneous .. . 2x4 10 15
Partitions, sills - 2x4 10 10
Rafters, rear ... . 2x6 14 61
Rafters, front 2x6 14 31
Ridge pole . 1x6 10 2
Center posts . 4x4 10 6
Stringers for -

pings platform.. 10 24
Perches 2.82) x 10 36 Surfaced upper

edges rounded.

Sills for windows........ 2x5 12 6 Milled.
Sills for curtains -- 2x5 12 6 Milled. :
Roof boards .... %x10 3000 ft Surfaced 2 sides.
T & G siding... --- 7g x6 1500 ft
Matched flooring for

partitions, ceiling

and doors ay 2100 ft. :
Trim lumber 400 lin. ft. Surfaced 4 sides.
Door frames --- Wx 36 lin. ft. Surfaced 4 sides.
Partition doors ?

braces, etc. .............---- 7x4 150lin. ft. Surfaced 4 sides.
Cross pes. for perches..%x4 100 lin ft. Surfaced 4 sides.
Frames for shutters.....7 235 lin. ft. Surfaced 4 sides.
Strips under shutters. 65 lin. ft. Surfaced 4 sides.
Inside window sills... 40 lin. ft. Surfaced 4 sides.
Weather strips fo t

windows & doors...... 120 lin. ft. Surfaced 4 sides.

MATERIALS FOR PLATFORM NESTS
SETS, 4 NESTS EACH)

(TWENTY-FOUR

Size Length No.o

Use Inches Feet Pieces

Base boards, front 10 12
Doors 10 12
Partitions ... 12 12
Base boards, back 10 12
Top strips) ----= 10 24
Bottom boards 10 12
Running boards 10 12
Brackets ........ es TWgx4 10 12

All boards surfaced four sides.

24 4-inch strap hinges for doors.

28 squares prepared roofing. ;

24 window sashes, 14-inch, 6-light, 10x14-inch glass.

sq. ft. 1l-in. mesh netting for partitions and windows.
sq. ft. muslin for curtains. 7

26 anchor bolts, %x12-inch, with 2-inch washers for each.
2 pr. 8-inch T-strap hinges for outside doors.

2 6-inch hasps for doors. ;

12 pr. 2-inch butt hinges for windows.

12 pr. 24%-inch butt hinges for shutters.

6 doz. 2-inch hooks and eyes.

12 pr. 4-inch strap hinges for perch supports.

5 pr. double-acting spring hinges for partitivn doors,
12 pr. 4-inch strap hinges for ventilator doors.
36 ft. chain for sash holders.

Nails, tacks and paint.

MATERIAL FOR FOUNDATION
bags Portland cement.
500 cu. ft. sand.
950 cu. ft. crushed stone or gravel.
ft. cinders or broken stone for filling.

AND FLOOR

800 cu.

FIG. 69—NEW ENGLAND OPEN-FRONT LAYING HOUSE
Photo from Mass. Agri. College.

A NEW ENGLAND LAYING HOUSE

Especially Suitable for Farm Flocks. Has Open Front
and Separate Small Pen Suitable for Breed-
ers or Storage.
By PROF. J. C. GRAHAM

The plan herewith presented shows a detention pen
six feet wide on the east side of the house. As can be ~
seen, the house is 18 feet deep and 24 feet long, which
gives floor space sufficient for 100 pullets or hens.

The height of the front is 7 feet 10 inches, and back,
4 feet 10 inches. A 2x4, 12 feet long, sawed in two, will
make the back stud 4% feet and the front 7% feet. Then
the two-inch plate at the top and the sill at the bottom
give the full dimensions already
stated. The rear rafter is just 14

feet long, the front one six feet,

and the peak 10 feet from the

floor. Note that the rafter at the

rear is sawed off flush with the

back edge of the stud and plate,

2

x —- © i 2
>

and the rear roof board is allowed
to project over about three inches,

| Lith ° F 5 .
er mi anna with a small strip nailed up un-
[U UIT LAL HH derneath it on the outside. This
i ii 1 .
Dreppings Board 4’ wide Roosts 1 7 New ine House closes up the crack, if any, and
Apert 10"abeve Droppings Board (Fa 5) il Capacity 100 Hepis makes a tight, cheap method of
mas) . : 3} sl Massacuuserts Agmcucrurat Cotuece construction. The front ends of
th Main House 18x24 P| Ihe C
3 ror nie acss) A 1 epee the rafters are sawed off vertical-
Tr indows (smell) 3X5! (Laege) 3410" (Fig 1) [* ht) } ere
Bh pr Shiches enivoueeieay ee Scale Weel’ ly, and underneath the projection
4 (Fig 2 und 4) { akeroters of the rafters a board is fitted in
Heavy Black lint (Fig 3and 5) represents a . a
nes arn ee description) AY h between the board nailed against
Total Overall dimensions 18 430 the ends and the siding end of the

house, which gives a tight, cheap
construction for the front end of
the rafters. Note that a 4x4 beam
supports the center of the roof.
This is necessary in a house 18
feet wide.

FIG.

68—PLANS FOR CONSTRUCTING NEW ENGLAND LAYING HOUSE
Prepared by Poultry Dept. Mass. Agri. College.

The cloth at each end of the
opening is nailed to frame made of
materia! three inches wide and

5 Drawng by Putney

HOUSES FOR COMMERCIAL LAYING FLOCKS

41

with a partition six feet from the

east end, giving us a detention

pen 6x18 feet. Every poultryman
should have an extra pen of this

kind. It may serve as a hospital
in the fall, if necessary, or a pen
for fattening cockerels or surplus
females. It makes a fine place
for a breeding pen during that
time of the year, or for sitting
hens during the hatching season.
Many no doubt will prefer to in-
stall suitable bins so that this

surface line

FIG. 70—FRONT ELEVATION, CORNELL MODEL POULTRY HOUSE

seven-eighths in. thick. These are not hinged, but are kept
in place by buttons on the inside. We think this is a little
better than hinging, because curtains hinged at the top
gather an immense amount of dust while the curtain is
hooked up near the ceiling. These cloth frames can be
removed in the summer time, but in cold weather they
- should be kept in place at all times. The rest of the open-
ing, 10x3 feet, is covered by inch-mesh wire. There is
no cloth or further protection. The birds roosting so
far from the opening will not suffer in cold weather when
the house is sufficiently filled.

The reason for placing the opening in the center of
the house, as we have done, is because an opening placed
in that position, and not more than 19 feet in length,
does not admit the wind sufficiently to give it a chance
to whirl about in the house, whereas, if the wire and cloth
portions of the front are reversed, the wind will whip in
at one end and out of the other and the birds will be in
a constant draft if there is any

space may be utilized as a feed
room which may be done to good
advantage if floor is rat-proof.

THE CORNELL MODEL POULTRY HOUSE

The Latest Cornell Laying House. Equipped With Dust
Bath, Wind Bafflers, and Coops for Broody

Hens. Special Ventilator.

By PROF. JAMES E. RICE

This house, as here illustrated, is provided with a
concrete floor. If desired it may be set up on posts about
a foot above the ground and a board floor put in. Quite
frequently a board floor can be put in at considerably less
cost than a concrete floor and may prove nearly as satis-
factory. However, on the farm we advise that the con-
crete floor be used. The stones, gravel and sand are us-
ually near at hand and by using farm help the concrete
foundation and floor can be put in at little expense. The
concrete floor, if properly built, is warmer in winter and
will outlast the board floor.

~ movement of air.
The back part of the house is

ceiled with ceil board from the
plate down to the droppings board,
and a ventilator at the back of the
house is so arranged that the air

during the summer months can
pass in at the front of the house,
under the droppings boards, up
between this lining and the boards
on the outside, and out, cooling
the house to quite an extent with-
out subjecting the birds to drafts.
These ventilators should be left
open during the summer months.

The boards used on the outside
are novelty siding, with no paper.
This gives a very sightly house,
and is also cheaper than one made
of rough boards and covered with
paper, unless one has the boards
on hand.

It is more economical to use
2x4’s for rafters, and if sound
they are heavy enough to support
the roof. The house can be built
with a shed roof if one desires, as

2434 pepirip f
P1229 sb6n1ddoig! =

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seddoy ysopse
4oo)f 24249u05

s1eade4 49pNA

48bNIALS bryrpsoddrs 40f {S04

Bu/piaip

of uorpiyiod Kapi0duaz py

241K fo 40 Pyos_ 29 how

ip2249 BD ffo

ad Lus,

SEL

there will be plenty of head room.
Twenty-foot rafters are required
for such a roof.

This house is designed for a
single pen or a section of a long

house. We made it 30 feet long, FIG.

Oust wellow
Concrete floor

71—FLOOR PLAN OF CORNELL MODEL POULTRY HOUSE

42

anni

: coop

POULTRY HOUSES AND

a

ventilator

FIXTURES

tive. This will also help to keep the
mites away.

In the ceiling, about three inches
above the droppings board, a four-
opening the full
length of the house is made. The ob-
ject of this opening is to provide a
means for carrying off the bad odor
from the drdéppings boards and roost-
ing compartment. If desired, this
opening may be closed in the win-

7 Fe

inch extending

p back
tar Keats lalart

Summer
{oof removable

indows dro

~ at top ¥.

tertime. The ten-inch opening under

ae te

[
Dust waliow

A Coble Stones :
Surface line
oncrere floor even with fop of Sill

anerete wall

After the floor is made ready the
studding and plates for front and
rear are next cut and put up,
squared and braced. The studs in
front are cut nine feet long and those
in the rear are 5 feet long. Notches
for the 1x6-inch ribbon should be cut
in the rear studs before they are put
up. The rafters should be notched to
fit onto the plates and they should
also set on top of the studding front
and rear. If preferred, short rafters,
2x6-inch, 12 feet long may be used
and allowed to overlap in the center
and spiked together. The 2x6-inch
roof support should now be put in
with a 4x4-inch post in the center
and a 2x4-inch under each end. Raise
this support a little so as to make
the rafters slightly crowning in the
center. Space the end studs from
two and one-half to three feet apart.

In most localities in this state a
single thickness of cove or novelty
siding is all that is required. This

FIG. 73 — CROSS
SECTION OF ie E A
FRONT siding must be put on with consider-

able care. A knot hole or a crack
between the boards may be the means
of creating a draft in the house that
will cause many birds to become ill
with colds. Cove siding must be
thoroughly dry when it is put on,
otherwise cracks are likely to open
up between the boards when wind
and sun have dried them out. Spruce
siding is the best because it will not
shrink as much as pine. The ad-
vantage in using the cove siding is
that it can be painted so as to make
a very attractive house.

The Cornell wind baffler was de-
signed for the purpose of taking the
place of the muslin curtains for ven-
tilation. See page 21 for directions
for making and installing bafflers.

The perches are hung with hooks
and chains to help prevent the mites
from getting onto them. The per-

—CROSS SECTION OF CORNELL MODEL POULTRY HOUSE

the eaves in the rear is almost a nec-
essity during hot weather. This open-
ing extends the full length of the
house and there are four doors that
can be opened and closed as desired,
made of boards 12 inches wide. These
should be cleated to prevent them from warping. The
front ventilators are usually kept open all summer and
should be opened a little in cold weather if there is any
indication of dampness in the house. The window sashes
are arranged to drop back at the top in order to increase
ventilation. This feature is especially valuable during the
winter months.

The bottoms of the nests are stationary, ‘but the
frames are removable for easy cleaning and spraying. If
desired, these nests may be made much lighter by mak-
ing the frames entirely of 9-16-inch lumber. There is an
opening for the hens to enter the nests at the end nearest
the droppings boards. A board or a small. gate should
be arranged to close this opening whenever it may be
necessary to prevent pullets or hens from getting into the
nests at night. A droppings board is placed just above
the nests and a frame covered with one-inch mesh poultry
wire above this for the bottom of the broody coop. The
broody coop may be divided into two parts by a partition
in the center. Troughs for feed and water can be hung
on the outside of the slats.

A 14 foot partition is put in the center of the house.
This partition makes the house more rigid and also serves
to prevent the circulation of strong air currents. This
partition makes it convenient at the breeding season for
dividing the house into two pens, one of which can be
used for the selected breeders. The mash hopper should

ches should be painted twice a year

: FIG.
with a good creosote wood preserva-

74—MISSOURI POULTRY HOUSE, SHOWING FRONT AND SIDE
Photo from University of Missouri.

HOUSES FOR COMMERCIAL LAYING FLOCKS

be about six feet long and is built into
the partition where it is least in the way
of the caretaker.

We consider the outside dust wallow a
great improvement over the old style in-
door dust box. It has the advantage of
being outside, out of the way. It gives
additional floor space at little cost. It
receives the sunlight from three sides and
very little dust can get into the house.
The dust wallow should have a concrete
floor which is on a level with that of the
house. The roof is made on a frame so
that it can be lifted off by two men for
convenience in renewing the supply of
fine sand, which seems to be the most
satisfactory material for this purpose.

There will be little necessity for labori-
ously handling fowls and dusting or oth-
erwise treating them for lice.

THE MISSOURI POULTRY HOUSE
Is Proving Quite Popular in the Middle West, Partic-
Is Lighted On All: Sides
and Has Straw Loft.
By PROF. H. L. KEMPSTER*

e Missouri Poultry House has been designed by
the Poultry Department of the University of Missouri,
College of Agriculture, to meet the demand for a house
of such size as to accommodate the average Missouri
farm flock and also be adapted to Missouri conditions.

Since the average farm poultry flock in Missouri is
from 100 to 150 hens, this house is 20 feet square, the
square house being the most economical to construct and
- affording a maximum amount of floor space. The ridge
of the roof runs north and south, the roof being of equal
spans. The walls are five feet at the eaves.
_ feet high at the peak.

FIG.

ularly On Farms.

It is eleven
The south side contains a door in

ed TD
= (yee vey

eos Ts

76—CROSS SECTION OF MISSOURI OPEN-FRONT POULTRY HOUSE
Reproduced from Bul. 80, University of Missouri.

the center and a window 2x3 feet on each side of the door.
These windows are placed high enough to afford a 30-inch
opening beneath, one foot above the floor and extending
the entire length each side of the door. This opening is
covered with wire screen, which keeps the hens in and the
sparrows out.

On the east and west sides are two windows, each
two feet high and three feet wide. On the north end next
to the floor is a six-light 8x10-inch glass window. An ar-
rangement which admits light from all directions has de-
cided advantages, because the light is so distributed that
there are no dark corners, thus discouraging the laying
of eggs on the floor. Also, when light comes from one
direction the hen always faces in that direction when she
scratches. In consequence, there is a gradual movement
of the litter toward the back side of the house. When
light is evenly distributed this trouble is eliminated. One
hen scratches in one direction and another in another and

Aor the litter never piles up on the dark side, be-
i cause there is no dark side in such a house.
Another decided advantage in having open-

ings on all sides is the excellent summer venti-

FIG. 75—FLOOR PLAN OF MISSOURI OPEN-FRONT HOUSE

Reproduced from Bul. 80, University of Missouri.

lation which can be afforded by removing the
windows. This is an important point and should
not be overlooked in constructing a house un-
der Missouri conditions. Summer ventilation is
as important as winter ventilation.

During the winter the success of ventilation
of this type depends upon having the east, west
and north sides and the roof entirely air-tight,
: so that wind will drive into the house only a
short distance and never back to the roosts,
which are on the north side. There is a grad-
ual movement of the air from the inside out,
thus insuring an abundance of ventilation with-
out drafts. Open-front ventilation has an ad-
vantage over all other ventilation because it re-
quires no adjusting, never plugs up, and always
works. This type of ventilation will adapt it-
self to temperature changes without the con-
stant attention of the attendant and in this way
reduces to a minimum the labor of caring for
the house. It probably meets the require-
ments of a simple efficient farm poultry house
more nearly than any house that has been pre-
viously designed. The walls are of car siding,
running up and down which forms a tight and
attractive wall. The roof is made up of ship-
lap covered with shingles.

20- O-

44 POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

The floor is made of dirt, which is an
economical and durable type. Dirt floors
are very efficient if properly constructed.
In constructing a dirt floor there should be
a wall six to eight inches high. A fill of
four inches of coarse material, such as cin-
ders, should be made to prevent damp
floors. On top of the tamped cinders
should be placed two or three inches of
damp clay, which should be packed well
and then permitted to dry so that it will
harden. On top of the clay should be
placed half an inch of loose dirt. The clay
prevents the ditt and straw from mixing
with the cinders to such an extent as to
cause the moisture to rise. A covering of
a foot or more of straw will keep the floor
dry at all times.

The greatest objections to dirt floors
are: (1) the possible invasion of rats; (2)

FIG. 78—FRONT ELEVATION OF MISSOURI POULTRY HOUSE

Reproduced from Bul. 80, University of Missouri.

the fact that the straw will become dirty quicker than inches apart. This forms a loft which is filled with straw.
with a concrete floor; and (3) dustiness, which in many The straw acts as a sort of sponge by absorbing both

dampness and heat and helps to keep the house drier in
the winter and cooler in the summer.

In most sections it will probably cost about $120.00 to
build this house, aside from the painting. It will ac-
commodate from 120 to 175 hens, depending in part on
the breed, making the cost about $1.00 per hen or a little
less. Plans for constructing this house are shown in
Figs. 75, 76 and 78, and the complete house in Fig. 74.

BILL OF MATERIALS

Use Pieces Size Bd. Feet
Renters ieccsseesesee 22 2x4-12 176
Plates and sills .. 8 2x4-20 107
Studding and fra 1 2x4-10 7
Roosts)|jeesce=-- 5 2x4-20 74
Finishing ao 1x4-10 20
Finishing - pil 1x4-16 6
Finishing .. 4 1x4-10 14
Finishing : 8 1x4-12 32
Floor for loft ..... 52 1x4-14 260
Car siding for walls...... — 1x6-10 600
Shiplap for roof and drop. plat-......- a= 1x8-12 720

. Shingles—5 4M.
FIG. 77—END ELEVATION OF COLD CLIMATE HOUSE Sashes—7 6-light, 8x10-inch glass.

Wire netting for windows and front—3x32,
Hinges—1 pair.

cases has caused throat trouble. However, because of the Foundation—3 cu. ft. of concrete.

low cost of construction, the dirt floor can be safely rec-

ommended and it will prove very
efficient.

The roosts should be at the back
or north side and all on the same
level. They should be four feet
above the floor, 14 inches from the
wall, and 12 inches apart, and made
of 2x4’s with rounded corners. Poles
two inches in diameter, if firmly
placed, will serve the purpose near-
ly as well. Eight inches beneath the
roosts is placed the droppings plat-
form, which keeps the floor clean
and increases the floor space avail-
able for other purposes. Underneath
the droppings platform are placed :
the nests. There should be eight NS
inches of roosting place for each
bird and one nest for every six or
seven hens.

SY”

Joists or collar beams are placed
in the house just high enough to af-
ford head room. In order to pre-
vent the birds from roosting on
these, they are covered with inch
boards, 4 inches wide, placed two

*From Missouri Experiment Station Circular 80.

FIG. 79—CROSS SECTION OF COLD CLIMATE HOUSE

CHAPTER IV
Laying Houses to Meet Special Conditions

Laying Houses Especially Designed to Meet the Requirements of Cold and Warm Climates—Houses With Open-Front
and Semi-Monitor Roofs—Block and Concrete Houses—Numerous Houses Designed to Meet Special Con-
ditions, That Are in Everyday Use by Practical Poultry Keepers in This Country and Canada.

NIFORMITY in poultry-house design, as has been
stated elsewhere in this book, is highly desirable
so far as it can be attained without sacrificing
convenience or efficiency. What may be called

the “general-purpose” types, illustrated and described in

the preceding chapter, probably will meet the require-
ments of the great majority of poultry keepers without

matter of fact, nothing but the high cost of building this
house starids in the way of its general adoption in all
sections of the country. The thick blanket of straw in
the gable not only makes the pen warmer in winter, but
keeps it cooler in summer. It also absorbs moisture and
keeps the house dry. There is a marked increase in in-
terest in straw-loft houses where extreme cold must be
encountered. Aside from the gable
roof, straw-filled loft, and double
walls, this house does not differ ma-

terially from the one described on
pages 35 to 37, and all that is said

there in 1egard to the foundation,
floors and fixtures applies with equal

force to this house. It is especially
desirable to have a concrete founda-
tion and floor with double-walled
houses, as the space between the
walls makes an excellent hiding place
for rats. When once they have ob-

tained a foothold it is entirely diffi-

cult to dislodge them, and even more

so if they gain access to straw loft.
In finishing the loft it is wise to

FIG. 80—FRONT VIEW ELEVATION OF COLD CLIMATE HOUSE

change or modification in any essential particular. There
are, however, special conditions, due to climate, location,
or the use to which the house is to be put, that make it
more practical to adopt some special type of construc-

tion than to adhere to a standard plan, regardless of how

:

desirable it may be to do so, in a general way. Each
individual must decide for himself what is required in
his particular case. In the following pages will be found
plans for a number of houses designed to meet unusual
conditions and requirements. It must be a very difficult
problem, indeed, for which a suitable solution cannot be
found among these.

A LAYING HOUSE FOR COLD CLIMATES
‘Straw-Loft Houses Are Highly Desirable in Extremely
Cold Climates. They Are Comfortable, Dry,

and Well Ventilated.

What is known as the “straw-loft” house is one of
the most desirable of special-type poultry houses. As a

provide a trap door in the ceiling so
that the straw can be thrown down
into the house instead of having to fork it all out at the
gable doors. This trap need only consist of a few slats
with a batten at each end, cutting these long enough to
reach across to the permanent slats on either side, which
will hold the door in place without hinges or other fast-
ening.

In filling the loft, which usually will be done in the
fall, use good, clean straw, free from mold, dust, or chaff.
Chaffy straw will pack too tight, interfering with ventila-
tion. The material should be filled in loosely, almost to
the ridge, starting at the farther end and working back
without tramping. Filled in this way the material will
settle just enough to leave a good-sized open space be-
low the ridge, which is essential to proper circulation
of air.

Fig. 79 shows a cross-section of the house with wall
nests, perches, etc. The slats that are to hold the straw
in place should be nailed securely to the underside of
the ovethead joists and may be spaced quite a bit further
apart than shown in the plan if it is desired to economize

PROOF COVETPED W/TH PREPARED 72°F/NG 297? GALVAN/ZED {RON

YARD BDooR

poh xK 15"

FIG. 81—SECTION OF FRONT ELEVATION OF COMPART

GROUNDLEVEL

MENT HOUSE FOR WARM CLIMATES

46 POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

on lumber. Where long straight poles are obtainable
these may be used in place of sawed strips. Whether
strips or poles are used, it is a good plan to lay a single
wide board across the top face of the joists, immediately
under the ridge, in order to have secure footing when it
is necessary to enter the loft. It will be noted that no
rear ventilators are provided in this plan. With a straw
loft and with the louvered ventilators on hinges like
doors, so that they may be thrown wide open in warm
weather, no additional ventilation is needed in the north.
The floor plan for this house is the same as the one for
curtain-front house described on pages 35 to 37.

Fig. 80 gives the front elevation, with dimensions for
windows and curtained openings clearly indicated. Fig.
77. shows end elevation, with location and size of venti-
lator door in gable.

BILL OF MATERIALS

~ Size Length No. of
Use Inches Fert Pieces Remarks
Sills, sides ... a. 2x4 12 4
Sills, ends .. 2x4 16 2
Plates, sides - 2x4 16 3
Plates, ends 2x4 16 2
Studs 2x4 14 44 One piece cuts 2.
Studs, gable and
miscellaneous ..... 2x4 10 8
5 2x5. 10 26
1x6 12 2
2x5 16 11
Staybraces 1x6 8 11 One piece cuts 2.

Supports for drop-
pings platform..... 2x4 12

4
Perches .. - 2x4 12 6 48
1

Sills for curtains... 2x8 10 12%
Sills for windows... 2x8 12 1 15
Siding --%x6 730 ft. bd. meas.
Roof boards --%x10 260 ft. bd. meas.
Flooring for ceil’g,

drop. platform,

Round edge.
Surf. 4 sides.

Milled, cuts 2.

Milled, cuts 3.

Surfaced 2 sides.

door; etc: — === %x4 800 ft. bd. meas.

Trim lumber --- Wr 300 lin. ft. Surfaced.
Strips for loft..........3x3 800 lin. ft. Surfaced.
Door and window

LVAMES) neers enas %x6 90 lin. ft. Surfaced.

Strip under shut’s..3%x3% 8 lin. ft. Cuts 3. Surfaced.
Strip base of win-

ML OWA otc a oceree nose Rese kx2%4 8 lin. ft. Cuts 3. Surfaced.
Frame for shutters..%x2 30 lin. ft. Cuts 3. Surfaced.
Frame & louvering

for gable doors....7x4 50 link £t. Cuts 3. Surfaced.
Weather strips for

windows & doors..%x% 30 lin. ft. Cuts 2. Surfaced.

6 squares of prepared roofing.
14-inch, 6-light,

6 window sashes, 10x12-ineh glass.

70 sq. ft. 1-inch netting for openings and windows.
30 sq. ft. unbleached muslin for curtains.

4-inch hasps for gable door.

anchor bolts, %x12-inch, with 2-inch washers for each.
pr. 8-inch T-strap hinges for outside door.
6-inch hasp for outside door.

pr. 2%-inch butt hinges for shutters.

pr. 2-inch butt hinges for windows.

pr. 4-inch T-strap hinges for gable doors.

pr. 4-inch strap hinges for perch supports.

ft. chain for sash holders.

2-inch screw hooks and eves for windows, ete.
Nails, tacks, and paint.

CAWNWONMRR aw

»

MATERIALS FOR FOUNDATION AND FLOOR

7 sacks Portland cement.

140 cu. ft. of sand.

200 cu. ft. of crushed stone or gravel.
140-cu. ft. of cinders or stone for filling.

MATERIALS FOR WALL NESTS

Size Length

Use Inches Feet
Top .. 7x10 30 lin. ft.
-- %x10 55 lin. ft.
ceo = YxT 40 lin. ft.
-- ¥x8 30 lin. ft.
a --BxT 30) lin) ft
Foot boards .- x6 30 lin. ft.
Partitions .... --BxT 25 lin. ft.
Front boards, bottom -- x4 30 lin. ft.
Front boards, top —...... .. yx2 80) line ie
Support for running boards. 25 lin: ft.
Strips for partitions 25 lin. ft.

All boards surfaced 2 sides.

S pr. 1-inch butt hinges.

12 2-inch screw hooks and eyes.

MATERIALS FOR PLATFORM NESTS

If platform nests are preferred instead of wall nests
the following material will be required for four sets, five
nests each:

Size Length No. of

Use Inches Feet Pieces

Doors 12 2
Front base 7x6 12 2
Bottom! ==: x12 12 2
Rear base Wgx4 12 2
Top strips Bx2 12 4
Partitions ....... %x1l1 10 3
Running boards . Wg x6 12 2
Brackets > 8 5

All boards surfaced 2 cides. i
4 pr. of 2%-inch T-strap hinges.

The various details of construction which apply gen-
erally to this and all similar houses, will be found in
Chapter I, under appropriate headings. While the bill of
materials specifies prepared roofing, good shingles, if ob-
tainable at reasonable cost, will be found more satisfac-
tory and will last longer.

16/0"

TRAP NESTS

TRAP NESTS

FIG. 82—FLOOR PLAN OF COMPARTMENT LAYING HOUSE FOR WARM CLIMATES

LAYING HOUSES TO MEET SPECIAL ‘CONDITIONS

2'*G6 Rarters SpacesBetween 2'Sn Centers

47

under the platform will accommodate all
the nests needed, building them as de-

scribed in Chapter X.

The difficulty of controlling lice and
mites is much greater in warm climates
than in the north and it is always ad-
visable to provide lice-proof metal perch

supports, as shown. Where these are

installed and properly looked after,

A 4 Foundation Wall R_a"xd" SiLL } there is no possibility of mites passing
amity 25'0° —4 from the perches to the wall and plat-
FIG. 883—FRAMING THE FRONT OF WARM CLIMATE HOUSE form, resulting sooner or later in a

A LAYING HOUSE FOR WARM CLIMATES

Provides Extra Ventilation Required in All Warm Cli-
mates. Is Not Too Deep, and Front is Shaded
By Wide Eave.

While the house described on pages 38 to 40 may be
adapted to the requirements of warm climates by making
suitable changes in ventilation, there are some features
that are especially desirable in mild climates that are not
needed or wanted elsewhere. For this reason plans for a
special warm-climate house have been prepared. This
house can be built in any number of pens desired, the
one here illustrated affording ample accommodations for
900 to 1000 fowls, or about 150 to the pen. The rule of
four square feet to the fowl, which applies generally
wherever fowls must be kept in confinement for long pe-
riods of time, does not hold wheré they can be out most
of the time and where the house is mainly a place for
roosting and for providing accommodations for
feed hoppers, etc.

The foundation and floor as shown in the cross-
section, Fig. 85, are of concrete. It will be noted that
the foundation wall is carried up a foot above the floor,
the purpose of this being to protect the sills from decay
and insure a dry floor. It is planned to have the floor a
foot above the ground level, but if the ‘site is well drained,
six inches will be enough. General details of foundation,
floor, and anchorage are as described in Chapter I.

To afford protection from the sun, the front eave is
extended so as to form a permanent canopy over the front
of the house. Some builders go a step further than this
and make the canopy six feet or more wide, enclosing the
space and using it as a sort of shaded runway. This is an
excellent plan and adds but little to the cost of the house.
Where this is to be done it is advisable to provide a plain
shed roof over the main part of the house (16 feet) and
then extend the canopy as far for-
ward as desired, sloping it to the
front. This can be done without
changing or interfering in any man-
ner with the plans of the house as

nests,

here given, except to use 18-foot
rafters.
Fig. 82 shows floor plan, with

location of all fixtures. The house

———— SOT
SISOS RS oe
SRR OSL
<2 SOS25
3S SSS
SLO

for which this plan was originally s
prepared was to be equipped with JARRE

trapnests as shown. As a smaller
number of hens can be accommo-
dated per nest where trap-nests are
used, additional nests had to be pro-
vided along the wall or partition. .

The plan for these nests will be Airs
found in Chapter X, and a bill of chou’

materials given. If ordinary plat-
form nests are to be used, the space

mite-infested house which can only be
cleaned by the most painstaking efforts. Fig. 37 shows
the type of rear ventilator in general use in the south.
No harm will result from having this open directly into
the house, but it is desirable to have the perches suffici-
ently below the opening so that the fowls on them will
not be in a direct draft.

FIG.

84—AN, OPEN FRONT HOUSE AT GEORGIA
EXPERIMENT STATION

Houses of this general type are in successful use in

all parts of the South—generally with muslin curtains

for additional winter protection.
ly

The opening for the rear ventilator should be at
least 10 inches wide, and should run the entire length of
the building. It is enclosed on the inside with one-inch
poultry netting. Two six-light window sashes should be
placed in the rear wall in each pen, under the droppings
platform. These are provided as much for coolness as
for light.

Fig. 81 shows the front elevation, with dimensions
of openings, which may be protected with muslin curtains
on the outside of the building, as shown in Fig. 89, on

Om
OH

48

Poultry Netting

Concrete

“Wall 3

_ _ Floor_level
Ground Level

FIG. 86—END ELEVATION OF WARM CLIMATE HOUSE
page 49. Fig. 83 shows the method of framing the
front with all necessary dimensions. Fig. 86 shows

method of enclosing the ends, leaving a large ventilator
opening in each gable, to be protected with poultry
netting.

BILL OF MATERIALS

Size Length No. of a
Use Inches Feet Pieces Remarks
Sills, sides . 10 30
ends 16 2
10 90
10 5
14 40 One piece cuts 2.
2x4 10 40 One piece cuts 2.
etc..2x4 16 35 One piece cuts 2.
2x4 10 30
4x4 10 12
Tienes... 1x6 10 74
Rafters, front . 2x6 16 40 One piece cuts 2.
Rafters, rear .. 2x6 14 78
Support for drop. plat.......2x4 10 30
Perches: sees 2x4 12 36 .
Sills for front open’s.. 2x6 é 20 One piece cuts 2.
T & G siding... 1x6 2000 ft. bd. meas
Roof boards .. 1x10 3500 ft. bd. meas. Surfaced.
(If galvanized roofing is
used substitute 1400s. f.
1x4 strips.)
Flooring bds. for plat’ms
doors, partitions, etc 1900 ft. bd. meas
Trim lumber 1600 ft. bd. meas. Sfed. 4 Sds.
Door frame . 40 lin. ft. Surfaced 4 sides.
T & G boards 800 sq. ft.

32 squares prepared roofing or galvanized roofing.

1200 s. f. of 1-inch wire netting for front, partitions, etc.
30 anchor bolts, %x12-inch, with 2 2-in. washers for each.
2 pr. 8-inch T-strap hinges for outside doors.

5 pr. double-acting spring hinges for partition doors.

12 pr. 6-inch strap hinges for rear ventilating doors.

dozen 2-inch hooks and eyes.

12 pr. 4-inch strap hinges for perch supports; or 36 pairs
metal perch supports.

Nails, staples and paint.

wo

MATERIALS FOR TRAP NESTS

800 s.f.
160 lin. ft.
160 lin.
160 lin.
170 lin.
260 lin.
160 lin.

Side rail of ends..
Strips.
Partition strips -

All boards to
Galvanized doors,

s.

wire, staples and wooden triggers.

MATERIALS FOR PLATFORM NESTS

(24 sets of 4 nests each. To be substituted for trap-nests
if preferred.)

Length No.of

Use Feet Pieces

DOON et eee ene 10 12
Front base 10 12
Bottoms. 10 12
Rear base 10 12
Partitions ...... 10 12
Running boards 10 12
Top strips . 10 24
Uprights ... 10 12
Brackets ... 10 24

MATERIALS FOR FOUNDATION AND FLOOR
230 bags Portland cement.
550 cu. ft. of sand.
900 cu. ft. gravel or crushed stone.
800 cu. ft. of cinders or stone for filling.

POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

BILL OF MATERIALS FOR BOARD FLOOR

If a board floor is preferred for this house instead of
concrete, the following lumber will be required:

Size Length No. of

Use Inches Feet Pieces Remarks
Posts, wood, stone or concrete..8x8 5 60
Sills, sides .. 2x8 16 40 Doubled.
Sills, ends -2x8 16 4 Doubled.
Bridging 1x2 ass 750 lin. ft.
WOISts ess 2x8 6 75
T & G flooring ... “Ss. f:

Posts to be spaced 6 feet apart, set 2 feet deep and
leveled 3 feet above the surface of the ground. If buildin
is on sloping ground, posts are to be leveled so that sil
will be at least 18 inches from the ground at point nearest
the ground. ,

600 sq. ft. of siding will enclose
sides, leaving the front open.

OTHER WARM CLIMATE HOUSES

Various Types of Practical Houses in Successful Use
in the South.

underpart on three

The illustrations on this and the following pages
show other types of houses that are in successful use in
the south, all indicating that protection from enemies and
from rain and sun is about the only imperative condition
that must be met. No detailed description of these houses
need be given, as their construction is of the simplest na-
ture. They are illustrated here simply to show the differ-
ent methods that may be successfully employed to secure
a free circulation of air without which poultry houses in
warm climates will prove unendurable for fowls in the
hot season.

Fig. 89 shows a -house in the Morristown (Tenn.)
district. With slight modifications houses of this type
will be found all through this section. The muslin cur-
tains are fastened to wires at top and bottom by means
of small rings, and slide back and forth to open and close.
The curtains are on the outside of the front and high
winds simply blow them back against the netting, which
supports them so that they do not whip back and forth
to any great extent. Because of this freedom from whip-
ping these loose curtains appear to last about as long as
muslin tacked to frames.

The house here shown is built with a plain-shed roof
and the entire front, from the top plate to within about

FIG. 87—A GOOD HOUSE FOR SEMI-TROPICAL
CLIMATE

This house was designed for use in the semi-tropical
climate of the extreme southern part of the United States,
Maximum air circulation is secured and eaves are made
extra wide for shade.

three feet of the ground, is left entirely open except for
the curtains. In the comparatively mild climate of Ten-
nessee this construction provides a good degree of win-

ter comfort for the fowls and plenty of ventilation for ©

summer. Throughout the south generally, wide houses

LAYING HOUSES TO MEET SPECIAL CONDITIONS 49

are not considered desirable on account of the difficulty
of making them cool in summer, and they seldom are
built over 16 feet in depth, unless with a semi-monitor
roof. So far as the general details of construction and
arrangements are concerned, the house illustrated in Fig.
89 does not dif-
fer materially from
the six - compart-
ment house shown
in Figs. 81 to 86,
aside from the fact
that low-cost con-
struction as de-
scribed on page
37, is almost in-
variably adopted.

Fig. 84 shows
a practical laying
house on the poul-
try plant of the
Georgia Experi-
ment Station. It
is built with a
combination roof
and a wide eave
which shades the
front—a highly de-
sirable feature in
warm climates.
Houses in the
south especially
need rear ventila-
tors as shown in
Fig. 37, provid-
ing not only the
door under the eave, but also the windows under the
droppings platform. It is just as important to protect
fowls from heat here as it is to protect them from cold
in the north, and there is no better means of doing this
than in the manner just suggested.

Where English sparrows are numerous, it will pay
well to use one-half or three-quarter-inch netting on all
openings in poultry houses, as the birds can get through
ordinary inch-mesh netting. Where the front is open
practically all the time, as is the case in the south, these
pests become thoroughly at home, multiply rapidly,
thanks to the good feeding they are able to secure from
the open hoppers, and in the course of a year’s time con-
sume great quantities of feed.

The house described on pages 47 and 48 is designed
for use in semi-tropical climates, where its free ventila-
tion, combined with the shade afforded by the extra wide
eaves, makes it particularly desirable.

1x6" Door Silt
eu sith

3'Concrere +100,
ORE

FIG. 88—DETAIL OF FRONT IN
WARM CLIMATE HOUSE

suitable doors (seen on the left side), and eggs are gath-
ered from the outside, the top being on hinges. The
perches are arranged in two sets located on either side,
with a three or four-foot passageway through the cen-
ter. They are hinged at the side to swing out of the
way, and in this illustration are shown hooked up, as
they usually are left during the day. Notice that the
perches instead of being placed close together as is
usually the practice in the north, are spaced wide apart
so that the fowls will not be bunched on them at night.

No droppings boards are provided for ordinary use.
If a concrete floor is provided every practical require-
ment is met by covering it with an inch or two of clean
sand. For colony use the houses rest directly on the
ground and instead of constant cleaning are simply
moved to a new location from time to time. The top
ventilator affords an outlet for the warm air in the
upper part, this method of construction maintaining a
constant circulation through the house even when there
is no breeze at all. If to be used as a movable house,
it will be necessary to brace it well, as there are no
boards on the sides to help to stiffen the frame, and it
will quickly become racked out of shape unless thorough-
ly braced at all corners.

For use in the extreme south, where protection from
extreme heat is the principal object sought, the house
illustrated in Fig. 77, has been found very satisfac-
tory. This house was designed by J. T. Gratigny of
Southern Florida and is the result of many years’ ex-
perience in poultry keeping in that semi-tropical climate.
The walls of the house consist exclusively of one-inch
mesh netting and are about four feet high at the eaves.
The nests are placed on the ground under the eaves and
are entered by the hens from the house, while the eggs
are gathered fromythe outside. The particular house
here shown is portable and for that reason has no floor.
For permanent houses concrete floors are recommended.
The perches are placed on horizontal frames located on
each side of the house, with a four-foot passageway
through the center. Perches are about three feet above
the floor and the frames are hinged at back to swing up
out of the way when droppings are to be cleaned out.

AN OPEN FRONT LAYING HOUSE
This Type of House is Quite Popular in Sections Where
Winters Are Not Too Severe. Front is

Always Open.
The house shown in Figs. 90 and 91 represents one

method of open-front construction. No curtains of any
sort are provided for this house as regularly planned, the

-Houses of similar wide-open con-
struction can be used to excellent ad-
vantage as colony houses for grow-
ing stock in all parts of the south.
The buildings usually provided for
this purpose are almost invariably
too close and warm. After settled
weather chickens undoubtedly will do
much better if given open-air condi-
tions such as are afforded by this
house. :

As here illustrated it is used for

a laying flock, the nests being placed
on the outside of the building and at-
tached to it by means of stout hooks.
The fowls reach the nests through

FIG. 89—LARGE LAYING HOUSE IN MORRISTOWN (TENN.) DISTRICT

Curtains usually are closed only in extremely cold weather but, as in
the case with the house illustrated above, they may be partially drawn in
warm weather to provide shade.

50 POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

cet

ae “GB ose

FIG. 97—A POPULAR OPEN-FRONT HOUSE

low front and shape of roof being depended upon to keep
rain and snow from beating in. For a small house, where
the owner wishes to be free from the necessity of adjust-
ing curtains to meet changing weather conditions, and
with small-combed fowls, this plan gives good results. It
is being used successfully even in comparatively cold cli-
mates. The following description of this house is by the
originator, Jos. Tolman:

“This fresh-air house is a very simple one to con-
struct, as will be seen by noting the photographic view
and plans. It is a plain hip-roofed building with the long
pitch of the roof to the front or south. The roof and
closed sides are of one-inch boards, shingled, making tight
walls and roof. The eaves are about four feet from the
ground and the peak of the roof is a little over seven feet.
The house is eight feet wide by 14 feet long, and has a
window in the center of the west side and a door in the
center of the east side, directly opposite the window. In
operating this house in summer, both the door and
window are removed and replaced with wire netting. The
south front is always open, being closed in by one-inch
wire netting only. This part of the house is where it differs
from other fresh-air plans. The house is run wide open in
front both night and day, storm and sunshine, all the year
around. A gate is provided in this wire front to give the
birds access to the yard.

“For those who are using the Tolman house in ex-
ceptionally bleak, cold locations, I recommend the use of
a coarse, unbleached muslin curtain immediately in front
of the roosts. The location of the roosts in my improved
houses gives an excellent opportunity to place this -cur-
tain in front of the same so that it can be operated con-
veniently, thus insuring the best results in the coldest
climate in America. The muslin curtain should be loosely
tacked upon a light wooden frame, the frame being hung
with hinges from the front roof directly in front of the
ends of the two side roosts and should extend no lower
than the droppings board. During the day when not in
use, the curtain can be fastened up to the roof out of the
way by means of a wooden button, conveniently placed.
If, on the last visit to the house at night, the attendant
thinks that the temperature is going to be many degrees
below zero, the curtain may be dropped. My advice is
never to use the curtain except in the most extreme cold
weather, when the temperature is zero or below. I prefer
to place the curtain in front of the roosts rather than in
the front part of the house, for if used as I advise, more
animal heat is retained and practically the same amount
of fresh air reaches the birds, owing to the arrangement
of the roosts and droppings board and the position of the
curtain or muslin screen.

MATERIAL FOR HOUSE 8x14 FEET

300 sq. ft. hemlock boarding.
40 lin. ft. of 2x4 joists.
157 lin. ft. of 2x3 joists.
1 window, 7x8-inch glass.

Window frame for same.
% M. shingles to be laid 5 in. for roof.
% M. shingles laid 6 in. for sides.

“From observations I have made I am sure that the
most practical and economical house will be one about
half as large again, or I would have my dimensions 14
feet wide, by 21 feet deep, with six-foot posts on the north
end, 414-foot posts on the south end, and a large window
in the west side. The highest part of the roof would be
about 10 feet from the ground. You would then have a
house, ideal for all kinds of weather and locations, that
would accommodate from 65 to 80 layers, according to
the breed, and from four to five males, and at a very
small additional cost over the figures given for the 8x1l4-
foot house.”

SMALL HOUSE WITH SEMI-MONITOR ROOF

Lower Front of This House is Always Left Open.
Sunlight Reaches Rear Part Through
Upper Windows.

The semi-monitor roof house is meeting with some
degree of popularity and appears to be practical and de-
sirable under certain conditions. The purpose of this
type of construction is to secure improved ventilation and
to get direct sunlight in the back part of the house. It
would appear to be especially fitted for use in houses 20

FIG. 91—PLANS FOR OPEN-FRONT POULTRY HOUSE

1—Floor plan, showing location of platform, nests, etc.
2—Hast end, showing location of door and_studs; 3—West
end, with position of window and studs. For construction
of front, see illustration reproduced from photo of house
as it appears in actual use (Fig. 90)

LAYING HOUSES TO MEET SPECIAL CONDITIONS 51

ways N3a0>

ws a FE] 4 s 6

cack’.

FIG. 92—SIDE-SECTION OF SEMI-MONITOR POULTRY HOUSE

feet or more in width, also in the south where high roofs
are not objectionable.

In the north semi-monitor houses are open to criti-
cism, as they are almost always drafty in cold weather,
and it frequently is necessary to put up muslin screens
in front of the perches to protect the fowls while on the
roost. In wide houses it sometimes is desirable also
to divide the house through the middle with a muslin
partition to prevent drafts on the floor. Figures 92
and 93 illustrate a house of this type, which is described
by the designer, Dr. P. T. Woods, as follows:

“The plans given herewith are for an open-air house
10 feet wide by fourteen feet deep. A 10x14-foot house
will accommodate 35 layers and may be used satisfac-
torily for smaller flocks of from 12 to 25 breeders. The
plans are for a colony house, but same may be consid-

ered as the first sections of a continuous house, 1f
desired.
“Fig. 92 shows side (sectional) elevation. Position

of posts, studs, plates and rafters is clearly shown. Dotted
lines show position of window in the west wall. Door
placed between two highest studs in east
wall, with bottom just below top of sill
to break joint and stop draft. Door
opens outward and hinges on the north
side. A screen door of one-inch mesh
hexagon netting should be made to
Open in, just inside solid door. This is
useful in summer or at any time when
it is desired to have door, open. It will
be noted that the south front is boarded
down six inches from the top and up
18 inches from the bottom. The bal-
ance of space is always open, being covy-
ered only by one-quarter-inch square-
mesh galvanized wire netting. The act-
ual opening in front is two and one-
half feet high by about 10 feet wide.
X is a 12-inch board notched to receive
rafters, and is nailed to upright studs
to serve the double purpose of a sup-
port for front rafters and as a stop draft.
XX is litter board, extending from floor
level to four to six inches above sill,
and should be used to keep litter in
rear section of house. It should be
made removable, resting in cleats. The
front section of the house should have

sand or earth floor only. In the rear
section use clean, new straw litter.
This house may be made with sand
or gravel floor filled in to top of sill,
but we would prefer a cement or con-
crete floor (rat proof) to bottom of
sill and filled in with sand and litter
to top of sill.

“Where ground is level house
stands with bottom of sills on posts
or rock six inches above ground level
and is boarded down to ground.
Height at peak is 8 ft.; at back, 5 ft.;
at north end of front section, 5 ft.
6 in. and at front, 4 ft. 6 in.—all
measurements from ground.

ROOSTS
8 8

DROP BOARD

A house built after the foregoing
plans is Fig. 93. To
make it ratproof it was built with a
double-boarded floor and was placed
on posts, protected with inverted
shown.” The following is the bill of ma-
terials for this house:

shown in

metal pans, as

7

posts 7
pieces
pieces
pieces
pieces
pieces
pieces
pieces

ft. long to cut in two.

4x4 in., 14 ft. long for side sills.

4x4 in. . long for end sills.

2x3 in. . 8 in. long for back

2x3 in. 5 ft. long for studs.

2x3 in. 5 ft. 8 in. long for

2x3 in. 6 ft. 4 in. long for

2x3 in. 4 ft. long for studs.

pieces 2x3 in. 3 ft. 4 in. long for studs.

pieces 2x3 in. 10 ft. long for plates.

pieces 2x3 in. 10 ft. long for droppings boards supports.

pieces 2x3 in. 10 ft. long, with rounded edges, for roosts.

pieces 2x4 in. 8 ft. 9 in. long for rear rafters. |

pieces 2x4 in. 6 ft. long for front rafters.

sq. ft. matched boards for droppings board and door.

sq. ft. common boards for sides and roof. :

full window (2 sash six-light) 4 ft. 3 im. x 2 ft. 6 in.

three-light cellar window sash for monitor top. ‘

running feet of %-inch, square-mesh, heavy galvanized
wire netting, 30 in. wide for open front.

500 sq. ft. best roofing fabric with caps and nails.

Bundle shingles for making eaves on north and south sides.

Nails, hinges, spikes, screws, etc.

studs.

studs.
studs.

>
Do
WHODMNTINNWARNWNHWRNND

=
i)

This plan may readily be adapted to a house of
larger size by making the following changes: For a col-
ony house to accommodate a flock of about 100 hens,

or for sections of the same capacity in a continuous

FIG. 98—SMALL SEMI-MONITOR POULTRY HOUSE

on

2 POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

house, it is recommended that the
floor dimensions be 20x20 feet, with
the rear section 12 feet deep. The
rear should ‘be 5% feet high, and the
front of the monitor section 9 feet.

The low section should be 6 feet
where it joins the monitor section,
and 4% feet in the front. Four 6-

light sashes should be provided for
the monitor top. Two sashes of the
same size are placed side by side in
the west wall—opposite the door—

and another is placed well up in the
front section, on the east side near
the door. A solid partition reaching
from floor to roof is placed in the
middle of the pen and extending to
within 9 ft. 6 in. of the front, from
which point an 18-inch partition ex-
tends clear to the front. This partition is to protect the
fowls from drafts while on the perches and on the floor.
If a continuous house is built it is recommended that
solid partitions be provided between pens.

The house

SEMI-MONITOR HOUSE AT OHIO EXP. STATION
Large Houses of This Type Must Have the Front
Enclosed With Glass and Muslin for Use
in Cold Weather.

By W. J. BUSS

This house is 24x100 feet in size. It is divided into
six pens, each 15x24 feet, and a feed room, 10x24 feet.
The feed room is located in the center of the house. Par-
titions of matched sheathing divide the feed room from
the pens. Partitions of two-inch mesh poultry netting
are used to divide the pens.

A concrete foundation wall is used under the house.
A tile drain was laid.in the outside bottom of the trench
dug for the wall. No wooden sills are used on the con-
crete wall. The studs are fastened to the wall by means
of an iron pin placed in the bottom of each and in the
concrete wall.

No artificial floors are used in the pens. A concrete
floor is used in the feed room. On ground that is not

illustrated
of the Ohio Experiment Station and is recommended by the Station as adapted
to Ohio conditions
are protected by muslin
also all those in the upper front, are equipped with glass sashes—not all in
place at time photo was taken.

FIG. 95—A SIX-PEN SEMI-MONITOR LAYING HOUSE

above is in successful use on the poultry _ plant

openings in the lower front

generally. The narrower :
The larger openings,

shutters in severe weather.

well drainéd, artificial floors would probably be needed
to prevent the pens from becoming damp.

The deeper openings shown in the front of the house
in Fig. 95 are fitted with windows for cold weather use;
the shallower ones, with curtains. The curtain frames
are made of 1x4-inch strips, nailed together at the cor-
ners. These frames are covered with a very thin grade of
Two doors in the rear of each pen near the
eaves are not shown in the illustrations. These are 20
inches high and 45 inches long. All windows and cur-
tained openings and openings for the doors in the rear
of the house are closed with one-inch mesh wire netting.
This netting in one of the curtained openings in each
pen is fastened to a removable frame, which makes a
convenient place through which to put straw into the
pens and remove the litter. :

muslin.

The windows in the upper part of the house are
hinged at the bottom to swing in. The curtains and win-
dows in the front of the house are hinged at the top to
swing in. The doors in the rear wall of the house are
hinged at the top to swing out. Probably a more con-
venient arrangement for these would be to hang them to
swing in.

The walls of the house are of a single thickness of
matched siding. The roof is made by laying one thick-
ness of matched sheathing on the rafters and covering

this with one of the better grades of

prepared composition roofs, of which
a number are on the market.

A house of this type, of a size to
accommodate the desired number of
fowls, should prove satisfactory in
places having the same latitude as
Ohio, and probably even farther north
or south. This house has been found
especially satisfactory during hot
weather. In colder climates the win-
dows in the upper part of the house
could probably well be double-glazed
to prevent radiation to a considerable
extent. It might appear, at first
sight, that the cost of construction of
a house of this type would be greater
than of a shed roof house of the
same dimensions. It will be found,
however, that there will be very lit-
tle, if any, difference in the cost,

FIG. 94—ELEVATED POULTRY

HOUSE AT MISSOURI STATE
EXPERIMENT STATION

when both houses are built of the

POULTRY 5
same grade of material.

LAYING HOUSES TO MEET SPECIAL CONDITIONS 53

LAYING HOUSE WITH ELEVATED FLOOR
‘Houses With Floors Several Feet Above Ground Are
Especially Well Adapted to Damp Locations

Under many conditions, especially in flat, damp loca-
‘tions, a house with an elevated floor is often desired. The
house illustrated in Fig. 94 is one that has been in use at

tthe Missouri State Poultry Experiment Stat, and is

highly recommended. The general details of this house

will be readily understood from a short study of the illus-

tration. It is 14x28 feet and has a capacity of over 100
hens. The upper part is equipped with the slatted ventil-
ators that were originated at this station. The lower story
is five feet high, making it easy to work in. A substantial
concrete foundation is provided, but the underpart has a
‘dirt floor. The entire front underneath is open and in the
coldest weather that may be expected at this station the
fowls are comfortable and happy, wallowing in the dust
and soaking .in the sunshine. Regarding this house, Dr.
Patterson, formerly Director of the Station, writes:

“We find the second story of this house to be drier
than our one-story houses. The opening for the stairway
which goes up on the inside of the house is under the
droppings board, and as carbon dioxide is heavier than
air, it gives an opportunity for it to pass out by going
down through this opening. The lower story affords what
we might term semi-outside conditions. The temperature
and air are about the same as out of doors, but the birds
are protected from the storm.

“Where a number of hens are kept in one flock and
more than one male is used, the fertility is much better
with the two-story house, for there is always a boss in
the flock, and as he cannot be upstairs and down at the
same time, he cannot control the situation as he does in
the one-story house. The contractors who have built our
houses estimate that the cost of the two-story house will
be the same as the one-story house with a concrete floor.

“We find that with windows under the droppings
board in the rear of the house, light is admitted to all parts
of the floor, and as the hens usually scratch from the light
in order to see their food, they keep the litter evenly dis-
tributed over the floor. We also find that the fowls like
to be in a good light during bad days when they are con-
fined to the house.”

WESTERN WASHINGTON POULTRY HOUSE

Popular for Housing Large Flocks in the Northwest.
Has Special Labor-Saving Attachment for Raising
and Lowering Curtains.

By GEO. R. SHOUP
The plans show a house 20x50 which is designed to
hold 300 Leghorn layers. Each bird has only 3% sq. ft.

of floor space, but each also has 1000 sq. ft. to roam

around in, and is far happier and more contented and will
lay more eggs than though she had five sq. ft., as in a
house 8x12 with 20 birds.

Walls.—In this climate double-wall construction is

not necessary, and it is best to avoid it whenever possible.
The double wall offers a convenient harbor for rats and

mice as well as mites. Since the double wall is an expen-
sive luxury, we advise doing away with the studding (the
up-and-down 2x4’s) entirely. To accomplish this we run
the boards up and down. Along the top of the sill a 2x2
strip is spiked on top of the sills all the way around and
34 of an inch from the outside edge. To this strip the
boards are nailed, at the bottom, just flush with outside of
the sill and resting on it. We insist that rear windows
under the dropping boards are essential for the proper
distribution of light so that the litter will not pile up.
So-in cutting boards for the rear wall, cut some of them
the required length to cover the top of the window sash
one inch.

The inside of wall is then covered with a strip of
light-weight asphalt paper. This paper is brought up
two inches above the rear wall so that it can be cleated
onto the ceiling or sheathing boards. This makes a per-
fectly smooth inside wall which is both mite and wind-
proof. The surfaced side of the lumber, which preferably
is dry 10-inch shiplap, is turned outside so that it can
readily be painted. The dropping boards and windows
cover the rest of the rear wall below the strip of asphalt
paper on the inside, except the 12 to 15 inches between the
windows, which should be whitewashed. The minimum
height of rear wall should be 5 feet 4 inches, made by
cutting a 16-foot board into three pieces. It should not

be over 6 feet in any instance, as the roof of the roosting
closet will be too far above the roosting birds to reflect

Sz

Sane s
lee SRF
ss Se a
awe ae era

i mt

|
i Hi

FIG. 96—DIAGRAM OF FRONT, AND CURTAIN RAISING DEVICE FOR WEST. WASHINGTON LAYING HOUSE

This illustration is reproduced from Western Washington Monthly Bulletin.

It shows front of house for commer-

cial laying flock, and method of adjusting curtain. See text for key to lettering. Complete plans on next page.

54 POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

their own heat, which is essential for their comfort in
cold weather.

Run the boards up and down in the two ends also,
with the smooth side out, covering all the inside with
Leave a three-foot opening for a door

asphalt paper.

and the rear 2x6 inches 14-foot long with a 3-foot eave
in front and a 1-foot eave in the rear. This 3-foot eave
in front gives a sightly appearance to the coop and af-
fords the necessary protection to the opening with its
curtain and the feed trough, which is required in this
particularly rainy climate. We use an-

18-inch eave over the gable ends with
a 6-inch face board. This protects the
ends, and especially the doors, so that
they don’t swell up and refuse to latch

The comb of the roof is 10 feet from

Wisler pine

(in tuchastolks AL Uh pol
wdtack g \olhefewesluod

Zh
aod rack

=
Deus! Bothy

the floor. Use 10-inch shiplap for the
sheathing boards. Shingles make the
most durable roof, but require an enorm-
ous amount of labor and time to lay and
are not as warm as the prepared roofing.
The cost, exclusive of labor, is about
the same.

Use 1x6-in. x 16-ft. for rafter collar
beams, bringing them down as low as

is consistent with ample head room.
These act as girds and really hold the
building together.

The Floor—If cement is used, use one
and one-half inches of a 1-3-5 mixture
for the base and one-half inch of a 1-1_

mixture for the top. If boards, use 2x4

joists, supported every 5 feet on 4x4
sills, made of 2x4’s spiked together. No.

T

Siash teitgh —

es

3, 4-inch flooring gives a satisfactory

Fron? Elevation

Jol

chicken coop floor.
Dusting Bath—Reserve 18 inches of

the entire length of the front.floor area
of.the coop for a dusting bath. This
bath should be on the original soil, not
on the floor of the coop. It should be

| |

!
|
~—

[ee eS ea st Se es ate)

Pear Elevation:

‘ Jv é ¢r7eem
Perio tos ran RAE :
Tinige a tii) jai Gusts
file fuvogrite

Ns eet

heal rlafar,

BE a

Qperote
cortown

2" Ceaar posts -| tur cand’;
for foornda

Lod Elevation: & Cross Be ctiory
“Commercial Poultry House:
Western Washington Experiment O1atrors> -

Peigyalletps

FIG. 97—PLANS FOR BUILDING THE WESTERN WASHINGTON POULTRY
HOUSE FOR COMMERCIAL FLOCKS

House as here planned is to be built with a board floor, but a concrete
floor is recommended wherever possible to provide it. The house for which
this plan was originally prepared was to be equipped with trap-nests, but
regular platform nests may be used instead. Note the incline at each end
of the house leading up to door, which is 16 inches above ground level. Note,
also, manner of constructing dust bath, shown in cross section at lower
right-hand corner. Reproduced from West. Washington Monthly Bulletin.

at least 18 inches below the top of the
12-inch board retaining the litter. If on
top of the real ground it will stay moist
and give more satisfaction to the birds,
and besides will not need replenishing
nearly so often. If too near the top of
the litter board the birds will hop out
with several pounds of dirt on their
feathers and immediately shake it off on
the nice clean litter. This dust bath is
placed where the sun strikes it and
makes the ideal location for all the
water and milk receptacles, which are set
in racks directly over it.

The rolling curtain illustrated in Fig,
96 can be either raised or lowered in
a few seconds, and can easily be hand-
led in one curtain 6 feet wide and 20
feet long by one winding of the crank
at the end. When not in use it is rolled
up at least a foot above the opening
under the eave and is kept perfectly
clean and dry and ready for instant use
whenever needed. The anchor ropes L
and K wind up as the curtain comes

6 feet 6 inches high. The front wall is seven feet high.
It consists of one 12-inch board at the bottom, a 4-foot
opening the entire length, and two 12-inch boards cleated
together one above the other at the top. The 7-inch
rafter notches are cut in the top board every 3 feet to
correspond with the rear notches.

Roof.—The front rafters are 2x6 inches 12-foot long

down, and lock it at any height the operator chooses.
The guard rails J placed at intervals of about 20 feet
prevent the curtain sagging out when a door of the coop
is opened, and an outward pressure of air is created.
The roller is built up of 2-inch half rounds, which are
nailed firmly together, enclosing the bottom of the cur-
tain. This roller can be made any desired length simply

é
A
4

LAYING HOUSES TO MEET SPECIAL CONDITIONS 55

by breaking joints. The hoisting de-
vice may be described as one main
line rope (wire preferred) which is
attached to the loose ends of a series

of loops. One end of each of these
loops is anchored to the building
above the top of the curtain, Figs.
D, F and E. The loop is then
brought down under the roller and
run through a small iron awning pul-
ley, which has been fastened securely
to the overhanging eave close to the |
place where the end of the loop is } ao
anchored. The loose ends of loops
are then tied to the main line, adjust-
ing them so that they all lift at the
same time when the main line is
tightened. The loop nearest the
crank D, B, N, H, has to be carried
back on the main line far enough so
that the knot H does not block the
pulley M when the main line is wound up in raising the
curtain. This necessitates the use of the extra pulley N.
All other loops are duplicates of G, C, F, and are placed
at intervals of 15 feet when a 2-inch roller is used and
at every 10 feet when a smaller roller is used.

é

CANADIAN FARM POULTRY HOUSE
Houses Built After This Plan Are in Use in Nearly

Every Province in Canada and Give Excellent
Satisfaction.

By PROF. F. C. ELFORD

This house holds one hundred hens. It is 16x32 feet
and is divided into two pens, each 16 feet square. The
house has given satisfactory results on the experimental
farms’ system for several years. It has been used in
every province in the Dominion and may be built with
a single roof or with double roof and straw loft. At Ot-
tawa the straw loft house has been drier but colder than
the shed roof house. There has been absolutely no mois-
ture in the litter or adhering to the walls of this house.
Both houses are built without drop. boards, the roosts be-
ing fastened to the wall and the nests are contained in a
cabinet along the outside walls. No trenches are dug for
the foundations, as the concrete slab which serves as both
foundation and floor is laid directly upon the ground, the
top being from 10 to 15 inches above the surrounding
level. (See page 14 for method of constructing a con-
erete slab floor.—Ed.)

The walls consist of two by four studding, resting on

Ridge Board

2x4 Rafters
Roof one quarter pitc

~Grode

Footing ror. (1055 Jection

FIG. 98—CROSS SECTION OF CONCRETE COMPART-
MENT HOUSE

Courtesy of Alpha Portland Cement Co.

]
‘
2

Pre ee Ee ;

FIG. 99—-CANADIAN FARMER’S POULTRY HOUSE
This house is a little above the average in cost, but in Canada, where
the winters are long and severe, it pays to make the laying flock comforta-
ble—in fact, is essential to good egg production at that season.
Dominion Experiment Farms, Ottawa, Canada.

Photo from

a two by four sill, and supporting a plate of two 2x4’s.
These studs are covered outside with only one ply of
tarred paper and one inch tongue-and-groove boarding,
or one-inch boards and battens. On inside, behind and
around the ends of the roosts, the studding is covered
first with tarred paper, then with one inch tongue-and-
groove boarding. Inside partitions are covered with wire
mesh to within 2%4 feet of floor, rest of partition one
inch boarding. The rafters are two by fours covered with
one inch sheeting and ready roofing, or, if preferred,
tarred paper and good cedar shingles, laid 4% inches to
the weather. Windows are built between studs as shown,
and fitted with frames for glass, or cotton where indicated.
All sashes to be hinged to swing in. Outside of all win-
dow openings is covered with one inch wire mesh.

LIST OF MATERIAL REQUIRED FOR FARM POULTRY

HOUSE WITH GABLE ROOF AND STRAW LOFT

Studs, 2 inch x 4 inch—262% lin, feet_......
Plate, 2 pes. 32 feet x 2 irich x 4 inch—64 :
Sill, 2 pes. 32 feet x 2-inch x 4-inch—6é4 lin. ft.
Sill, 2 pes. 16 feet x 2-inch x 4-inch—32 lin. ft.
Rafters, 24 pes. 10 feet x 2 inch x4 inch—340 lin. ft.
Floor (T & G) 512 sq. ft. (plus 10%) =

Roof boards, 680 sq. ft. -
Shingles, 680 sq. ft.

One roll building paper.
Wall boarding (T & G) 800 sq. ft. (plus 10%).-..-...---..-..----- 880
Ceiling joists, 17 pes. 16 ft. x 2 in. x 4 jn.—272 lin. ft....187
Ceiling boards, 68 pes. 32 ft. x 1 in. x 3 in.—2176 lin. ft..384
2 windows 5 ft. x 5ft. and frames, cotton, and wire mesh.

2 windows 3% ft. x 5ft. and frames, cotton, and wire mesh.
4 windows 3 ft. x 5 ft. and frames, glass and wire mesh.
2 windows 3ft. x 3% ft. and frames, glass only.

2 doors 2 ft. 9 in. x 6 ft.

2 louvered windows 2 ft. x 2% ft. ;

Paint (3 coats), hardware (hinges, nails, etc.)

FOR TWO-INCH CONCRETE FLOOR
5 bbls. cement.

1% cu. yds. sand.
2% yds. gravel.

A CONCRETE POULTRY HOUSE

Practical Plans for Concrete Compartment House.
and Comfortable if Properly Constructed.

Dry

Conerete is coming more and more into use for all
kinds of farm buildings, and many concrete poultry houses
have been built, giving good satisfaction as a rule. Con-
crete walls are inclined to be damp, especially in wet
weather, and some objection has been made to the use of
this material on that account. However, dampness is
largely a matter of ventilation, and cement manufacturers
insist that if this is properly attended to there will be no
difficulty. .

A concrete house with an alleyway, that can be built
in any length and that is designed to serve either as a
breeding house or laying house, is shown in Figs. 98 and

56 POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

100. This plan is furnished by the Alpha Portland Cement
Co. and will readily be understood in its general details
without a lengthy description. The floor should be laid
ot one part of cement to two parts of sand and three of
stone or gravel. The wall mixture is given as 1:2%4:4.
The proportions suggested for the floor seem to indicate
that considerable stress is expected to be borne, which, of
course, is seldom the case. It is probable, therefore, that
a mixture of 1:21%4:4 will answer just as well for the floor.
The plan here given calls for a four-inch wall, but a six-
inch wall is recommended in general practice. This house
as here illustrated provides four pens, each 11 feet x 12
feet 3 inches. The outside dimensions are 16x45 feet. In
a general way the interior is similar to that shown in
the six-pen breeding house, shown in Figs. 107 and 109-
113. The passageway partition, however, is somewhat
different, as it is intended that all feed hoppers, troughs,
water vessels, etc., shall be placed in the passageway, the
fowls having access to them through slats placed in the
partition under the nests. In the plan the passageway
is three feet wide, but we would suggest that this be
changed to four feet. A three-foot passageway obstructed
by feed hoppers, water vessels, etc., will be found ex-
tremely inconvenient. Four feet is none too wide for the
purpose, the extra width being secured by making the
house a foot wider or by taking it off of the pens.

It will be noted that above the nests the partition is
to be of solid cement plaster on metal lath. This is an ex-
cellent feature and it will be a further improvement if the
partitions betwen ihe pens are all of similar construction
for the first six feet back from the door, thus giving the
fowls a three-sided roosting closet which will protect

them from any air currents while on the perches. As
will be seen in the cross-section, this house is provided
with collar beams, on a level with the front plate and it
will be an easy matter to provide a straw loft, covering
the beams with narrow boards and filling in the space
between them and the ridge with straw. If the floor of
this house is properly constructed, it should be dry and
warm, but the straw loft will greatly assist in keeping
the house comfortable in severe weather. The perch sup-
ports, of course, are to be hinged at the back to swing
up out of the way when the platform is being cleaned.

Straw Poultry Houses

On farms where small grains are extensively grown
and where the straw has little cash value, one of the least
expensive poultry houses that can be built is a straw
house. When properly built such a house will be found
comfortable and healthful for the fowls and can be made
convenient for the caretaker as well.

Straw houses are seldom damp, and they are always
warm in winter and cool in summer. The supporting
frame should be substantial, as it has to carry a heavy
weight, and the straw roof must be carefully built in order
to insure its being rain-proof. In building straw sheds or
houses it is especially important to pack the straw by
persistent tramping as the walls are built up, otherwise
the straw will settle and separate along the line where
walls and top meet. If the inside of the house is lined
with poultry netting, this will prevent the fowls from
picking and scratching the straw from the walls, which
they are certain to do if no protection is provided. Avoid
trouble with mites by keeping perches away from walls.

shingles =

musi drop curtoin
inside =|

Cement Ploster

on Netol Latk

Jouth Elevation

P-0 si G—o

Passage

= 3
Zo«w.to 2o4so a
30 Wide
Feed Hoppers, Water Grt_ Chascool Ftc
et ees Se ee | P

Seo al
ia | i 1
‘poe Ee a

: > 4 R " Wa Hn a i! Ww
3 fit & Continuous Dropping | Board l 2 yh UN rowing MEH Boxes aden ee ore) eS
q ry " 4 eas
q i i @
‘ \ IL ne
9 i bd = I
x!
S F § §
Sai : = S 8 -——-- 4+
Pen S Per Wo « 123" = Per ox 2s" BS Pen Won 23"
: 3 :
a Q
: : :
> > =
a) y,
op on
Window -1° mesh. Joly glozed Josh So+é 0 Window 1 sesh, galv glozed Sash 30» é'0
+ == =e —— i

i Sara
| aR oy

FIG. 100—PLANS FOR COMPARTMENT HOUSE BUILT OF CONCRETE

“veo the

Geshe coed Ba 9 ea

Comfortable Houses for Breeding Pens

Why Houses for Breeding Pens Should Be Especially Designed—Plans for Low-Cost Buildings Accommodating,One
and Two Small Flocks—Comfortable Houses that Can Be Built to Provide for Any Desired Number of Pens—
Breeding Houses for Cold and Moderate Climates—Plans Designed to Save Time and Labor of
Attendant and to Provide Most Favorable Conditions for Fowls.

HE chief requirements of breeding houses, as com-
pared with laying houses, are that the former
should be more warmly constructed, and they
usually are smaller in size, as it seldom is desir-
able to keep breeding fowls in large flocks. Breeding
pens generally are allowed more floor space than would
be given to the same number of fowls in regular laying
flocks. For this reason there is comparatively little
bodily heat available for warming their house or pen,
and this must be offset by warmer construction. Where
several pens are to be kept in a compartment house, a
passageway along the rear usually is provided, in order
to economize time and avoid disturbing the fowls un-
duly in regular daily care.

EATS
NARS
NNN

ONE-PEN BREEDING HOUSE
Convenient House for Small Breeding Pen.
With Elevated Dust Box.

By F. W. CARMEN

Equipped

For a breeding house for one small _ pen,
the one illustrated in Fig. 101 is practical and con-
venient. Note especially the arrangement for a sunny
dust box, which will be greatly enjoyed by the fowls
in winter when it is impossible for them to get outdoors.
With breeding stock it is espec.ally necessary to take all
practical steps to insure the comfort of the fowls, if fer-
tile, strongly vitalized eggs are to be produced in the win-
ter months.

The house is 14 feet long. 10 feet wide, seven feet
high in front and six feet in the rear, with shed roof. It
may be built singly, or two or more in a row. The frame
is made of 2x4 hemlock, and the siding, drop. boards, etc.
are of N. C. pine, eight inches wide. The back, sides and
roof are covered with tarred paper, and the roof has an
extra covering of roofing paper. Give —

into two equal parts, top and bottom. each part being
8x3 feet. A curtain three feet square is used for the
upper half and is hinged on the outside.

This curtain is very useful on stormy days when the
wind blows hard. The roost platform is two feet from
the ground and is four feet wide and seven feet long. To
make the platform, we batten six pieces of eight-inch
boards together and board up where the end of the roost
comes, allowing the boards on the end to go two inches
below the roost platform so the platform has a cleat to
slide on, and in that way it is an easy matter to remove
and clean. Make the roost poles of 2x3 material and
round the upper edges. Secure them at the ends by patent
brackets, or notch out a block and nail on each side of
them to fit in. They are placed six inches above the plat-
form, the rear one being 14 inches away from the back of
the building, and the front one 18 inches from the back
one. 5 P

This house will take about 600 square feet of boards,
15 wall strips 14 feet long, six rolls of tar paper and three
rolls of roofing paper, besides one hot bed sash 3x6 and
four pairs of hinges, nails, etc.

SMALL TWO-PEN BREEDING HOUSE
The House Used in Connecticut Egg Laying Contest.
Accommodates Two Breeding Flocks of 12 to
16 Fowls Each.

By ROY E. JONES and LESLIE E. CARD *

Frequently the back-yard poultryman who is sys-
tematically breeding, either for exhibition quality or to
establish a high egg-laying strain, needs a convenient
house for two or more small pens. For this purpose the
house used in the International Egg-Laying Contest at

the floor a good layer of sand and then
put about six inches of hay or straw
on that. In the front of the building,
on the west side, 18 inches above the
floor, is a dust box three feet wide, six
feet long and eight inches deep. Eigh-
teen inches of this box projects beyond

Two SECTION)
DooR EACH

Mot BEO Sasn
S¥t + 6rr

4 viasts

Guass 7-9

the front of the building, and when the
sash is in position the whole thing
forms a sort of bay window. You will be
surprised to see how the chickens enjoy
a dust bath in this window. Under the
part that comes in the building build —
six nest boxes about 12x14 inches. Over
the dust box (with the top hinged to —
the building and the bottom resting-on
the outer edge of the box) is a hot bed
sash 3x6 feet. This sash can be raised
in warm weather, and with a cover over
it for a sunshade, it is a fine, cool place
for biddy. The door to the pen is in the
front near the east side and is divided

DRINK PAN

DOOR To NEAT PEM

DUST BATH BCA Srteert
Brcre> Deer

on BRArwers

FY TO SLIDE IN on

2 TURE EASY TOPEMOVE TCL {

GNEST UNDER Dust BATH

FIG. 101I—PLANS FOR BUILDING

*- ROOST BOARDED cn
END © OFEN IM TROMT

1
“Two Ste*Door |
OPEMinG to YARD

i OUTLET FoR
~ FOWLS 10r 120m
4

ONE-PEN

BREEDING HOUSE

58 POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

the droppings boards at one end and the win-
dow at the other. The feeding rack, which
supplies both pens, is made of slats so that
all filth may fall through to the floor. A
large enough opening is left above to admit a
drinking pan which supplies both pens. The
feeding rack also supports a mash hopper in
each pen. Small removable boxes for grit,
shell and charcoal are fastened to the parti-
tion above the feeding rack and within easy
reach. The rear half of the partition between
the pens is boarded up solid, while the front
half is boarded for only two feet. from the

floor, or to the level of the curtain sill in
front, the upper part being made of two-inch
mesh wire netting. The house is being used
with a dirt floor, but is so constructed that a

board floor may be put in if it is found
desirable.

FIG. 102—CROSS SECTION OF TWO-PEN

the Connecticut (Storrs) Experiment Station is especially
desirable.

This house is 12x12 feet, 6 feet high at the eaves and
8 feet 4 inches at the peak. It is divided through the mid-
dle in order to accommodate two pens. With the partition
removed’ it would afford sufficient capacity for 30 to 35
hens. For ordinary use, where it is not desired to trap-
nest, the back may be cut down at least a foot and the
roof made two-thirds instead of even span, thus reducing
the air space and making the house warmer. The house,
as shown, gives more head room for the attendant, and
this is important when birds are being trapnested and
many trips have.to be made to the back part of each pen.

Fig. 104 shows a general view of this house, indicating
size and location of doors and cloth curtains. The muslin
curtains are hinged at the top and swing in, being fastened
up by means of hooks made from thin strap iron. Fig. 102
is a cross section of the house. The windows slide toward
the front. The roosts and droppings boards are movable,
as are also the trapnests which are hung beneath the drop-
pings boards. The exit door for the hens slides up and
down and is held open by means of a piece of wire looped
over a nail in the door. The 2x3-inch girder across the
end of the house is placed in such a way as to support

feeding Rack
ALK ae

FIG. 103—FLOOR PLAN OF TWO-PEN BREEDING
HOUSE

Reproduced from Bul. 81, Storrs (Conn.) Exp. Station.

BREEDING HOUSE
Reproduced from Bulletin 81, Storrs (Conn.) Experiment Station.

Following is a bill of materials for this

house:
BILL OF MATERIALS

Skids—2 pieces, 4x6 in., 14 ft.

Studding—12 pieces, 2x3 in., 12 ft.

Rafters—5 pieces, 2x3 in., 14 ft.

Matched boards—700 feet, board measure,
Roofing paper—4 rools.

Windows—2 sash, each containing 6-10x12 in.
Unbleached muslin—3 yards, 36 in. wide.
Wire—25 feet 2 in. mesh, 36 in. wide.
Nails—10 lbs. 8d, 5 Ibs. 10d, 4 Ibs. 20d.
Hinges—4 loose-pin butts for curtains, 4 T-hinges for doors.
Locks or latches for doors.

*From Bulletin 81, Storrs (Conn.) Exp. Station.

lights.

FIG. 104A—PRACTICAL HOUSE FOR TWO SMALL
BREEDING PENS

Photo from Storrs (Conn.) Exp. Station.

THE MINNESOTA MODEL HOUSE
Especially Recommended for Breeding Flocks. Also is
An Excellent House for Regular Laying Flocks
Where Winters Are Severe.

By PROF. A. C. SMITH

This house is designed to meet the requirements of
the average Minnesota poultry keeper, particularly the
farmer, and it is believed that it does this to an unusual
extent. The four principal faults to be found with or-
dinary poultry houses, particularly as they apply to Min-
nesota conditions, are:

1. They are not well constructed, and consequently
are too cold in winter. Much better egg production might
be had during the winter months if the houses were more
comfortable.

2. They have a poor system of ventilation, if any.

COMFORTABLE HOUSES FOR BREEDING PENS 59

This results in the house being too damp or too cold.
In many houses no provision whatever is made for ven-
tilation, other than leaving the door open for a certain
length of time on a mild day, which in this climate very
often cools the house too much. Even when provision
for ventilation is made, it is often by a system that does
not give opportunity for sufficient regulation to meet
changes in the weather, as by hinged windows or muslin
frames, which must, from the nature of their construction,
be either closed, and supply insufficient ventilation, or
wide open, when frequently altogether too much cold air
enters and altogether too much heat escapes. For the
above reasons, particularly when south winds prevail dur-
ing cold weather, these hinged windows or curtains must
be closed. Through glass windows no moisture escapes,
and through muslin too little escapes, because it is too
closely woven. Houses with insufficient ventilation are
always damp, and the air they confine is impure. The
odor in such a house is always offensive, even if the
impure air is not a menace to health, which might be
questioned. Dampness is, beyond doubt, the greatest
menace to good health and good production in the poul-
try house.

3. Poor floors. Earthen floors, the top of which is
below the outside level, make the houses very damp and
uncomfortable. Wooden floors are hard and are often
very cold, unless covered with a deep litter of straw or
leaves—and even these should be on top of a three or
four-inch layer of fine sand. In the absence of sand or
loam, shavings probably make the best substitute.

4. There is no provision for separating the flock.
There are many seasons during the year when it is most
advantageous to separate the flock. In the fall there often
are many surplus cockerels, not ready for market, which
cannot be kept with the females except to the detriment
of both; for under such conditions the cockerels gain
very little weight, and the females being constantly an-
noyed, develop slowly and lay poorly. To get a good
return for food and care, the cockerels must be separated
from the females. If the hatches were early, the cock-
erels should be sold before it becomes necessary to house
them, because the price will be considerably higher than
later in the season, when the market is glutted with stock.

A two-pen house is advantageous in that the pullets
and hens of the flock may be separated. Pullets are sure
to be intimidated by the older birds, and do much better
when kept in separate flocks. In the spting, again, a
two-pen house is a distinct advantage, since the most
rugged and healthy specimens may be separated and used
exclusively as breeders. These may be allowed more
room per bird, fed differently, and provided with greater
range, while the balance of the flock is forced for eggs.
When these existing conditions are considered, it is be-
lieved that the following features of this plan will meet
the approval of poultry keepers in general:

The fundamental idea in ventilating a poultry house
is to expel the impure air as well as‘the excess of

FIG. 106—DETAIL OF VENTILATOR IN MINNESOTA
HOUSE

moisture, and to retain at the same time sufficient heat
to make the house comfortable; which last, in the coldest
weather, means all the heat that can be retained while
expelling excessive moisture and impure air. A simple
ventilating device adopted for this house places the con-
trol of the ventilation absolutely in the caretaker’s hands.
It is, however, recognized that all ventilation in a poultry
house must come from one direction—that is, drafts can-
not be tolerated.

By hanging the windows with weights and pulleys as
they are ordinarily hung in dwellings, a greater or lesser
volume of air—depending upon the will of the caretaker—
may be allowed to enter. This will be found equally ad-
vantageous in winter and summer, and makes it unneces-
sary to remove the sash, even in very hot weather, since
by raising the lower sash three or four inches and drop-
ping the upper to the level of the lower, good circulation
is established. The object in raising the lower sash no
more than three or four inches and lowering the upper to
the same level, is two-fold, but the main reason for so
doing is that the large opening, which is in this way pro-
vided at the upper section, permits a large volume of hot
air to escape. .A secondary reason is that, with the lower
sash no higher, the fowls cannot roost upon or soil the
windowsill, whereby just so much cleaning is eliminated.

During the winter it is convenient to drop the upper
sash a little through the day to let the dust and moisture
out. In the Minnesota Model Poultry House the ventila-
tion secured in this way might be called emergency ven-
tilation, or, perhaps, ventilation according to season, the
constant ventilation or the ventilation depended upon dur-
ing winter, coming chiefly through openings above the
windows. These openings may be covered or not, and in
two ways: on one side of the inside frame is hinged a
burlap-covered frame, while on the other a solid wooden
door is hinged. Obviously the caretaker has three options:
He may leave the opening entirely uncovered—as he cer-
tainly should during warm weather and upon an occa-

SS TeONT ELEVATION —

CROSS SECTION
FIG. 105—FRONT ELEVATION AND CROSS SECTION OF MINNESOTA MODEL POULTRY HOUSE

Reproduced from Minuesota Farm Inst. Annual No. 27.

60 POWLTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

povele P7aF sz

7 advised, on account of its naturainess.

‘CANVAS COVERED

and comfort. Fill in at bottom with
three inches of coarse gravel or small
stones; then four inches of finer
gravel, covering with a little clay,

and roll or tramp hard. This wiil

*o ZANVAS DOR
m

make a good cleaning-line. Next
cover with four inches of fine sand
or dry loam, or a mixture of both.
This last layer should be cleaned out
every summer and replaced by a

fresh, clean supply. The layer of

sand has a fertilizing value after it

7 ‘8 Feed Trough Swings Out ae f
Dery ‘ Fr

has been in the house for a year. If
it is sifted when put in, it makes a
suitable top-dressing for lawns or
> hay-fields.

Floor Leve/

sionally mild day in midwinter, particularly if the building
has for any cause become damp, as will be the case if
frost accumulates on the walls and vaporizes so rapidly
that the air will not hold the moisture and the litter be-
comes damp from the drip—a situation which may be
avoided by opening both the wooden door and the burlap
frame. Secondly, the caretaker may close the opening
with the burlap frame. This is the method of securing
ventilation during cold weather. The coarse meshes of
the burlap do not clog with dust as the finer meshes of
cotton do, and they allow the moisture to escape, while
retaining considerable heat and preventing a draft. In
ordinary winter weather, during the day, ventilation
should be obtained through this burlap, while on very cold
nights the wooden door should close the opening. Clearly,
it is not necessary to treat all three openings alike at the
same time, since one only, or two, may be opened.

A cement foundation wall is best and most desirable
for three reasons: First, it is most durable; second, it
gives better support to the frame than posts or pillars;
third, almost every poultry-keeper in these days is famil-
iar with simple cement construction. The wall should be
one foot thick at base and eight inches at the top, and
should be fifteen inches above the ground-level. This
construction allows the door to swing over the litter,
which is a convenience.

When there is a supply of gravel or sand on the farm,
or this material can be obtained without too great ex-
pense, a floor of gravel and sand or gravel and loam is

. 107—DETAIL OF PEN FRONT IN SIX-PEN BREEDING HOUSE

Nail matched boards, running up
and down, to outside of frame. Paint
at once with two coats to avoid
shrinkage. If a warmer house is desired, cover the walls
with double-ply tarred paper, in one or two layers, as de-
sired. If a still warmer, better-looking, or more expen-
sive house is desired cover this with shingles or siding.

When the wall consists of but one thickness of
boards, this house may be built at as little cost as it is
possible to construct a comfortable and durable poultry
house. On the other hand, when the wall consists of two
thicknesses of boards with one or more thicknesses of
building paper—or, better still, two thicknesses of double-
ply tarred paper between the boards, the house becomes
not only very warm and comfortable, but an attractive
farm building; and if kept in repair and painted, will so
remain indefinitely. Furthermore, this evolution from a
single wall to one with double thickness of boards, be-
tween which is a double layer of paper, may take place
at the time of building, or it may progress as gradually as
the owner decides.

For the roof, matched boards and good, heavy roofing
paper will be found entirely satisfactory. Because a great
deal of heat may escape otherwise, the roof should be
tightly built; hence matched boards are necessary with
either shingles or roofing paper. It is folly carefully to
build a warm and tight wall to hold the heat, and then
cover the building with a loosely constructed roof which
will certainly allow the heat to escape, making the house
colder by several degrees. Other specifications, dimen-
sions, etc., will be found on the accompanying plan. (See
Figs. 105, 106, and 108.)

16°-O%

— FLOOR PLAN -

FIG.

6° Der
VERTICAL -

46—o-

= eeinneh SeitlaNesonitopne =

108—FLOOR PLAN AND END ELEVATION OF MINNESOTA MODEL POULTRY HOUSE

Reproduced from Minnesota Farm. Inst. Annual No. 27.

LE Eel

LIST OF

MATERIALS FOR

COMFORTABLE HOUSES

MINNESOTA MODEL
POULTRY HOUSE

FOR BREEDING PENS 61

Silly eee ee oe 6 pes. 2x4, 16 ft. long. «x

Studding— nN

Rear wall ...... 3 pes. 2x4, 12 ft. long. Cut to oe fits ~!

Hinds: -28225 000 pe. 2x4, 14 ft. long. Cut one § ft., one 6 ft. Oy
. 2x4, 14 ft. long. Cut one 8 ft., one 6 ft. a

. 2x4,12 ft. long. Cut one 8 ft., one 4 ft. ‘

.2x4,16 ft. long. Cut 7 ft. 8 in.

. 2x4,12ft.long. Cut 3 ft. 6 in. “K* :

. 2x4,16 ft. long. Front and rear. : ‘

s between '

sill and plate— ' !

Rear wall........ 3 pes. 2x4, 12 ft. long. ' KR

Es , 2x4, 16 ft. long. = nN

| 2x4) 12 ft. long. cy) Hy

. 2x4, 20 ft. long. au i

. 2x6, 18 ft. long. ) | :

Bae . 2x6,10 ft. long. Ripped to 2x3. i 1 :

atform support— ; Oe eS TY ee aes ey h

Cross pieces....1 pe. 2x4,16 ft. long. Cut 4 ft. u ss alt by 2
Verti’l posts....1 pe. 2x4,12ft.long. Cut 3 ft. SS Stk rE fic ; b= eee
Verti’l posts....1 pe. 2x4, 16 ft. long. Gracd2 Fe SEetG

Nest supports....1 pe.
Water stand....... 2 pes.

2x4, 12 ft. long.
2x4, 16 ft. long.

Matched Boards

FIG. 111—CROSS SECTION OF SIX-PEN BREEDING HOUSE

Wooden door may be made from a 15-inch board, in
which case it would be advisable to put cleats on back to
prevent warping. Matched stock bound by cleats may be

Rear .... pes. 6 in. D & M bds,, 12 ft.

Ends . pes. 6 in. D & M bds., 14 ft.

Front pes. 6 in. D & M bds,, 16 ft.

ROOL-- E pes. 6 in. D & M bds., 16 ft.

IRartition =---: .20 pes. 6 in. D & M bds., 14 ft.

Roosting platform -18 pes. 6 in..D & M bds., 16 ft.

Nest platform .. . 8 pes. 6 in. D & M bds., 16 ft.

Top of nests ... ‘5 pes: 6 int D & iM bds:, 12 ft:

Finish Lumber

4 pes. 1x4 pine No. 1 com. S28, 16 ft. Roof.

4 pes. 1x8 pine No. 1 com. S2S, 16 ft. Cornice.

2 pes. 1x2 pine No. 1 com. 82S, 16 ft. To hold ends of
roof paper.

1 pe. 1x4 pine No. 1 com. S2S, 12 ft. Rear corner.

1 pe. 1x5 pine No. 1 com. S2S, 14 ft. Rear corner.

1 pe. 1x4 pine No. 1 com. S28, 16 ft. Front corner.

1 pe. 1x5 pine No. 1 com. S28, 16 ft. Front corner.

1 pe. 1x4 pine No. 1 com. S2S, 18 ft. Door finish.

1 pe. 1x6 pine No. 1 com. S2S, 16 ft. Door cleats.

1 pe. 1x4 pine No. 1 com. S2S, 16 ft. Part. door cleat.

1 pe. 1x4 pine No. 1 com. S2S, 16 ft. Finish on Part. door.

2 pes. 1x4 pine, 82S. Cleats for roosting and nest Plat.

2 pes. 1x4 pine, 18 ft. For finish on upper open windows.

3 pes. 1x4, 10 ft. For inside box on upper window.

3 pes. %x4, 10 ft. For inside box on upper window.

1 pe. 1x15, 10 ft. Equipment for small upper doors.

1 pe. 1x12, 4 ft. For lower sliding doors.

Roof Sheathed with

ZN Sheothing

used.

Fittings—3 windows 10x12, 12 light, 1% inch sash
glazed; 3 window frames 10x12, 12 light, % inch casings,
Al aur 1 door frame, 2 ft. by 8 in. by 6 ft. 8 in., 1% in.
oak sill.

Roofing—6 squares of roofing (rubberoid or equal) for
roof. 7 squares of double-ply tarred paper or other of
equal quality and thickness if wall is to be covered.

Hardware—6 |b. 20d wire spikes; 20 lbs. 8d common wire
nails; 2 lbs. 8d finishing nails; 10%x10 in. bolts, with two
washers each to fasten sills to foundation; 2 pairs 6-inch
heavy T hinges (galvanized); 3 pairs 6-inch hooks and eyes;
1 6-inch hinge, hasp and staple: 1 padlock; 2 pairs 3-inch
heavy hinges; 2 4-inch hooks and eyes.

Material for Foundation
6 bbls. Portland cement; 4 yards sand.

end Sheathing

Covered with Prepared Roofing with Lopped Joints

xx Muslin Covered Frames 6'-6" x3'-6"
Hinged ot Top in Robbeted Fremes

ou rs i] a

ee ee Sc

x Sashes en Thick 10"x% 1/2" Gloss

a

TO" x TZ = inl =

10" x72"

<= nings for Fow/s~—
Openings for psra

S=-Openinss for Faxls

tht ------------- (2 OX
,
1

1 6"x 6" Foundation Posts vt
ar |

ee a oO ees
to go below Frost va

Ss -25- 2S-/ fe SS Se

FIG. 109—PART OF FRONT ELEVATION OF SIX-PEN BREEDING HOUSE

.._.___ Studaline on North Side —— a =

eno Ends 2'-o"

c-c.

—Frame 96'-6" —

All Gates (H)

#

Made Hir Sar i
ee per Diawngs BES, sie

AT
All Fartitions (T)

Te be covered #8 Roof with

6" Blind Matching.

| 3’ Riser, Boaras. 3'-0"!
f 8y

Fe-titions

igh, with 2©Mesh Hexa-
gon Wire Fortitions

Extending from Top to

Roof = |

- Frame I6- 0" —-

Leng" a os 5-9". ee 2

~ FIG. 110—FLOOR PLAN OF SIX-PEN BREEDING HOUSE WITH REAR PASSAGEWAY

62 POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

FIG. 112—DETAIL OF FEED TROUGH AND WATER VESSEL IN
BREEDING HOUSE

The feed trough, hinged at bottom,
passageway, in Fig. 1.

and fowls in pen have full access to contents.

cross section of trough when open for filling.

CONVENIENT EIGHT-PEN BREEDING HOUSE
Just Right for a Number of Single Pens. Passageway
Simplifies Care of Flocks and Avoids Dis-
turbing the Fowls.

Poultrymen, as a rule, do not now favor laying houses
with a passageway in the rear, and there are a number
of practical objections to this feature. Under some condi-
tions, however, and especially when a number of small
breeding pens are to be provided for, such passageways are
quite convenient. The plan shown herewith has proved
especially satisfactory.

This house may be built any length, but as here out-
lined is 96 feet 6 inches long and 16 feet wide, with a
three-foot alleyway. There are eight pens, each with a
capacity of 25 to 35 hens in laying flocks and about half
this number if the birds are to be used as breeders. Board
floor and post foundation are indicated, but a concrete
foundation and floor will be found to be much cheaper in
the long run, as well as more sanitary and durable, also
rat-proof. If a board floor is decided upon it should be
made double, as shown in Fig. 14, on page 16, especi-
ally where winters are cold.

All walls are ceiled with 34-inch beaded
ceiling, but no ceiling is provided overhead,
though this is recommended for extreme cli-
mates. The roof is supported on a 4x4-inch
girder resting on 2x4-inch studs that form
part of the alleyway partition. One by six-
inch tie pieces are run from the rear wall to
the alleyway studs, as in Fig. 111, and no
other tying or bracing is required.

In order to protect the combs of valuable
breeders, a roosting closet is provided in each
pen. Canvas partitions extend from the drop-
pings boards to the roof and the alley parti-
tion back of the perches also is canvas, the
lower part being made in the form of a shut-
ter so that the platform may be cleaned from
the alley. In front of the perches a muslin-
covered shutter is provided (see Fig. 111)
which can be lowered after the fowls have

is shown open for filling from the
A cross section of open trough is shown in Fig. 2.
When feed is placed in trough and closed it is in position shown in Fig. 3,
Door giving access to water
vessel is also shown in Fig. 1, while Fig. 5 shows door closed. Fig.

gone to roost. When enclosed in this
roosting closet there is practically no
danger of combs and wattles being
injured by freezing, no matter how
cold it may get. As ventilation is
generally inadequate under such con-
ditions, however, the front curtain
should only be let down in the sever-
est weather.

In order to prevent drafts through
the house, alternate cross-partitions
are ceiled from floor to roof. The
other cross-partitions are boarded up
tight to a height of three feet from
the floor and covered with two-inch
mesh netting from that point to the
roof.

For the breeding per, trap-nests
should be used. Full details of differ-
ent styles of such nests are given in
Chapter X.

Fig. 110 shows the floor plan of
this house, with arrangements of par-
titions, droppings platforms, perches,
etc., clearly indicated.

4 shows

Fig. 109 gives front elevation,
showing windows, muslin shutters, yards, doors, etc.
wee 111 is a cross section of the house, ee par-

ey
. aa x

DOPE

FIG. 113—FRAMING iis OF BREEDING HOUSE

tition, nests, and a cross-section of the roosting closet.
Note that the outside doors of the house are double
boarded,. inside boards being placed diagonally and outside
boards perpendicularly. Fig. 107 gives a section of the
pen front or inside elevation of pen, showing partition
doors, wire partition, canvas doors in front of perches
and solid canvas partition from perches to roof.

(i TTT NBEMMDE papel at
1

4 i

ta HtH

F2ARLIOTY TI

Nefe: All parfifiars like 7his & of the, pick
ih ne ae 13 ExCeL? every otherone which tt

FIG. 114—-PARTITION IN BREEDING HOUSE FOR MILD CLIMATES
Reproduced from Farmers’ Bulletin 574, U. S. Department

of Agriculture.

COMFORTABLE HOUSES FOR BREEDING PENS

BILL OF MATERIALS FOR BREEDING HOUSE
Size Length No, of
wee Inches’ Feet Pieces Remarks

Sills, sides .... 4x6 10 20
Sills, sides . 2x4 10 20
Sills, end 4x6 16 2
Joists .... 2x6 16 50
Girder 4x6 16 6
Plates ... 2x4 10 40
Studs, front 2x4 12 28 1 piece cuts 2
Studs, back - 2x4 14 25 1 piece cuts 2
Studs, ends .. 2x4 16 7 1 piece cuts 2
Studs, partitions . 2x4 16 35 1 piece cuts 2
Short studs and misc.... 2x4 10 20
Ridge plate - 10 10
Ridge ==. 10 10
Rafters 14 50
Rafters ... 10 25 1 piece cuts 2
Rafter ties 2 12 9 1 piece cuts 2
Support for drop. plat; 2x4 14 8
Perches 2 12 8
Roof boards = ab, 2000 bd. meas. Surfaced
T & G siding. ales 1650 bd. meas.
Subfloor ....... yn EK: 1700 bd. meas.
Matched flrg., top fl....%x4 2000 bd. meas.
Matched flrg. for drop.

plat., doors, etc......... Imx4 300 bd. meas.
Beaded ceiling for walls

ceilings & partitions 3-16x4 4300 bd. meas.
Barge boards .... 250 lin. feet. Surfaced
Sills for windows, 150 lin. feet. Surfaced
Frame for windows and

doors .. 350 lin. feet. Surfaced
Weather s 170 lin. feet. Surfaced
Trim lumber . 500 lin. feet. Surfaced
Frames fo

shutter, perch Baie

ters, perch supports”

and misc. 600 lin. feet. Surfaced
Nest doors ; 60 lin. feet. Surfaced
Partition door frame... 25 lin. feet. Surfaced
Partition door frame... 1x3 150 lin. feet. Surfaced
Furring for bridging.... 1x2 500 lin. feet.

Galvanized doors, wire staples and wood triggers for forty
nests.

squares of prepared roofing.

squares of waterproof sheathing paper for the floor.
eheck rail windows, 12-light, 10x12-inch glass.

sq. ft. of 2-inch mesh poultry netting for partitions, ete.
sq. ft. of 1-inch mesh netting for windows and open front.
sq. ft. of muslin for shutters and perch curtains.

sq. ft. of canvas for alley and end partitions.

pr. 8-inch T-trap hinges, outside doors.

6-inch hasps.

pr. 3-inch hinges for partition doors. :
doz. pr. 2%-inch butt hinges for muslin shutters, canvas
doors and nest doors.

2-inch screw hooks and eyes.

pr. 4-inch strap hinges for perch supports.

-pr. 2-inch butt hinges for windows.

doz. sash bolts.

feet chain for sash adjusters.

Nails, tacks, paint, ete.

H
We DI00005g, IGOR nD

is]

63

MATERIAL FOR FORTY TRAP-NESTS
Sides and bottoms ...... ... Rx4 230 bd. meas. Surfaced
Top rails of partition -- x2 50 lin. feet. Surfaced
Top rails of ends..... 7ax1Y% 50 lin. feet. Surfaced
Bottom rails of e x3 50 lin. feet. Surfaced
Side rails of ends x2 50 lin. feet. Surfaced
Bx 80 lin. feet. Surfaced
Bx2% 50 lin. feet. Surfaced

Galvanized irdén doors, wire staples, and triggers.

MATERIALS FOR FOUNDATION AND FLOOR

If a concrete foundation and floor are preferred, the fol-
lowing materials will be required, the joists, girders and
flooring as specified in the lumber bills, being omitted.

sacks of Portland cement,

cu. ft. of sand.

cu. ft. of gravel or stone.

ecu. ft. of gravel or broken stone for drainage and in-
sulation.

BREEDING HOUSE FOR MILD CLIMATES
Used On Government Poultry Farm Near Washington,
D. C. Suitable for Laying Flocks Where Win-
ters Are Not Too Severe.

By HARRY M. LAMON

(The experimental farm of the Bureau of Animal In-
dustry, U. S. Department of Agriculture, is located at
Beltsville, a short distance out of Washington, D. C.
Here a liberal tract of land has been set aside for experi-
mental work with poultry, under the capable direction of
Harry M. Lamon, head of the Poultry Division. The
house here illustrated and described has been in success-
ful use on this farm for several years and also has served
as a model for general use in other parts of the country.
While the original house is used for breeding pens, the
plan is well adapted to the requirements of laying flocks,
simply changing width of pens to accommodate flocks of
desired size —Ed.)

This house, known as the “long breeding house,” is
180 feet long, 18 feet deep, and is divided into pens nine
feet wide. At one end there is a two-story. building, 20
feet by 36 feet. The first floor contains an office room
and bins for feed. The upper floor has sleeping quarters
for the men and rooms for storage, Un-
derneath is an incubator cellar of the

=

6
ee

:

same dimensions.

The equipment of this poultry house
extremely simple. The droppings

one-half feet from the floor, and the
roosts are about fifteen inches from the

4
:
re

H

}

is

boards are on the north side, two and
wall and eight inches from the drop-
pings boards. The roosts are on hinges
and are very convenient to handle when
the droppings boards are to be cleaned.
Then there is a pen next to the roosts,
four feet ten inches deep and three feet
_wide, for breaking up broody hens. The
nests are placed under the droppings
boards, are portable and can easily be
removed for cleaning and when it is
necessary to replenish the nesting ma-
material, which, by the way, is attended
to often. Great care is taken to clean
the nest thoroughly, should an egg be-
come broken in any of them, as soon as
the broken egg is discovered. The nest
is a great harboring place for mites if

Berfifiorm

“
4
x
N
2x2 Daftar
Babove eer
Me eae
f
SR Y]
Seer
=e pwates,
[tapes orm rr —=

FIG. 115—FLOOR PLAN OF ONE COMPARTMENT IN BREEDING HOUSE
Reproduced from Farmers’ Bulletin 574, U. S. Dept, of Agriculture.

it becomes dirty and filthy.

There is a platform two feet by two
feet in size and two feet from the floor,
for holding the drinking dish. Each

beer of cach end af fowse

eorsess Sacra!

FIG.

pen contains a V-shaped trough for feeding wet mash
or other feeds, a hopper on the south wall for the
dry mash feed, and about four to six inches of dry straw
is kept on the floor. It is intended to put a concrete floor
in this house, but up to the present time a dirt floor is
being used. There are frames covered with muslin on the
inside of the open front, to be let down in
stormy weather, and yards 18 feet by 200 feet.
Division fences are boarded 30 inches high from
the ground with five-foot poultry-proof wire
fencing above. It will be noted that this arrange-
ment of yards allows each pen the use of a yard
at least every other day, as the pens are 9x18.
The following bill of materials for this house
is taken from Farmers’ Bulletin No. 574, also
the plans shown in Figs. 114, 115, 116 and 118.

BILL OF MATERIALS

No. of Length
Pieces Feet

Board
Measure

Use Size
Inches

Sillis|2— -2x4 30 12 240 ft.
Plates (d 44 12 352 ft.
Ties for 30 16 220 ft
Rafters -...- 56 14 784 ft
Rafters 56 10 560 ft
Studs 38 12 304 ft
Studs (fro 28 8 150 ft
Roosts 36 8 144 ft.
Sheathing surfa s . for roof. ........2860 ft:

Matched flooring for walls, partitions,
droppings board 3200 ft.
Boards planed both sides for nests...................-.-.-.----- 22300 ft:

340 running feet of 1x3-inch furring for curtain frames.

300 sq. ft. of %-inch megh wire netting for front.

300 sq. ft. 2-inch mesh wire netting for partitions.

350 sq. ft. of muslin cloth for curtains. A
8 outside doors.

Prepared roofing paper to cover 2700 sq. fits
Hardware (hinges, nails, staples, etc.)

116—CROSS SECTION OF BREEDING HOUSE FOR MILD CLIMATES
Reproduced from Farmers’ Bul. 574, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture.

FIG.
Reproduced from Farmers’ Bulletin 574, U. S. Department

POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

A BUILDING BLOCK HOUSE
Block Houses Are Especially Suitable
for Breeding Pens in Cold Climates.
Concrete Blocks Can Be Sub-
stituted for Tile.

Poultry houses constructed of build-
ing blocks are particularly desirable,
though somewhat expensive for ordi-
nary use. The dead-air space between
inner and outer walls, which is pro-
duced by the hollow blocks, makes the
hcuse warm in winter and cool in sum-
mer, and if properly ventilated it always
will be dry. Block houses are easily
kept clean and sanitary and afford few
harboring places for mites or lice.
Nothing but the high cost of building,
this way prevents the use of tile blocks
in poultry houses of all kinds. When
carelessly constructed such houses are not particularly
pleasing in appearance, but with careful workmanship
they can be made quite attractive, as is the case in the
house illustrated in Fig. 117, which is ane of the poultry
buildings at Iowa State College.

This house is built of tile blocks, but concrete blocks

S wre vetting

ia a

TTT

fame!
HE

E
8

118—FRONT ELEVATION OF BREEDING HOUSE

of Agriculture.

can be used where the former are not available. It is
14x100 feet with a plain shed roof and is divided into five
pens 14x20 feet each, providing comfortably for a breed-
ing flock from about 40 to 50 hens. If single pems are
preferred instead of flock matings, temporary partitions
can be used, thus affording accommodations for ten

breeding flocks of 15 to 20 fowls.

x The house is built with a concrete
floor, and the general interior ar-
rangement is similar to that shown
in other houses in this chapter.

Ventilation is provided by special-
ly constructed windows consisting of
narrow sashes arranged in sets of
four—three sets for each 20-foot pen.
These sashes are balanced on dowel
pins turning in holes in the sides of
the window casing, and are connected
by means of a chain so that by rais-
ing and lowering the chain, each set
of sashes can be adjusted to uniform

FIG. 117—BUILDING BLOCK HOUSE AT IOWA STATE COLLEGE

position at a single operation, thus
providing any degree of ventilation.

a

eT

CREA Ph BE Re Wil

Portable Colony and Brooder Houses

The Convenience and Economy of Suitable Portable Houses for Use Either With Adult Fiocks, Growing Stock, or
Brooder Chicks— How to Secure Substantial, Low-Cost Construction— Plans for Houses Adapted for Use
Either in Brooding Chicks or for Laying and Breeding Pens—How to Build Houses in Sections
for Easy Moving—Practical Piano-Box Houses, Etc.

HERE are few poultry plants or farms that do not
need at least some portable houses. The uses to
which they can be put are so numerous that they
seldom stand idle for any length of time. While

it usually is not practical to keep laying flocks in such
houses, owing to the small size of the flocks that can be
accommodated, they often can be profitably used for that
purpose. They also make ideal quarters for small breed-
ing flocks and are indispensable for brooding chicks, re-
gardless of the method of brooding practiced. After the
chicks no longer need artificial heat, the house may be
hauled to outlying fields and the growing stock given the
complete liberty that is so essential to normal growth
and development.

The principal features to keep in mind in building any
sort of portable house are that there must be sufficient
head room to make the work of caring for the houses
convenient; the houses must not be too large to be moved
by available means; and, as a rule, they should be provided
with double floors, or carefully braced, so that they will
not be racked in hauling them about. Moving, especially
over uneven ground, puts a severe strain on such struc-
tures and they will quickly be pulled apart unless well
built.

The material used for sills or runner-sills should be
of the most durable timber available; chestnut and cedar
are good. White oak, if well seasoned, may be used, but
adds to the weight. Throughout the house, light-weight
lumber should be used as far as possible. A house built
of oak or similar hard wood will weigh a great deal more
than one built of white pine. It is not advisable to try to
cut down weight by using thin boards or small framing
timbers. Such material will not hold up Jong in a house
that is to be moved frequently. Regular 7%-inch boards
and 2x4 joists and studs are essential to durability. Where
these houses are to be used for laying flocks it is conven-
ient to have the nests on the outside of the building, thus
increasing the floor space. Such nests must be carefully
built, however, and should be located on the side least
exposed to storms, as it is difficult to prevent rain and
snow from blowing in. Small, shallow houses necessarily
bring the fowls up close to the front when on perches, and
special provision must be made to protect them from
drafts if open fronts are to be used. With houses of the

~shed-roof type, such as the colony house shown in Fig. 124,

it is practicable to make the window half glass and half
muslin shutter, placing the latter above and opening it
when necessary to secure proper ventilation, but leaving
the glass sash in place except in warm weather.

For moving portable houses a couple of hooks, simi
lar to the one illustrated in Fig. 123, attached to a stout
chain 10 or 12 feet long, are most convenient. Make the
hook of 54 or 34-inch iron, with the nook part about four
inches long, and pointing forward a little, rather than with
a square or right-angled turn. If this is done it will not be
so liable to slip out of the hole in the runner under a
heavy strain. In England, where portable houses are ex-
tensively used, small wheels are often employed in place
of runners.

A GABLE ROOF PORTABLE HOUSE

Will Accommodate Twenty-Five to Thirty Hens, or May
Be Used for Lamp-Heated and Colony Hovers.

The house illustrated in Figs. 119, 120, 121, and 122
was designed at the Pennsylvania Agricultural College and
has been in use there for some years. It offers a practical
solution of the problem of building a house that will meet
the requirements of both brooding and laying house. It
is about as large as can be moved by one team, requires a
minimum of lumber for the floor space enclosed and gives
plenty of head room without high walls. If the house is
to be used for a colony hover the front window at the end
opposite the door can be omitted, but where lamp-heated

FIG. 119—A GABLE ROOF PORTABLE HOUSE

hovers are to be used, as illustrated in Fig. 121, the orig-
inal arrangement is better, as it gives more even distribu-
tion of light. ;

This house is regularly built with flooring boards o1
car siding for the sides and with a double floor, as shown
in Fig. 14. Rafters are provided in the bill of material,
but the original houses were built without rafters, the root
boards being run up and down and nailed securely to.
gether at the ridges, which construction is firm enough for
all practical purposes.

Fig. 122 shows floor plan as arranged for winter use
of the laying or breeding flock. The floor is laid on 3x6
inch chestnut runners, with four 2x4-inch joists mortised
into the top of the sills and firmly spiked. Fig. 121 shows
a@ cross section with lamp-heated hover installed. Three
such hovers can be accommodated in one of these houses,
temporary partitions being placed between them, to be
removed when the chicks are ready to go on perches. This
house provides excellent quarters for a colony hover flock,
the hover being placed back within about two feet of the
end wall. Fig. 120 is a cross section with perches and plat-
form installed. Fig. 119 shows the completed house on the
range. For summer ventilation a small louvered opening

66 POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

j ;

jeseascccn ess s¢ am

RAS Lod Las GO Sal UE sal Rel VET EERE. MULE Re BSMELEELEELenuanarsunniand
SS SN OES IEE LE, I ERS

FIG. 120—CROSS SECTION OF GABLE ROOF HOUSE
WITH PERCHES AND NESTS

(not shown in plan) should be provided in each gable. If
built of white pine or similar light-weight lumber, a two-
horse team will readily haul this house anywhere on rea-
sonably level ground. The sills are rounded off .at each
end, runner-fashion, and suitably bored for attaching
hooks or chain to hitch to.

BILL OF MATERIALS FOR PORTABLE HOUSE
Length No. of

Size

Use Inches Peet Pieces IGREER AG

14 2

8 6 =

12 2 a

10 10

10 5 1 piece cuts 2

12 2 1 piece cuts 2
1

Support for drop. plat..
Sheathing boards for
subfloor, roof, nests
and partitions _....... %x10 300 ft. bd. meas. Surfaced.
Matched flooring
floors and drop-
pings platform
Furring
Window sills

415 ft. bd. meas.
125 lin. ft. Surfaced.
8 lin. ft. Surfaced.

Windows
Hinged At

Bottom
Swing /r

(8 Partition

d Papen .
Matched Flooring

FIG.

121—CROSS SECTION OF GABLE ROOF HOUSE
WITH BROODING HOVER

MATERIAL FOR NESTS

Door 5 1 Surfaced
Front base . 5 1 Surfaced
Bottom ...... Yx12 5 1 Surfaced
Rear base x4 5 1 Surfaced
Top strips 10 1 Surfaced
Upright _. 6 1 Surfaced
Brackets ... 8 1 Surfaced

1% rolls of prepared roofing.
100 sq. ft. sheathing paper.
2 6-light window sashes, 10x12-inch glass.
sq. ft. muslin.
23 sq. ft. 1-inch mesh poultry netting for windows, ete.
1 pair 8-inch strap hinges for outside door.
1 6-inch hasp.
3 pairs 2-inch hinges for windows and shutters.
1 pair 4-inch strap hinges for perch supports.
1 pair 3-inch strap hinges for nests.
4 hooks and eyes.
2 chain sash adjusters.
Nails, tacks, paint, etc.

Food Hoppers

FIG. 122—FLOOR PLAN OF GABLE ROOF HOUSE

SLED RUNNER COLONY HOUSE

Being Eleven Feet Deep and Only Seven Feet Wide, the
Rear is Comfortable and Always Free
From Drafts.

By J. W. PARKS

We have been for a number of years working on a
colony house that would not only answer the purpose of
raising the chicks, but one that we could fix up at very
small cost for winter use. Furthermore, we wanted a
house that we could change from a summer to a winter
house with a very small expenditure of time, because
when one has a great many houses to care for, things
must be pretty convenient, as time is one of the most im-
portant considerations. These features our colony houses
have.

These houses are 7 feet wide and 11 feet deep, 7 feet
high in front and 5% at back. We like these narrow,
deep houses much better than houses more nearly square,
as they hold the heat better in winter, and fowls, when
on the perches, are further away from
the open front.

In constructing this house three sled-
runners are provided for the back, mid-
dle and front. As our houses are to be

used on land sloping to the east, we & Sy iron
make the front runner 8 inches high,

the middle one 6 inches, and the back 4" Hooks
one 4 inches, which helps to take care

of the slope without -having to block up

the house, and avoids having the litter apie

all work toward the front. Next we cut Hee Ss
2x4’s, as long as we intend the house to ESS

be deep, placing one at each side and

one in the middle, notching the runner, so that the 2x4’s
rest level with the top of the runners. In this way we
get a level surface on which to lay the first floor, which
must be of tongue-and-groove lumber. Over this sub-

PORTABLE COLONY AND BROODER HOUSES 67

floor lay some old papers and*then a second floor of
boards. We find these double floors very helpful in
keeping the house warm in cold weather.

Next, the frame is set up and the corner boards
nailed on, and then we finish boarding up, using matched
lumber so as to have tight joints. There must be no
drafts in these coops. These houses can be built at com-

FIG. 124—SLED RUNNER COLONY HOUSE
Photo from J. W. Parks.

paratively moderate cost and may be used either for
adult fowls, for indoor brooders or hovers, or can be ar-
ranged for cold brooders when the chicks are no longer
in need of artificial heat. We have two muslin sashes to
fit into the windows or openings, which we use in winter.
The bottom sash is put in permanently and the top one
slides up and down. For ordinary winter weather we
leave the top sash down, but when it is extremely cold we
generally have the top sash half-way up, leaving a por-
tion still open. However, the matter of ventilation de-
pends upon the number of fowls in the house.

-We have a sort of a bale hook that we hook under
the house back of the 2x4 on the side, and then attach
the other end to a singletree, and the team readily moves
it to any desirable location. In the summertime we move
these houses not less than twice a month, even if it is
only the length of the house, as that gives the chicks
new pasture and prevents killing the grass under the
house.

It may be of interest to describe the cold hovers that
we use in these houses. Each house is equipped with two
roost poles, 2x3 inches, with rounded edges, for adult
fowls. When the house is to be used for chicks we rest
these poles on temporary strips on each side of the wall,
placing them so that the poles will be about 6 inches
from the floor. The back pole is 8 inches from the rear
wall and the other about 1 foot in front of it. Over these
we tack empty burlap sacks, laying them across the poles
and letting them hang down, front and back, with the
ends about 2 inches above the floor. We place about an
inch of chaff on the floor and in cold weather often throw
a lot of chaff on top of the sacks to keep in the warmth.
If the chicks get to crowding under this hover they soon
are exposed to the cold either in front or back, and so

they quickly learn to spread out lengthwise. The first few
nights we place them under this hover until they learn
to perch on these, then we gradually raise them up higher.

SECTIONAL COLONY HOUSE
Built in Five Conveniently Handled Sections. Can Easily
Be Set Up or Taken Apart for Moving.

A poultry house built in sections, so that it may be
taken down for moving and readily reassembled in a new
location, often is desirable, especially for the use of per-
sons who do not own their own homes and who are com-
pelled to move more or less frequently. To meet this re-
quirement the Storrs (Conn.) Agricultural College has
designed the house illustrated in Figs. 125, 126, 127, and
128. The following description is given in a circular
issued by the Department of Extension Service of this
institution:

“Building in sections and putting together is a type
of construction which requires a minimum amount of
material and no extra labor. The demonstration house
here described was built by an amateur carpenter in fif-
teen hours’ time. The following bill of material
used:

was

Best roofers—200 ft., 14 ft. x 1x6 in. -...000.....
Sills and studs—4 pieces, 12 ft. x 2x3 in.
Furrowing—9 pieces, 12 ft. x 1x2 in. .
Window—1, 3-light 9x13 in. ................
Wire—8 feet 1-inch mesh, 2 feet wid
Unbleached sheeting—1 yard, 42 inches
Hinges—2 pairs, 4 inch T hinges .....

Hooks and eyes—15
Nails—5 Ibs., 6p .....
Nails—3 Ilbs., 8p .....
Screws—1 dozen, 1% inch
Roofing paper—% roll

Total cost

“The accompanying plans are somewhat different
from the ordinary house plan in that each section is
shown as. it appears when completed, lying outside down,
before putting together. The best boards should be

FIG. 125—FRONT OF SECTIONAL POULTRY HOUSE

From blue print furnished by Storrs (Conn.)
Agricultural College.

chosen for the side walls, which may be made tight by
painting. Do not neglect painting, as such lumber will
not stand the weather. Boards which are not perfectly
tight may be used for the roof, as it is covered with roof-
ing paper. The cloth curtain in front, which is 32x39 in-
ches, outside measurement, slides up and down outside

ia
ou
i
i]
'
{
Hel
1
|
1 |
Weel
er
od
oe

oacs

FIG. 126—EAST END OF SECTIONAL POULTRY HOUSE
From blue print furnished by Storrs (Conn.)
“ Agricultural College.

and may be fastened in any position with the hook, which
is turned into the top. The window on the end swings
out and may be held open at any angle by the button on
the casing. The droppings board, which is 6 feet long
and 21 inches wide, rests on cleats which are provided on
each end section. The feeding board for mash hopper
and water dish is 21 inches long and 16 inches wide, and
is located under the window. It is supported by the
droppings board on one end, and a brace running down
to the sill on the other. The nests are simply a long
box without partitions, 12 inches high, 12 inches wide, and
4 feet long, supported by a cleat on the brace under the
feeding platform on one end and a cleat on the back wall
on the other end. Hooks and eyes or screws are used
to fasten the corners of the house together and hold the
roof in place. Nails may be used if the house is not to
be taken apart and moved. No floor is provided as this is
not considered necessary under average conditions.

AN ATTRACTIVE PIANO BOX HOUSE
Made From Two Piano Boxes. Is Practical, Comfortable
and Inexpensive.
By HARRY B. PHIPPS

Inexpensive poultry houses may readily be made from
piano boxes. The substantial one shown in Fig. 132 is
a good example of a house of this type, and it can be

ee en:

FIG. 127—BACK OF SECTIONAL POULTRY HOUSE

From blue print furnished by Storrs (Conn.)
Agricultural College.

POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

FIG. 1283—WEST END OF SECTIONAL POULTRY HOUSE

From blue print furnished by Storrs
Agricultural College.

(Conn.) -

built with comparatively little work. It is made by re-
moving the backs and tops of two piano boxes and plac-
ing them together, back to back, on a substantial foun-
dation. F

Two pieces, 6 inches wide and 20 inches long, are
fastened to the top of both boxes, to give pitch to the
roof. The two boxes are to be fastened together with
upright strips, 4 inches wide and 4 feet 6 inches long. If
it is desired to make the house portable, use screws in-
stead of nails for the purpose. A door 4 feet 6 inches
high and 16 inches wide is cut out of the end of one of
the boxes and a yard door for the fowls near one corner.

Nail a 2 or 3-inch strip around the edge of the roof
to give a projection and then nail on the roof boards and
cover them with prepared roofing. The window in the

‘= als Leal oie -
Ge | 3 x3 y
| 5

is

’

. 5 Das?
bed
Lay

[0 a Te
6-6" ‘
FIG. 129—ROOF OF SECTIONAL POULTRY HOUSE

From blue print furnished by Storrs (Conn.)
Agricultural College.

'

PORTABLE COLONY AND BROODER HOUSES 69

ey

Fh eee.
sinile

FIG. 130—A LOW-COST PIANO BOX COOP

front of the building contains four 8x10-inch panes of
glass and there is a ventilating opening in the gable pro-
vided with an 8x10-inch pane, which slides in suitable
grooves, providing additional ventilation when required.
The bars across the window are made from old buggy
tires and are a desirable addition where there is danger
of the fowls being molested by thieves.

In this house the perch is located along the wall, op-
posite the window, and a suitable droppings board about
2 feet wide should be provided. The nests may be cheaply
made and may be suspended from the front edge to the
droppings board, which should be high enough to allow
the fowls the free use of the entire floor. There will be
sufficient lumber from the backs of the boxes to make
the droppings board, window cases and a little screen
over the exit door, etc. :

The only materials required in building this house,
aside from the two piano boxes, are the window glass,
roofing, one pair of hinges, one hasp and a little paint.

LOW COST PIANO BOX COOP

The house shown in Fig. 130 has a floor space of ap-
proximately 30 square feet and was made from a single
piano box. The back of the box forms the floor. The
front was removed and the sides filled in on the line of
the slope of the top part of the front, thus giving a plain
shed roof. The roof boards were nailed to battens and
hinged at the front so that the entire roof could be

FIG. 131—COMBINATION COOP AND YARD

raised for cleaning, etc. In the ordinary care of fowls,
access to the interior is secured through the 2%4x3-ft.
opening, which is protected with double screens, one cov-
ered with netting and the other with muslin.

COMBINED PORTABLE HOUSE AND RUN
An Easily-Moved Coop For a Small Flock of Confined
Fowls or Chicks.

The combined coop and run illustrated in Fig. 131
is one of several in successful use on an eastern back-
yard poultry plant. This house is only about 4 feet
square, but is expected to accommodate 12 fowls. While
this crowds them to an unusual extent the owner reports
good winter egg yields nothwithstanding this. As will
be seen, canvas is tacked to the north side of the run to
cut off the cold winds which come from this quarter, and
the house is provided with a hinged, muslin-covered
frame on the south side, which affords some light and

FIG. 182—AN ATTRACTIVE PIANO BOX POULTRY HOUSE

ventilation when closed, and which can be left open when
the weather is mild. In the early summer these houses
and runs are use for brood coops, the chicks being
transferred to them as soon as they
no longer need artificial heat,

The advantage of a house of this
sort is that it may readily be trans-
ferred, run and all, to new ground
When the pens are located on a good
grass sod they can be shifted every
few days to a new location, thus pro-
viding an abundance of green food
without allowing the fowls to remain
long enough in any one place to kill
out the grass. For a small flock it is
possible to build a house and outdoor
run in this way at lower cost, preb-
ably, than in any other way. The
floor of the house is about 2 ft. above
the ground, or on a level with the top
of the run. This provides a sheltered
space underneath, from which the
fowls reach the upper floor, where
perches and nests are located, by
means of an incline.

CHAPTER Va

Permanent Brooder Houses

Every Farm or Poultry Plant Where Early Hatched Chicks Are Raised Should Have a Permanent, Conveniently
Arranged Brooder House—Merits of Different Brooder Systems Briefly Compared—Plans for Practical Lamp-
Heated Hovers With or Without Auxiliary Heat—Hot Water Brooding Systems—

One and Two-Compartment Houses for Colony Hovers.

IL and coal-burning colony hovers, each one capa-

ble of brooding a single flock of several hundred
Wes chicks, have largely supplanted lamp-heated hov-
CM ers and hot-water pipe brooding systems in popu-
lar favor. They possess the important advantage of low
cost for installation and operation and adaptability to
use almost anywhere indoors, and they effect a great
saving in labor on account of the very large flocks they
are able to brood successfully. Nevertheless, it is well
to bear in mind the fact that there still are conditions
under which other methods of brooding will be found
desirable.

Where the chicks are to be raised in large numbers
and in moderate weather, colony hovers unquestionably
offer the most economical means now known for doing
this. Under ordinary circumstances, however, it is not
claimed that the chicks raised in flocks of 300 to 600 each
will be as well developed as when brooded in smaller
flocks under a good-sized lamp-heated hover accommo-
dating 75 to 100 each. Also, in extreme winter weather
poultry keepers generally believe that they cannot raise
chicks under colony hovers as satisfactorily as in regular
pipe-heated brooder houses.

Plans for various types of brooder houses are pro-
vided in this book, and the poultry grower is earnestly ad-
vised to consider carefully just what his real needs are in
the way of brooding facilities before deciding on the
equipment to be purchased. If broilers or ordinary com-
mercial or farm flocks are to be raised, no doubt the
colony hover will meet most requirements, though there
are few poultry plants that will not find it good economy

1 Wall

; ae it

Hover may be

installed, in ,fhis

to have a few lamp-heated hovers on hand to meet the
various emergencies that are liable to arise wherever
chicks are brooded.

Where chicks are to be raised on a small scale, or
where small incubators are in use and the broods conse-
quently are small and of different ages, nothing will take
the place of good lamp-heated hovers. The plan of pro-
viding partitions, with the idea of brooding two or more
flocks under one colony hover, is only partially satisfac-
tory, especially when the flocks are of different ages. In
this case either the hover will be too warm for the older
chicks or it will be too cold for the younger; either way
heavy losses are liable to result.

Where chicks are to be raised for breeding stock, it is
highly important that they be given the best possible con-
ditions for growth and development, and it seldom is ad-
visable to brood such stock in colony hovers. It is much
better to go to the additional expense of brooding them
in small flocks under lamp-heated hovers and thus make
sure of giving the individual chicks the best possible
chance.

For winter brooding, pipe-heated brooder houses are
still regarded as indispensable by many poultrymen. Pipe-
heated systems, properly installed, provide plenty of heat
without great extremes in different parts of the brooding
chamber, floor drafts-are reduced to a minimum, and valu-
able chicks may thus be given highly favorable conditions
for growth and development at this most difficult season
for successful brooding. =

The reader must determine for himself just what
method or combination of methods will meet his condi-

Brackets

—F_ e¢—sa ——

1
ll
|
|

= 3+5*\ i '- 01 —— 4'- 0 — - Ov —p— g'- ina bar OO! —o-2'- y— 2

FIG.

30’: - Ola ee eee eee

133—FLOOR PLAN OF PERMANENT BROODER HOUSE

PERMANENT BROODER HOUSES 71

Prepored Roofing

10"x 12" Glass

Hinged at Bottom to Swing

depended upon to get them eventual-
ly, even though the entire floor is
carefully screened with netting.
Board floors are open to the objec-
tion that they are colder and also
harbor rats unless raised well off the

ground, which necessitates long in-
clines for the chicks.

Generally speaking, therefore, con-
crete floors are most suitable, though

they must be thoroughly insulated

7x9" Doors fer Chicks

tions, bearing in mind, however, that he can better afford
to employ inadequate facilities and makeshift equipment
at any other point than in the brooding of his chicks.

BROODER HOUSE FOR LAMP-HEATED HOVERS
May Be Built With or Without Auxiliary Heat.
Brooding With Lamp-Heated Hovers is
Practical With the Right Kind
of House.

The floor dimensions of the brooder house shown in
Figs. 133 to 141 inclusive, are 16x30 feet. It can, of
course, be built any length, but under ordinary conditions

12"x /8" Louvered
Vent ip cach
Jo"x 12" Glass = S.

Sesh HH Jd at
to swing Sout SiGe

FIG. 135—END ELEVATION OF PERMANENT
BROODER HOUSE

Doer
zB" x6-2'x 15"

a width of 16 feet is most satisfactory and should be
maintained, regardless of length.

There are few poultry plants where such a house as
this will not be found a_ profitable
part of the equipment, making it pos-
sible to brood chicks successfully at
almost any season and under the
most favorable conditions. Even
where colony hovers are depended
on for brooding the bulk of the
young chicks, a small, well-equipped
brooder house of this sort, for use

and kept covered with coarse sand

oa repairs Se ate CS ee ee i or deep litter to avoid injury to the
FIG. 134—FRONT ELEVATION OF PERMANENT BROODER HOUSE

chicks confined in them. For brooder
house floors of concrete, cinders are
recommended, as this material makes a warmer floor than
either stone or gravel. By cinders is meant the coarse
ashes from large furnaces and boilers. Ordinary fine ashes
from stoves and furnaces will not do, and if there is
much of this material in the cinders it should be sifted
or washed out.

If a board floor is preferred, it should be laid double,
with sheathing paper between, also one-inch poultry net-
ting which will make it impossible for rats to gnaw
through. Bear in mind, however, that if rats succeed in
establishing themselves underneath the house, it will be
only a matter of time until they will succeed in getting ©
at the chicks, no matter how carefully they are protected.

Houses that are to be used in cold weather should al-
ways be ceiled. The additional cost of doing this will be
amply repaid by the smaller amount of fuel required. Lath
and plaster may be used if preferred, but, under ordinary
conditions, ceiling is much better suited to poultry-house
construction. Building paper should always be tacked to
the studs before siding or ceiling is put in place. A layer
of sheathing paper should also be nailed to the lower side
of the ceiling joists or rafter ties before the ceiling is
nailed on. Ventilation openings should be provided in
the ceiling, as shown in Fig. 141, page 73. In small
houses it is sufficient to have louvered ventilators in each
gable, but in houses 50 feet or more in length it is neces-
sary to provide roof ventilators also.

The ground should be graded up to the front sill so
that the chicks will have easy access to the yards. The
siding should be carried up close to the roof boards,
notching the top board carefully for the rafters. For cold
climates, storm doors for all outside doors are ‘advisable.

/X6 Red geps

© IO Vertdoor

Cord Fook

Adjusting

‘gntlats a
loo:

in brooding small flocks and special-
quality stock, will soon pay for itself.

The foundation should be six-inch
concrete walls and these should ex-
tend six inches above the ground
level. The foundation should be car-

ried down to the frost line or to

solid ground—18 to 24 inches as a

rule.

Earth floors are not practical for
brooding houses where rats are com-
mon, as these pests like nothing bet-
ter than young chicks, and can be

{ 6 Foundation

a oscr

Caieehe Flair

Broken pie

FIG. 136—CROSS SECTION OF PERMANENT BROODER HOUSE

72 POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

Pipe-heated hovers are not recommended in small
brooder houses, as better results usually are secured at less
expense where the pens are equipped with individual lamp-
heated hovers.
heated hovers may be found
many chick growers prefer individual hovers in brooder
houses of any length. Where chicks are to be brooded in
mid-winter, houses
equipped with indi-
vidual hovers should
have some source ot
auxiliary heat. This
is best supplied by
means of a water
heater and a coil of
pipe, as shown in
this plan. The pipes
for auxiliary heat should be placed along the north side
and as low as the size of the heater will permit, but it is
not necessary to place the heater in a pit, as there is no
disadvantage in having the pipes well up on the wall, so
long as they are not above the rear windows.

Fig. 133 shows floor plan, with six hovers, each
capable of accommodating about 100 chicks. The number
of pens may be reduced to five if preferred, and made five
feet wide, which is.a more convenient width for the care-
taker. The heater is located at the farther end, where it is
out of the way but easily cared for. A heater with a 12-
inch grate should provide ample heat for a house of this
size. Do not make the mistake of keeping the house too
warm; 60 to 65 degrees is warm enough. as a rule. The
individual hovers can be depended upon to provide the
necessary additional heat without at any time having the
lamps turned dangerously high.

Fig. 136 shows across section indicating adjustment of
windows, etc., also construction of-partitions. These are
to be built up of flooring or any other tongue-and-groove
lumber, to a height of 21 inches above the brodder house
floor, with three-foot wire netting above. Note location of
ceiling ventilator and see Fig. 141 for detail drawing. Figs.
134 and 135 show elevation of front and end respectively.

Fig. 140 is an enlarged drawing of a pen front. Note
that the first eight inches is occupied by the joist carrying
the hover floor. The hover floor is set back one inch
from face of joist and the space from top of joist to bottom
of pen door is boarded up with matched flooring, or with
a nine-inch surfaced board if desired. The doors, which
are 2x3 feet, have 1x3-inch frames, with one-inch mesh
poultry netting tacked on with double-pointed tacks, so
that there will be no loose ends to catch clothing. The
studs on either side of the door are 2x2 inches and the

more economical, though

Wil,
(SM N

SSS
LLL

FIG. 137—CONSTRUCTION OF
CHICK DOOR

340" —>

2*x 2" Stud
x2" Facing Beard

Top of Riser Boord

‘House Floor

FIG. 138—CONSTRUCTION OF HOVER FLOOR IN
BROODER HOUSE

partitions are nailed to them. The studs are faced with
1x1%-inch strips and spaced 23% inches apart, so that the
door will swing shut against the face of the stud. The
rest of the front not occupied by the doors is finished with
three-inch strips and one-inch netting, same as doors.

In houses 50 feet long and upwards, pipe--

Where the brooding pens are five feet wide or more,
it is desirable to have the pen doors hung on double-acting
spring hinges, but this cannot be done with four-foot pens,
as in these narrow pens the
door cannot swing in with-
out striking the hover.

Fig. 139 is a detail draw-
ing of chick door and win-
dow construction. Both door
and window are to be
framed, the window closing
against a '%xl-inch weather
strip. This strip is cut short
at the bottom to allow the
bottom of the window to
swing out when opened, the
window being hinged to the
sill, as shown. A short
length of chain attached to
the sash with a screw eye
and dropping over a hook in
the casing above, affords a
convenient means of adjust-
ing the window at any
angle. A spring window bolt
may be used to hold the win-
dow when closed. The chick
door slides up and is held
open with hook and eye. The
window sill may be of plain
two-inch stuff, placed at an
angle, if desired; but it is
easier and better to have a milled sill, spiking it flat to
the undersill, as shown. The chick door sill may be sloped,
if desired, but there is no real necessity for doing so and
construction is simpler as indicated. The outside doors
are framed, as shown in Fig. 26 on page 19. The ven-
tilator door, shown in Fig. 141, is hung flush with the
lower face of the ceiling, making the opening wide
enough so that the door will swing freely. It may be
conveniently swung on a %-inch iron rad, stapling it

ja—Screw eyo

FIG. 139—DETAILS OF
WINDOW CON-
STRUCTION

2" Facing Strip

;

REA

Sa
<>
BO

LRG
; SOL
RRR SLL

OR

LZ

Mie

QTL
OMAR

LQ

L?
Lh?
Vo
x

My

SR

ve

Partition
Floor of Passageway

FIG. 140—PEN FRONT IN BROODER HOUSE

tightly to the door and letting it turn in staples driven
into the ceiling on each side. This rod should be stapled
to the door just enough off center so that it will swing
shut when not fastened open. A couple of small blocks,
nailed to the upper side of the ceiling at either end of
the door, act as stops. The door may be held open by a
weight, or by attaching the cord to stud or partition.
These doors should be approximately under the highest
point in the roof, providing two in this 30-foot house and
spacing them 20 feet apart in long houses.

PERMANENT BROODER HOUSES 73

Joist or
Rafter Tie

in place when Open.

Cc eiling

VENTILATION
"= \'=0"

VESTAS On:

Scale:

Cord fer Adjusting Door

set

FIG. 141—CEILING VENTILATOR FOR BROODER
HOUSE

Fig. 138 shows the construction of hover floor, run-
way and finish of passageway partition.

BILL OF MATERIALS FOR 16x30 FOOT BROODER HOUSE

4 Size Length No. of

Use Inches Feet Pieccs Remarks
PSI US 0 CS ae 2x4 16 4
Bilis; ends! } 16 2
Joists for hover 3 12 6
IR GDS) | os cone 3 16 4
Studs, front 2 10 9 1 piece cuts 4%
Studs, rear .. 3 12 8 1 piece cuts 2
Studs, ends an 3 12 12
Studs, partition 3 12 10 1 piece cuts 2
Rafters . 3 14 16
Rafters . 3 12 8 1 piece cuts 2
Ties for ‘Siyscce 2x4 12 15
Braces for rafters -1x6 8 15
Sheathing for roof. E 660 ft. bd. meas. Sfed.
Pe GresiGin & -<2..2...c-.. J 625 ft. bd. meas.
Matched flooring

hover platform, parti-

LORS ELC 9 icin coe sccnccoesnceoczec 260 ft. bd. meas.
&-ineh ceiling boards

for walls and ceiling.. 1250 ft. bd. meas.
%x6-inch boards for

ridge pole. door and

window frames ..... ee 125 lin. feet. Surfaced
Trim lumber, ventila-

POMS MC UCH ee hes Ihmx4 430 lin. feet. Surfaced
Door and window sills.. 2x8 40 lin. feet. Milled.
Strips for inside win-

dow sills, and facing

for front partition

SEEDY (=) eae gr Bwxlle 75 lin. feet.

Strips for window stops

and chick runway........ %x1 150 lin. feet. Surfaced

TAL MCE DN conde se cenccteesesecsvane 30 lin. feet. Surfaced

6 squares prepared roofing.
12 squares building paper.
266 sq. ft. 1-inch mesh poultry netting for windows.

11 sashes, 1%-inch, 10x12-inch glass.
1 4-panel door.

1 pr. 4-inch butt hinges.

1 rim lock.

6 pr. 3-inch butt hinges for partition doors.
1 pr, 2-inch butt hinges for windows.

8 2-inch screw hooks and eyes.

Fs ft. of sash chain.
2
1
0

4-light,

Hee

anchor bolts %x12in., with 2-in. washers for each end.
iron rods, 4x20-inch, for swinging ventilator doors in
ceiling.
6-inch chimney thimble.
bricks for chimney.

MATERIALS FOR CONCRETE FLOOR

50 bags of cement.
120 cu. ft. sand.
200 cu. ft. cinders or crushed stone.
160 cu. ft. cinders or stone for filling.
EQUIPMENT

Water boiler, 12-inch grate.

5 gal. expansion tank.

6 feet of 2-inch pipe.

100 feet of 1%-inch pipe.

Necessary manifolds, unions, elbows, etc.

4 wall brackets for supporting pipe.

2 joints of 6-inch stove pipe.

2 stuve pipe elbows.

6 lamp-heated hovers,

MASSACHUSETTS OPEN PIPE BROODER HOUSE
A Popular Type of Brooder House for Extra
Early Chicks. Used Quite Generally in
New England. Hot Water Pipes
Not Enclosed.

By PROF. J. C. GRAHAM

(A type of hot-water pipe brooding house in general
use in New England, where it has given excellent results
for many years, is known as the open-pipe system. One
of the most modern and best planned houses of this kind
is the one designed and in use at the Massachusetts Agri-
cultural College, which is described by Prof. Graham as
follows. This house is illustrated in Figs. 142 and 143.—
Ed.)

This house is designed for early or winter brooding
by people who wish to brood in large numbers. It is 14x72
feet. Twelve feet at one end is used for the pit, furnace,
coal, etc. The other 60 feet are divided into 12 pens, each
five feet wide, as shown in detail in Fig. . It is heated by
hot water, the pipes running parallel with the floor. The
floor has a fall of 15 inches toward the pit. This gives a
good chance for flow and return. The walls, both front
and rear, are 6% feet high.

The house is lathed and plastered on the inside with
wood pulp plaster. This gives a very hard, smooth finish
and is about as cheap a method of construction as one can
use for a good finished piece of work. In the ceiling there
are three openings, each about 15x24 feet. TheSe are for
ventilation particularly. Over these are placed burlap
screens or small doors.

As can be seen, it has a good cement foundation and

complete.

Wooden Frames

FIG.

142—FLOOR PLAN OF PIPE HEATED BROODER HOUSE IN USE AT MASSACHUSETTS AGRI. COLLEGE

74 POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

cement floor. Novelty siding is nailed on the outside of
the studs. There is no double boarding on the inside. This
building cost about $1050 and has given good satisfaction.

Note that the only hover we have is a burlap screen.
This is laid over about one-half of the space between par-
titions, therefore it is about 2% feet square. After the
first few days it is removed. We also have a board about
12 inches high to keep the chicks within about two feet ot
the pipes for the first 24 to 48 hours. It is then moved
back to about the middle of the run for another day or
two, and finally removed, giving the chicks the use of the
entire run.

The pit is 4% feet deep.
to have a drain in this pit.
could be run off easily without carrying it out.

If possible, it would be well
In cold weather the water
Further-

more, in cleaning a brooder house the work should be done
thoroughly, and by the use of a hose the floor could be
flooded and the water carried away by this drain. Of
course, it may not be convenient to do this, but in case it
is it will be well to provide for it.

There are eight 1%-inch pipes 5% inches from the

eo eee

<

rear and four inches apart on centers. The pipes are seven
inches from the floor, but it would be just as well to drop
them one inch, making the distance from the pipes to the
floor six inches instead of seven inches.

Each hover will take care of 100 chicks, although we
believe better results follow when the number is reduced
to 50 or 75.

BILL OF MATERIALS FOR PIPE-HEATED BROODER

HOUSE
Use Pieces Size Length Board Meas.

Studs, sides -37 2x4 13 ft. 333
Studs, ends 22 2x4 18 ft. 444
Rafters ..... 37 2x4 SEE: 24
Sills ...... 2eeexd dent: 18
Sills . - 8 2x4 18 ft. 96
Plates .. B38 2x4 18 ft. 96
Girders ... 35 2x3 14 ft. 245
Headers .... = sails 2x4 12 ft. 56
Posts for partition a6 2x3 10 ft. 30
Post for railing _ seal 2x4 3 ft. 2
Plantefor bint. 2 2x9 14 ft. 42
Total...... 1386

Novelty siding (front and rear 982)
(ends and rear 282) 1264

Roof boards
Partition ..

Shingles .... 942M
Lath and plaster 105 sq. yd
Concrete foundation 18% sq. yd
Concrete floor ....... : 936 sq. ft.
Par titioneiiw ire tee... sco aie as nein eR: 200 sq. ft.

Doors—2,

Windows—12.

Heater.

Hardware,

Chimney.

ea eeesne

FIG. 143—PIPE HEATED BROODER HOUSE AT MASS. AGRI. COLLEGE

PIPE HEATED BROODER HOUSE WITH UNDER-

NEATH HEATING SYSTEM
Practical House for Cold Weather Brooding. Pipes
Under Brooder Floor. Hover Warmed By Gentle
Current of Hot Air.

Pipe-heated brooding systems with enclosed pipes
have been in use for many years and have given varying
degrees of satisfaction. A serious objection to this method
of brooding is that, as such heating systems usually are
installed, there is not a sufficient ventilation under the
hovers. In order to provide the better air circulation
needed, the pipes may be placed below the hover floor
and enclosed in a chamber or long narrow box where air
can be heated, after which it is discharged under the
hover, thus maintaining a constant air circulation which
automatically ventilates the hover space. Plans for a
house heated in this manner are illustrated in Fig. 144.
The house here shown is 140 feet long and 13 feet wide,
and is separated into two parts, 36 feet and 104 feet, re-
The short end has 12 pens of 3 feet each in
width and 10 feet in length, includ-
ing the hover, and the longer end
has 24 pens 4 by 10 feet in size.
The furnace pit and a narrow walk
separate the two lots of pens, and
an aisle 3 feet in width extends the
entire length of the house back of
the hovers.

The system of heating pipes is
installed under the hover floor in
a concreted trench. The _ shorter
end has a 2-inch flow and return
pipe. The long end has two flow
and two return 1%-inch pipes, and
both sides are controlled by valves
near the heat whereby all or a part
of the flow may be shut off from
the pipes. The trench is made by
excavating to a depth of 6 inches
and 36 inches wide. The sides and
bottom are cemented and the top is boarded with a
course of rough l-inch boards, covered with a layer of
matched 7-inch spruce flooring (K). This double board-
ing prevents any danger of too much bottom heat. The
boarding comes flush with the edges of the trench sides,
and the frame work of the hovers is of 1x3-inch posts
which are only as high as the hover divisions (C), which
in the small pens are 10 inches and in the large pens 12
inches.

This gives a house entirely free from inside posts and
makes possible a view of the whole interior from any
part. The hover floor is 3 feet wide (the width of the
trench) and in the 3-foot pens the hover top slides on
cleat (F) 6 inches from the floor. The top or cover is
only 24 inches wide, which leaves 12 inches of the slightly
warm floor in front of the hover curtain, making a splen-
did resting place for the little chicks or ducklings, which
they evidently enjoy. When first they are put in the
hover, they are penned back nearly to this floor and the
gentle warmth helps them and keeps the floor free from
dampness. The cover being in two parts (A and B) and
sliding freely on cleats (F), may readily be adjusted so
as to give ventilation at the back, front or center of the
hover, or all three, and the surplus heat may escape in
the same way.

The hover floor is kept littered with chaff or shavings
and when the pen is to be cleaned, the hover top is re-
moved, the back boaid, which sets between cleats, is

spectively.

SE ee

PERMANENT

BREEDING H2&USE

BROODER HOUSES 75

FOR EITHER CHICKS OR DUCKLINGS.
UNDERNEATH PIPING SYSTEM

YH. WY
Sectional View.

SLIDES 127187
— — =

iN “| 7:
TION PLA

Section showing

Hover Construction

and location of Plpes.
On 13"
WINDOW SLIDES 18 * 20°
—¥ — =

~~ Ground

FIG. 144—-PLANS FOR PIPE HEATED BROODER HOUSE WITH PIPES UNDER FLOOR
cross section, floor plan, and isometric view of hover.

-This illustration shows part of front elevation,

Plan. ——

See ac-

companying text for key to letters used in isometric, and for general description.

taken out and the litter swept into the aisle and taken
away in barrels. When the little chicks are to be changed
from pen to pen, the back boards are taken out and they
are driven down the aisles from one pen to another. in
the long end of the house these are 4 feet wide and the
hover 8 inches high, but otherwise are the same as the
short end. The illustration shows a hover closed, one

. with the top partly cut away and one with the top off and

the back out, ready for cleaning.

The hot air is admitted to the hovers through the up-
1ight 1%4-inch pipes seen in the lower floor. These pipes
reach nearly to the underside of the house and the lower
ends just reach through the board floor, being flush with
the under side. Back of each second hover (on the divis-
ion post, so as to be out of the way) is a 2x3 air box
which reaches down under the side and permits the cold
air to enter the trench. This gives a chance for the
warm air in the trench to rise through the short, upright
pipes under the hover while cold air is drawing from the
aisle, making a perfect circulation. The warm. air strikes
the hover and, deflecting, makes the entire hover space
warm, but does-not expose the chick to drafts or to direct
heat. The sliding two-piece hover-top permits of ventil-
ation and the escape of surplus heat at the will of the
operator. For the older chicks no curtain is supplied for
the hover front, which is left entirely open.

MATERIALS REQUIRED FOR 100-FOOT HOUSE

Sills, 12 pieces, 3 by 4, 18 feet: 2 pieces, 3 by 4 14 feet.

Plates, 12 pieces, 2 by 4, 18 feet: 2 pieces, 2 by 4, 14 feet.

Studs, (10 feet to enters), 11 pieces, 2 by 4, 6 feet 3 inches;
30 pieces, 2 by 3, 4 feet 7 inches.

Grits, 10 pieces, 2 by 3, 12 feet.

Rafters, 51 pieces, 2 by 4, 16 feet.

Extra for slides, door frames, etc., 8 pieces, 2 by 3, 16 feet.

Rafter ties, 49 pieces, 1 by 6, 7 feet.

Boards, outside, 700 feet 14-feet, 2300 feet 16-feet: inside.
524 feet; total, plain, 3524 feet; matched, 900; if ceiled
inside add 2400 feet.

Board up and down, roof lengthwise.

Paper, roof, 1500 feet; balance 1400 feet.
Doors, three 3 by 6 feet 6 inches, one 2 by 5.
Wire netting to suit use, 1-inch mesh.

HOVER WORK

Sills, 12 pieces, 2 by 6, 16 feet.

Floor, 300 feet, 12 feet.

Covers, divisions and back, matched 500 feet, 12 feet.

Pen division boards, 14 pieces, 1 by 12, 16 feet.

Windows, 14 12-light, 9 by 13; 6 rear windows 6-light, 9 by
13; 2 end windows, 6-light, 9 by 13.

Cement floor under all, 1300 feet.

Pit wall 18 inches, 5 by 8 feet, 5 feet deep, pointed.

Walk across pit and stairs, 5 pieces, 2 by 6, 16 feet.

Heating and piping to suit.

COMBINATION HOT WATER AND COLONY
HOVER BROODER HOUSE

Front Section Heated By Hot Water Pipes Underneath

Floor. Rear Section Accommodates Several

Colony Hovers.

The semi-monitor roof brooder house, shown in Fig.
145, was designed by J. W. Parks, the well-known breeder
of Barred Plymouth Rocks, after a careful study of .
brooder-house construction in general and his own special
requirements in particular. It has been in use on his poul-
try plant for the past few years with complete success. It
is unique in brooder-house construction in that it utilizes
both the hot water and colony hover brooding systems,
one helping out the other to some extent and thus, it is
believed, getting the best results from each.

The house is 65 feet long and 28 feet wide. Both front
and rear walls are five feet high from sills to eaves and
the front of the rear section is 11 feet high. The house is
divided lengthwise in the center, the front part being
equipped with a water boiler and a coil of heating pipes.
A space about 5x10 feet is occupied by the boiler and coal
bin, the boiler standing in a three-foot pit. The outside

76 POULTRY HOUSES AND

FIXTURES

hover pens for his market or utility
chicks, while his best stock—the blue-
blooded chicks that are to have the
most favorable conditions possible,
are brooded in the hot water heated
compartments. In writing regarding
these two systems and their respec-
tive merits, Mr. Parks says:

“T like the pipe system better. 1
have about as good success with one
as with the other and the pipe sys-
tem is more expensive than the other
on account of the greater labor re-

FIG. 145—COMBINATION PIPE HEATED

BROODING HOUSE
Photo furnished by J. W. Parks.

door opens into a passageway 3% feet wide and sunk so
that the floor is three feet below the main floor of the
house. The coil of hot water pipes, consisting of six lines
of 1%4-inch pipe, is enclosed in a wooden box underneath
the floor of the house. Each compartment is provided
with a hover, which is heated by means of warmed air,
which is admitted from the pipe box to the hover chamber
through hot air flues suitably located in the floor under
the hover. This part of the house is divided into 15 pens,
each four feet wide and having a normal brooding capac-
ity of about 100 chicks, or 1,500 in all.

The back part of the house, which is separated from
the front by an open partition of wire and boards, is di-
vided into five ccmpartments, each equipped with a coal-
burning colony hover. In cold weather, with the water
heater in operation, the temperature of the entire house
is made comfortable, and the colony hovers are more
easily operated and regulated to the correct brooding tem-
perature, thus protecting the chicks from extreme changes
in room temperature that often occur with this method of
brooding when something goes wrong with the regulating
device or the supply of fuel. Operating cclony hovers in
a partially heated house also reduces the danger of floor
drafts, which are especially liable to exist when the out-
side temperature is quite low.

In ordinary operation Mr. Parks uses the colony

FIG, 146—REAR ELEVATION OF SINGLE PEN
COLONY HOVER HOUSE

From blue print furnished by Poultry Division of U. S.
Department of Agriculture.

AND COLONY HOVER

quired for caring for small flocks of
chicks, also because of the larger in-
vestment in eqtipment. But to get
best results chicks should be brooded
in comparatively small flocks; more-
over, chicks brooded under a colony hover should all be
of the same age, and as we do not get as many as 500
chicks of our best matings that we can brood together,
it is necessary to have the smaller compartments of the
pipe-heated system to care for them.

“Colony hovers no doubt are the cheapest for brood-
It takes some skill, however,
to handle colony hover chicks after they are ten days old,
when, if not carefully handled, liable to get
switched into corners where they crowd and sweat instead
of gathering in a loose open ring under the hover or dome,
as they should. In hot weather, also, there is some trouble
keeping the fire low enough without having it go out.
You will see from this that I use both methods and find
both necessary to best results under my conditions. My
brooding losses the past two years have not been much
more by one method than the other. Have had as few as
ten lost at four weeks out of a lot of 500, though, of
course, not all lots do so well.”

ing chicks in large numbers.

they are

The door of this house is at end opposite the one
shown in Fig. 145, and opens into a sunken passageway
back of the pipe-heated hover system. The ground in
front of the pens is graded up to the sills so that the
chicks can pass readily from house pens to yards without
the use of special board inclines.

PSS

iS SS

FIG. 147—FRONT ELEVATION OF SINGLE PEN
COLONY HOVER HOUSE

From blue print furnished by Poultry Division of U. S.
Department of Agriculture.

PERMANENT BROODER HOUSES 77

A SINGLE COMPARTMENT COLONY BROODER
HOUSE

This Portable House Can Be Moved With a Two-Horse
Team if Light-Weight Lumber is Used in
Building It.

Where a single compartment house for colony
brooding is required, the plans shown in Figs. 146, 147
and 148 will be found practical and economical. These
plans were prepared by the Poultry Division of the U. S.
Department of Agriculture and houses constructed from
them are in use on the Government Experiment Farm at
Beltsville, near Washington, D. C.

The plans provide for a 10x10-foot house, on runners
for convenient moving, and its general outlines are easily
understood from the drawings. All dimensions are indi-
cated. The floor is of tongue-and-groove flooring, laid
on 2x6-inch joists set 2 feet apart. Rafters are 2 feet
apart, and corners and runners are thoroughly braced.
Following is the bill of materials required:

125 sq. ft. T & G flooring %x2%

325 sq. ft. T & G flooring %x2%
6 pes. 2x6 inch x 10 ft., for joists.
2 pes. 4x6 in. x 12 ft. for runners.
G pce: 2x4 in. x 14 ft. for rafters.

150 Bett sheathing %x12 in. x 12 ft., surfaced 1 side.
a rools roofing paper.
9

inves x 0) ht
ins se 2 eee

2x4 in. x 12 ft. for braces and studs.

sashes, 2 ft. square.
sashes 18x24 inches.
Nails, screws, hinges, and paint.

TWO COMPARTMENT COLONY BROODING
HOUSE

Requires Less Fuel, is More Comfortable, and More
Adaptable to Changing Weather Conditions Than
Single Compartment Houses.

Brooding with colony hovers heated by means of oil
or coal-burning stoves is a comparatively new method, but
one that has become extremely popular wherever chicks
are raised in large numbers, and that has practically revo
lutionized general brooding practice.

As a rule, these hovers are placed in any buildings —

that happen to be available, and usually with good re-

sults. Large brooder flocks necessarily require much
~_ Rafrer Plate {
igi Dee aes O91
bd
i é
Hi 2° FRAME
rf
at

FIG. 148S—TWO-SECTION MUSLIN COVERED FRAME

This two-section shutter is so made that the upper
part can be opened to provide needed ventilation when
it is not desirable to have entire shutter open. A cross
section of shutter is shown at left. The middle button
at top holds upper section firmly in place when closed.
The buttons on either side are attached to the frame
of section and act as stops.

a a ne eT

FIG. 149—FLOOR PLAN OF SINGLE PEN HOUSE FOR
COLONY HOVER

From blue print furnished by Poultry Division of U. 8.
Department of Agriculture.

greater floor space than is provided for flocks of 50 to 100,
and larger houses or rooms, combined with the method of
heating employed, frequently develop floor drafts to some
extent. These must be reckoned with, especially in cold-
weather brooding. One of the ways of preventing this
trouble is to build the house so that it can be divided into
two parts of about equal dimensions, placing the hover
in one section which is built quite warm but well lighted,
the other section being used as an exercising compartment
and generally built with a curtain front.

The house illustrated in Figs. 150 and 152 has been
carefully designed to meet the special requirements of

a’ e"

Subfloor
R2ke" Jost

—Groundhine
Yi YESH
WM Yl

Ve fi

Wf J fA J.

FIG. 150—CROSS SECTION OF TWO COMPARTMENT
HOUSE FOR COLONY HOVER

78 POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

colony brooding and will be found
Suitable for the use of the great ma-

PAAFTERS Yo once CC

jority of those who are raising chicks -+}

by this time and labor-saving method.

Fig. 152 shows floor plan of house,

which is 10x24 feet, with a 10-foot
hover section partitioned off at one
end. When the chicks are first

eae

Placed under the hover they are to
be confined to this room. It is large

enough for several hundred during

the first week or two, but not so

large as to invite floor drafts, and xD

—— 24'0"

it can be comfortably heated with

TW FOUNDATION WALL

= GROUND LINE

much less fuel than would be re-
quired to maintain the correct tem-
perature if the entire house were in
one room.

When the chicks are ten days to
two weeks old, or when only a few days old in mild
weather, they should be given access to the exercising
compartment, which is provided with a muslin shutter for
ventilation. In order to be able to graduate the ventila-
tion, a double shutter is provided so that the upper part
may be opened without disturbing the lower section, thus
affording fresh air without exposing the chicks to direct
drafts from the opening, as would be the case if the
entire shutter were to be opened in severe or stormy
weather. In milder weather, or when the chicks are
older and have been somewhat hardened, the entire shut-
ter may be hooked up, thus giving the chicks practically
outdoor conditions without exposure. This shutter is
shown in detail in Fig. 148.

Fig. 150 is a cross section of the hover end and Fig.
151 shows the front of the completed house.

eat

BILL OF MATERIALS FOR COLONY HOVER HOUSE

Size Length No. of
se Inches Feet pisces Remarks
Sills, sides 12 4
Sills, ends 10 2
ile, half 12 4 Spike to inside
3 cs 10 11 face of side sill.
Plates _... . 2x4 12 4
aa front 2x4 8 10
uds, rear .... 2x4 10 6 1 piece cuts 2
Studs, ends _ 23 ‘3 ee
Raftersi22 =: = bxs iZ 3 Cone
nus ates aid 2x5 10 2
00 oards 1x10 325 ft. bad. .
T & G siding 7x6 450 ft. bd. paeae oer ce
. meas.
. meas.

Surfaced 4 sides
Surfaced 4 sides
Surfaced 4 sides

™, YN YATE
ual

=: - iT EE FF WMMEAEEEZE; a

FIG. 151—FRONT ELEVATION OF TWO-COMPARTMENT HOUSE FOR

COLONY HOVER

Frame for top shutter..%x2
Strip under shutter........ Wex2le
Strip under window.....4%x2%

20 lin. ft. Surfaced 4 sides
6 lin. ft. Surfaced 4 sides
10 lin. ft. Surfaced 4 sides

3% squares prepared roofing.

3 squares sheathing paper for floor.

60 sq. ft. wire netting for curtain front.
12-light windows, 10x12.
pr. 8-inch T-strap hinges.
hasps.
pr. 2-inch butt hinges for windows.
pr. 2%-inch butt hinges for shutters.
pr. 3-inch butt hinges for shutters.
2-inch screw hooks and eyes.
Nails, tacks and paint.

PH ROD OS

Capacity of Colony Hover Brooding Houses

Overci1owding is general among chick raisers, but is
particularly common in colony-hover brooding where the
effects of this mistaken practice are most serious. The
wise chick raiser will conservatively estimate the capac-
ity of his house as well as the brooder, and will keep
well inside its limits. The house shown in Figs. 146, 147
and 149, is large enough for 300 to 500 chicks for the
first two or three weeks, with proper care, but after that
time the number positively must be reduced, unless the
chicks can be outdoors practically all day long. In that
case the flock may remain undivided until the chicks no
longer need artificial heat. ,

At that time the cockerels should be removed, but
the pullets may be left to grow to maturity together,
provided the house can be thoroughly ventilated. The
capacity of the house shown in Figs. 150, 151 and 152
is practically the same as for the smaller house during the
brooding period. After the chicks no longer need artifi-
cial heat the entire house can be used
for perches, thus dividing the chicks

Ex eno/s/Ng
PPO ornrt

into two flocks.

For use early in the season, when
the chicks must be confined indoors,
estimated capacity should always be
discounted considerably, as any
brooder house will comfortably ac-
commodate many more chicks when
they are running out most of the
time. In cold weather brooding, the
maximum size of the flock for either
house herein described should not

rar

MUSLIN CURTAIN WINDOW Sosa

FIG. 152—FLOOR PLAN FOR TWO-COMPARTMENT COLONY HOVER HOUSE

exceed 300, and this number must be
greatly reduced after the chicks are
a few weeks old.

In addition to the brooder houses
illustrated and described in this chap-
ter, most of which are designed to be
permanent, the reader should consult
the plans in Chapter VII.

CHA Pd ER Van

Practical Incubator Houses

Where Several Incubators Are Operated Better Results Will Be Secured and Time Saved by Providing a Special Build-
ing for Them—Plans Are Here Given for a Moderate-Cost Basement Incubator House With Especial
Provision for Adequate Ventilation—Plans for Low Cost Above-Ground Incubator
Building, Also a Combination Incubator Cellar and Brooder House.

HE location of the incubator has much to do with
its successful operation. Some persons are able
to get good results with incubators installed in
living rooms and in other locations that are far

from ideal, but at best they do it in spite of the location

and not on account of it.

Wherever it is at all possible to do so, the incubator
should be operated in a cellar, basement, or specially con-
structed incubator house, such as is illustrated in the fol-
lowing pages. This is desirable, not
only to secure a more uniform tem-

changed to suit. For example, a house without vestibule,
to hold six large-sized incubators, should be 12 feet 6
inches wide by 15 feet long, in the clear.

In building, remember that the forms for a five-foot
concrete wall require heavy bracing. An eight-inch wall
is provided in the plan (see cross section, Fig. 153), but
a six-inch wall is sufficiently heavy. Whatever the width
of the wall, it is desirable to have the bottom extended for
footing, as shown in Fig. 155. If soft spots are found in

perature than is possible in any

above-ground building or room, uf-

Shingles 0)- Prepared

less very expensively constructed, but
because such a room provides more

POOF ing

Burlap Frames /n Front Of Windows Not Shown
—s 7 T

natural and uniform humidity, and is

cooler in summer. All practical incu-

i}

bator operators know that it is par-
ticularly hard to get good hatches in

Pe

ant

warm rooms, due chiefly to the dif- ‘“Groundiine:
ficulty of securing proper ventilation ‘
under such conditions. PMS = =

For one or two machines, the house
cellar may be satisfactory, but when
three or more are to be operated it often is difficult to
secure proper ventilation without interfering with the
other uses to which such a cellar must be put. Where
chicks are to be hatched in large numbers, therefore, it
is desirable to have a special incubator cellar.

The house shown in Figs. 153, 154, 155 and 156 will
accommodate ten large-sized lamp-heated machines, but
can be reduced or enlarged to suit individual require-
ments. The floor plan with work-room (see Fig. 157)
will accommodate eight machines and is especially recom-
mended as being convenient and practical, and well
worth the additional cost.

The outside dimensions of this house are 13 feet 10
inches in width by 26 feet 4 inches in length. This makes
the inside dimensions of the chamber 12 feet 6 inches by
25 feet, in the clear. The ceiling is 9 feet 4 inches high.
If a smaller house is desired the dimensions may be

Burlap Franre

«
»,
=

Pipe

Grownd |

tine

Uentilator,
J>a —

S

Enlarged Derail—Door Ventilator Slide Partly Open.
FIG. 153—CROSS SECTION OF INCUBATOR HOUSE

EF ii | = £4 E IS =
LMM ALE ALT

FIG. 154—SIDE ELEVATION OF INCUBATOR HOUSE

the ground at this depth, which is not probable, the exca-
vation at these points must be carried down to solid
ground to prevent cracking and settling of the walls. The
side walls at the steps may be four to six inches thick,
and the steps should be solid.

The frame of this house is to be of 2x6-inch timbers,
with the sills anchored to the foundation wall. The walls
above the ground are to be double-boarded with heavy
sheathing paper nailed to each side of the studs and the
boards laid over this. The ceiling of the room should
also have an insulating covering of sheathing paper tacked
to the lower face of the joists before the boards are
nailed on.

Note that burlap frames are to be provided outside
of all windows, screening the windows from the sun and
preventing direct air currents when the windows are open.
In warm weather or when the wind is not blowing, the
burlap screens may be opened outward admitting more
air, but still screening the windows from direct sunlight
which, if unobstructed, is liable to raise the room temper-
ature several degrees in a short time, and interfere with
the regulation of the machines. A shingle roof is recom-
mended for this building as shingles give a more even
temperature than prepared roofing. Both gables should
have louvered ventilators, as shown.

Fig. 153 shows a cross section of the house without
incubato1s. As regularly planned it is to be built three feet
in the ground, and banked up two feet, which calls for a
five foot concrete wall, the balance of the side walls being
of frame construction. The ceiling is carried up into the
gable to give ample height in the incubator room, a more
important feature than many realize. The cross section
shows the installation of the special ventilator flues, which
insure poor air in the room under all conditions. These
flies may be of galvanized iron, sewer tile or any other
available material that is’ suitable for the purpose. In

80

building a new incubator house a
good way is to provide for these
flues in the concrete wall, which

makes them indestructible.

Fig. 106 shows the floor plan as
designed for ten machines and Fig.
157 a floor plan with workroom in
front. With the latter all lamp fill-
ing and trimming can be done out-
side of the hatching chamber, where
convenient facilities may be _ pro-
vided for doing the work. This work-
room is used for testing eggs, also
for storing hatching eggs where they
can be held under the best possible
conditions while awaiting their turn
to be placed in the machine. The oil
supply is to be piped from an out-
side storage tank or barrel, which
may be buried, or supported above

the ground on a suitable stand. Where a drain pipe can be
installed, the floor should slope to a trap conveniently
located, so that it can be flushed or scrubbed at will.
154 and 155 show front and side elevations.

Figs.
the workroom suggested in Fig.

POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

——

/3 10"

SSS Bas ae

—————— =

'

26/2"

TIG. 157—FLOOR PLAN OF INCUBATOR HOUSE WITH WORKROOM

EG,
ania ge

a

FIG. 155—FRONT ELEVATION OF INCUBATOR HOUSE

advisable to enclose the steps so as to provide a vesti-
bule, which will assist materially in maintaining a uni-

form temperature.

The following bill of materials is for a house to be
If this is to be provided, suffi-

built without workroom.
cient extra material must be added.

Venti/acar

ase 4020/1239) 7¥-¥-Y-¥

Fe

duwperrwr} eg epred 39!

Ventilator

ROOM 25-0x12%6" In The Clear

complete.

4 8-inch ventilator

BILL OF MATERIALS FOR INCUBATOR HOUSE

Size Length No. of
WES Inches eee Pieces Remarks
Sills, side .... 14 4
Sills, end .. 14 2
If races aig 14 4
= ai ates, end .. 2 14 2
157 is not wanted it is Gitas “front & back 2x6 10 7 One piece cuts 2.
Studs, ends - 23 8 12 Cut to fit.
Rafters 10 28
Louvered Ties! 2a 10 13
Ventilation 18°24" Ridge pole ita: 2
Roof boards 1x10 500 ft. board measure.
T & G siding... &x6 325 ft. board measure.
Ceiling x 700 ft. board measure.
Frame for doors
and windows ....... 7x6 100 lin. ft. Surfaced 4 sides
Frame for punlene
shutter 70 lin. ft. Surfaced 4 sides
Trim lumber . 150 lin. ft. Surfaced 4 sides
Barge boards ... 100 lin. ft. Surfaced 4 sides
5M. shingles.
1 door, 2 feet 9 inches x 7 feet.

6 sashes, 6-light 12x12-inch glass.
6 metal sash adjusters.

36 sq. ft. burlap.

6 bolts %x12-inch with 2-inch washers.

1 pr. 5-inch butt hinges.

12 pr. 2-inch butt hinges for windows and screens.
1 metal ventilator slide 5 inches x 2 feet 3 inches.
1 door lock.

flues with dampers, cords and pullets

Nails, tacks and paint.

MATERIAL FOR FOUNDATION AND FLOOR

162 cu. ft. of sand.

70 bags of Portland cement.

325 cu. ft. of crushed stone or gravel.

A SMALL INCUBATOR HOUSE
Where there are practical objections to building the

incubator house partially underground, as suggested in

ererla por

Veneslacor 1

FIG. 156—FLOOR PLAN OF INCUBATOR HOUSE FOR TEN MACHINES

the preceding plan, it may be built
entirely above ground and, if proper-
ly designed, will give excellent ser-
\vice. Such a house has been in suc-
cessful use at the Western Washing-
ton Experiment Station for several
years. This house can be built at
comparatively slight cost where cheap
lumber is available, and is large
enough to meet the requirements of
farmers and small producers general-
ly. It can be located wherever con-
venient and requires no excavation.
The following description is con-
densed from Bulletin No. 4 of the
Western Washington Station:
“This incubator house, a floor plan
of which is illustrated in Fig. 158,
is 16 feet wide, 20 feet long, and 9
feet to the eaves, finished with No. 1
rustic, with one-third slope, and has

J

PRACTICAL INCUBATOR HOUSES

a shingled roof. The door is in the morth end. There
are two windows in each side. The south end of the
building is built solid, with the exception of the small
ventilator in the end mear the peak, as seen in the north
end above the door and just below the peak. The house
was painted red and trimmed in white, giving it a neat
appearance.

“To construct an incubator house like the one illus-
trated in Fig. 158, the following bill of lumber is required:

3 pieces 4x4-inch, 20 feet long, for sills.
2 pieces, 2x4-inch, 20 feet long for plates.
11 pieces

2x4-inch, 16 feet long for floor joists.
30 pieces

i 2x4-inch, 9 feet long for studding.

11 pieces 2x4-inch, 16 feet long for ceiling joists.

pieces 2x4-inch, 12 feet long for rafters.

board feet of matched siding.

board feet of 1x6-inch sheathing (also used for corner
boards and other finish lumber.)

4 M cedar shingles.

board feet of matched flooring.

board feet of matched ceiling.

i idoor 2 ft, 8einiexIGsit, 8 jin:

4 window sashes 12x16-inch, 4-light.

To construct the inner -hatching room:
22 pieces 2x3-inch, 9 feet long.

1200 board feet of matched ceiling.

2 ft. (8 ins ieee

1 door 8 in.

FIG. 158—FLOOR PLAN OF ABOVE-GROUND INCUBATOR HOUSE
Reproduced from Bul. 4, West. Washington Exp. Station.

“The building is constructed on the ground, with a
wooden floor (concrete is recommended), and stands on
cedar blocks resting on flat rocks projecting above the
surface of the ground. The three pieces, 4x4-in.x20-ft.,
provided in the bill of materials, are used as sills, one on
either side and one in the middle. Eleven pieces, 2x4-in.
by 16-ft., are nailed to the sills on their edges, two feet
apart, and covered with 1x6-in. tongue-and-groove floor-
ing. For studding for the outer walls use 2x4-in.x9-ft., set
two feet apart center to center. For plates use 2x4-in. by
20-ft. For ceiling joist use 11 pieces 2x4-in.x16-ft., and for
rafters, 22 pieces 2x4-in.xl2-ft. Ceil with 1x4-in. tongue-
and-groove ceiling. Enclose the building with 1x10-inch
shiplap. Cover the rafters with 1x6-in. sheathing laid two
inches apart, and shingle. Put in on either side two 3x3-
ft. windows, placed five feet above the floor. Build the
frames for the windows to admit opening them by slid-
ing. These windows cannot be hung on hinges, since the
inner room would interfere in opening them. Now, draw
a line around the entire room two feet from the wall. On
this line at intervals of four feet place 2x3-in.x9-ft. stud-
ding. Ceil both sides of the studding with 1x4-in. ceiling.
Put in two ventilator windows, 2x2-ft., 5-in., in each side
directly opposite the outer windows and close them with

81

doors made of matched ceiling. Hang these ventilators
with 4-inch strap hinges at the lower edge. To open
them, tip them back from the top by means of a cord.

“The door is in the north end and leads into an air
space (A) two feet in width, extending around the inner
room (D), which is entered through the door (F), which
is directly opposite the outer door. The inner room (D)
contains six 250-egg incubators (EEE). CC are the win-
dows in the outer wall and are directly opposite and at the
same height as the ventilator windows (BBB) in the
inner double wall.

“We regard this incubator house a success, securing
as it does an even temperature and purest air, both of
which are indispensable in the hatching of chicks or tur-
keys by artificial methods.”

It will be noticed that this house is described as be-
ing 16 by 20 feet, though in the floor plan the width is in-
dicated as 18 feet, which no doubt is an oversight, as the
proportions correspond to the printed descriptions. In
the bill of materials the amount of flooring, ceiling, etc.,
as specified, represents only the surface to be
covered, and about one-fourth should be added
to the estimates to cover matching and other
shrinkage.

The original house built as here described was
found to be too warm when all the incubators
were running and it is necessary to keep the
windows open most of the time. It also was nec-
essary to install a King ventilating system (see
page 23) to carry off the lamp fumes and keep
the air fresh and pure. With this change the
house gives good satisfaction and certairmly is
more convenient than a cellar.

In considering this plan it should be remem-
bered that the climate of Western Washington
is comparatively mild and less provision need be
made for warmth than will be found necessary in
many sections of the country. The plan of hav-
ing the entrance door on the north side is de-
sirable in warm climates, but where severe win-
ters are the ruie it will be better to have it on
the south side. Under such conditions also,
building the house with a single board floor will
not be satisfactory. If a board floor is used at
all, it should be doubled, with heavy insulating
material between top floor and sub-floor, and the space
between floor and ground should be tightly enclosed by
banking up around the building with earth. A concrete
floor will be much better for use in cold climates, and
probably will be no more expensive.

MAMMOTH INCUBATOR HOUSES

Houses for “Mammoths” Should Be Planned Expressly
for the Type of Machine That is to Be
Installed in Them.

Sectional, hot water heated incubators, commonly
called “mammoths”, have come into extensive use in all
parts of the country in recent years. These machines
make it possible to reduce the labor cost of operating incu-
bators, which is a serious item where tens and even hun-
dreds of thousands of eggs are incubated at one time.
Small-sized mammoths, that is, machines consisting of
only a few sections, may be successfully installed in any
large cellar, and where the method of construction or
heating permits, the sections may be carried around
corners or arranged in two or more rows, facing each
other, or back to back, thus making it possible to install
such machines when the cellar is not long enough to take
all the sections in one straight line.

80 POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

building a new incubator house a

good way is to provide for these

flues in the concrete wall, which

makes them indestructible.

Fig. 106 shows the floor plan as
designed for ten machines and Fig.
157 a floor plan with workroom in
front. With the latter all lamp fill-
ing and trimming can be done out-
side of the hatching chamber, where
convenient facilities may be pro-
vided for doing the work. This work-
room is used for testing eggs, also
for storing hatching eggs where they

. 1

a

,

4210

>: ae

hE

/ ifn aiialg

can be held under the best possible i
conditions while awaiting their turn if

—_————_—_- —-_____

f

to be placed in the machine. The oil see
supply is to be piped from an out-
side storage tank or barrel, which
may be buried, or supported above
the ground on a suitable stand. Where a drain pipe can be
installed, the floor should slope to a trap conveniently
located, so that it can be flushed or scrubbed at will.
Figs. 154 and 155 show front and side elevations. If
the workroom suggested in Fig. 157 is not wanted it 1s

Louvered heer Sh
venti/ation (9 x24"

advisable to enclose the steps so as to provide a vesti-
bule, which will assist materially in maintaining a uni-
form temperature.

The following bill of materials is for a house to be
built without workroom. If this is to be provided, suffi-
cient extra material must be added.

Verti/acor

eee !

dieu rsw2s 02 epeed ¥9!N

Sarde sose/aney-y

FIG.

ROOM 25-0x 1276" In The Clear

156—FLOOR PLAN OF INCUBATOR HOUSE FOR TEN MACHINES

Ge

i

PIG. 157—FLOOR PLAN OF INCUBATOR HOUSE WITH WORKROOM

BILL OF MATERIALS FOR INCUBATOR HOUSE

Size Length No. of

WE Inches Feet Pieces Remarks
Sills, side —.. 2x6 14 4
Sills, end .. 2x6 14 2
Plates, side - . 2x6 14 4
Plates; end .... x6 14 2
Studs, front & back 2x6 10 7 One piece cuts 2.
Studs, ends .......... 2 2x6 8 12 Cut to fit.
Rafters ... 2x6 10 28
nese ss 1x6 10 13
Ridge pole 1x7 14
Roof boards 500 ft. board measure.

T & G siding. 325 ft. board measure.
Ceiling oe 700 ft. board measure.
Frame for doors

and windows ....... 7x6 100 lin. ft. Surfaced 4 sides
Frame for burlap

shutter we Ye X2 70 lin. ft. Surfaced 4 sides
Trim lumber . 150 lin. ft. Surfaced 4 sides
Barge boards ... 100 lin. ft. Surfaced 4 sides

5M. shingles.

1 door, 2 feet 9 inches x 7 feet.

6 sashes, 6-light 12x12-inch glass.
6 metal sash adjusters.

36 sq. ft. burlap.

6 bolts %x12-inch with 2-inch washers.

1 pr. 5-inch butt hinges.

12 pr. 2-inch butt hinges for windows and screens.
1 metal ventilator slide 5 inches x 2 feet 3 inches.
1 door lock.

4 88-inch ventilator flues with dampers, cords and pullets
complete.
Nails, tacks and paint.

MATERIAL FOR FOUNDATION AND FLOOR

70 bags of Portland cement.
162 cu. ft. of sand.
325 cu. ft. of crushed stone or gravel.

A SMALL INCUBATOR HOUSE

Where there are practical objections to building the
incubator house partially underground, as suggested in
the preceding plan, it may be built
entirely above ground and, if proper-
ly designed, will give excellent ser-
vice. Such a house has been in suc-
cessful use at the Western Washing-
ton Experiment Station for several
years. This house can be built at
comparatively slight cost where cheap
lumber is available, and is large
enough to meet the requirements of
farmers and small producers general-
ly. It can be located wherever con-
venient and requires no excavation.
The following description is con-
densed from Bulletin No. 4 of the
Western Washington Station:

{ “This incubator house, a floor plan
of which is illustrated in Fig. 158,
is 16 feet wide, 20 feet long, and 9
feet to the eaves, finished with No. 1
rustic, with one-third slope, and has

Centsla tor

Veneslacor a

J

PRACTICAL INCUBATOR HOUSES

a shingled roof. The door is in the north end. There
are two windows in each side. The south end of the
building is built solid, with the exception of the small
ventilator in the end mear the peak, as seen in the north
end above the door and just below the peak. The house
was painted red and trimmed in white, giving it a neat
appearance.

“To construct an incubator house like the one illus-
trated in Fig. 158, the following bill of lumber is required:

pieces 4x4-inch, 20 feet long, for sills.

pieces, 2x4-inch, 20 feet long for plates.

pieces 2x4-inch, 16 feet long for floor joists.

pieces 2x4-inch, 9 feet long for studding.

pieces 2x4-inch, 16 feet long for ceiling joists.

pieces 2x4-inch, 12 feet long for rafters.

board feet of matched siding.

board feet of 1x6-inch sheathing (also used for corner
boards and other finish lumber.)

4 M cedar shingles.

board feet of matched flooring.

board feet of matched ceiling.

1 door 2 ft. 8 int ssi6eft. 8 in:

4 window sashes 12x16-inch, 4-light.

To construct the inner hatching room:
22 pieces 2x8-inch, 9 feet long.

1200 board feet of matched ceiling.

8 inl x ie ehies

1 door 2 ft. in.

FIG. 158—FLOOR PLAN OF ABOVE-GROUND INCUBATOR HOUSE
Reproduced from Bul. 4, West. Washington Exp. Station.

“The building is constructed on the ground, with a
wooden floor (concrete is recommended), and stands on
cedar blocks resting on flat rocks projecting above the
surface of the ground. The three pieces, 4x4-in.x20-ft.,
provided in the bill of materials, are used as sills, one on
either side and one in the middle. Eleven pieces, 2x4-in.
by 16-ft., are nailed to the sills on their edges, two feet
apart, and covered with 1x6-in. tongue-and-groove floor-
ing. For studding for the outer walls use 2x4-in.x9-ft., set
two feet apart center to center. For plates use 2x4-in. by
20-ft. For ceiling joist use 11 pieces 2x4-in.x16-ft., and for
rafters, 22 pieces 2x4-in.x12-ft. Ceil with 1x4-in. tongue-
and-groove ceiling. Enclose the building with ix10-inch
shiplap. Cover the rafters with 1x6-in. sheathing laid two
inches apart, and shingle. Put in on either side two 3x3-
ft. windows, placed five feet above the floor. Build the
frames for the windows to admit opening them by slid-
ing. These windows cannot be hung on hinges, since the
inner room would interfere in opening them. Now, draw
a line around the entire room two feet from the wall. On
this line at intervals of four feet place 2x3-in.x9-ft. stud-
ding. Ceil both sides of the studding with 1x4-in. ceiling.
Put in two ventilator windows, 2x2-ft., 5-in., in each side
directly opposite the outer windows and close them with

81

doors made of matched ceiling. Hang these ventilators
with 4-inch strap hinges at the lower edge. To open
them, tip them back from the top by means of a cord.

“The door is in the north end and leads into an air
space (A) two feet in width, extending around the inner
room (D), which is entered through the door (F), which
is directly opposite the outer door. The inner room (D)
contains six 250-egg incubators (EEE). CC are the win-
dows in the outer wall and are directly opposite and at the
same height as the ventilator windows (BBB) in the
inner double wall.

“We regard this incubator house a success, securing
as it does an even temperature and purest air, both of
which are indispensable in the hatching of chicks or tur-
keys by artificial methods.”

It will be noticed that this house is described as be-
ing 16 by 20 feet, though in the floor plan the width is in-
dicated as 18 feet, which no doubt is an oversight, as the
proportions correspond to the printed descriptions. In
the bill of materials the amount of flooring, ceiling, etc.,
as specified, represents only the surface to be
covered, and about one-fourth should be added
to the estimates to cover matching and other
shrinkage.

The original house built as here described was
found to be too warm when all the incubators
were running and it is necessary to keep the
windows open most of the time. It also was nec-
essary to install a King ventilating system (see
page 23) to carry off the lamp fumes and keep
the air fresh and pure. With this change the
house gives good satisfaction and certairmy is
more convenient than a cellar.

In considering this plan it should be remem-
bered that the climate of Western Washington
is comparatively mild and less provision need be
made for warmth than will be found necessary in
many sections of the country. The plan of hav-
ing the entrance door on the north side is de-
sirable in warm climates, but where severe win-
ters are the ruie it will be better to have it on
the south side. Under such conditions also,
building the house with a single board floor will
not be satisfactory. If a board floor is used at
all, it should be doubled, with heavy insulating
material between top floor and sub-floor, and the space
between floor and ground should be tightly enclosed by
banking up around the building with earth. A concrete
floor will be much better for use in cold climates, and
probably will be no more expensive.

MAMMOTH INCUBATOR HOUSES

Houses for “Mammoths” Should Be Planned Expressly
for the Type of Machine That is to Be
Installed in Them.

Sectional, hot water heated incubators, commonly
called “mammoths”, have come into extensive use in all
parts of the country in recent years. These machines
make it possible to reduce the labor cost of operating incu-
bators, which is a serious item where tens and even hun-
dreds of thousands of eggs are incubated at one time.
Small-sized mammoths, that is, machines consisting of
only a few sections, may be successfully installed in any
large cellar, and where the method of construction or
heating permits, the sections may be carried around
corners or arranged in two or more rows, facing each
other, or back to back, thus making it possible to install
such machines when the cellar is not long enough to take
all the sections in one straight line.

82 POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

¢ Te |

FIG. 159—FLOOR PLAN OF BROODER ROOM IN COMBINATION INCU

As the manufacturers of the various mammoths on the
market usually supply incubator house plans free of charge
to their customers, it is not necessary to show detailed
drawings here. However, the requirements of mammoth
incubators generally do not vary in any essential respect
from lamp-heated machines. The house illustrated in
Figs. 153 to 156, with its dimensions modified to adapt it
to the kind and size of incubators to be installed, will
prove just as satisfactory for mammoths as for small
machines. There is no better means of ventilating any
incubator cellar than by providing a suitable number of
ventilating flues, installed as shown in Fig. 153. By
means of these, fresh air is discharged into the room at
the floor level and the foul air is discharged through ad-
justable window openings near the ceiling.

As most of the work of filling sections, testing eggs,
etc., usually is done right in front of the machine, it is
especially convenient to have good, wide passageways so
there will be no interference with the work._ A large
work table on small rubber-tired wheels will prove a great
time and labor saver. It also is desirable to have a room
at the front of the building where eggs for hatching can
be stored; also various articles of equipment that will be
needed in the regular daily care of the machine. This
should be partitioned off from the hatching room proper,
so that the temperature can be 1egulated as desired.

l

BATOR AND BROODER HOUSE
COMBINATION INCUBATOR AND BROODER
HOUSE
A Good Way to Build Where Chicks Are Raised in
Large Numbers.

The combination of incubator cellar and brooder
house is one that is popular with many, as it brings all
the hatching and brooding work under one roof. The
house shown in Fig. 160 is of this type. It is in regular use
on the Fishing Creek Poultry Farm (Penna.), of which
R. H. Loveland is pioprietor. This house is 25x76 feet,
the basement is substantially constructed, with concrete
walls, and extends sufficiently above the ground level so
that it is well lighted and ventilated. The cellar is en-
tered through an enclosed vestibule and contains three
10,000 egg machines (one single and two double-decked).
The upper part of the house is used as a nursery for
chicks, where they have comfortable, convenient quarters
and where they remain until they are sold or have passed
the danger point, when they are placed out on range.

The brooder room is equipped with a water-boiler,
the heating system consisting of six 1%4-inch overhead
hover pipes running the entire length of the house. These
are enclosed in a brooding-box 18 inches high and 3% feet
wide, with a curtain along the front, or the side next to
the runs. The flow pipes are next to the passageway and
the return pipes next to the hover curtain, which gives a
range of about 10 degrees under the
hover, enabling the chicks to find
just the temperature that suits them.
The heat is maintained at about 100
degrees in the warmest part under
the hover, for newly hatched chicks,
but close to the curtain it is not more
than 85 to 90. The floor plan of this
brooding room is shown in Fig. 159,
from which it will be seen that the
house pens are 6x17™% feet, affording
room for 300 chicks in each, though
400 may be accommodated when nec-
essary. The chicks are kept in this
brooder room about three weeks,
after which they are moved to colony
houses, So that they can get out on
the ground. As this building is lo-
cated it is not possible to have out-
door runs attached to it.

In many respects this is an ideal

FIG. 160—COMBINATION INCUBATOR AND BROODER HOUSE
Photo from R. H. Loveland.

way in which to handle chicks in large
numbers, for the first three or four
weeks of their lives.

CH A PT Bike xX

Administration and Other Special Buildings

Large Poultry Plants Need Various Special Purpose Buildings for Handllng the Work Efficiently—This Chapter Illus-
trates and Describes a Complete Administration Building With Fattening Shed; Also, Cockerel and Condi-
tioning House, Fattening Crates and Batteries, Manure Shed, Etc.—Instructions for Equip-

ping the Feed House With Labor-Saving Conveniences.

N poultry farms of small size it generally will be
found more economical, and more convenient as
well, to provide suitable storage room for feed,
equipment, etc., in the barn, as suggested on page

9. On large plants, however, it is desirable to have
a special house for this purpose, usually building it in
connection with laying pens, or as a part of a general ad-
ministration building, such as is illustrated and described
elsewhere in this chapter. Wherever the feed room is
built, it should be suitably provided with labor-saving
appliances, convenient feed bins, etc.

Combination Laying and Feed House
The combination laying and feed house shown in
Fig. 161 has been in successful use at the West Virginia
Experiment Station for several years, and has a number
of features that adapt it to general use. The feed house
is placed in the center of a six-pen laying house. It is
somewhat wider than the latter, and is one and a half

stories in height, with a high gable which provides a lib-

eral amount of storage room on the second floor. Grain,
litter, and similar materials are. hoisted to the second
floor by means of rope and pulley.

The first floor of the feed house generally can be

used to best advantage for the sto1ing of heavy grains,
such as shelled corn and wheat, and bone cutters, feed
mills, cooking appliances, feed mixers, etc., will be in-
stalled here, if any are used. Lighter materials, such as
ground feeds, baled litter, etc., may be stored above. A
convenient plan is to have bins for ground grains on the
second floor, these bins being provided with chutes which
conduct the contents to the lower floor where they may
be drawn off as wanted. Where a feed house is built, it
is always desirable to provide a cellar underneath for
storing roots, cabbage, or other green foods for winter
use, or for sprouting oats. Such a cellar will be found
almost as great a convenience as the house itself. An
outside door should be provided for convenience in filling
the cellar, and an inside stairway for ordinary use.

Feed House

Various articles of equipment may be used in the feed
house and, as a rule, it pays to provide whatever will save
As the requirements of poultry keepers

Equipment for the

time or labor.

AND

LAYING

FIG. 161—COMBINATION FEED

HOUSE

vary widely in respect to these, and as such equipment
usually is purchased piece by piece as the need for it be-
comes apparent, it is not practicable to furnish an item-
ized list of needed appliances, further than to mention the
few that should be in every feed house, large or small.

For mixing quantities of feed on the floor of the
house, nothing is better than a medium-sized scoop
shovel. For small quantities of mash, wet or dry, a mix-
ing box should be provided. This should be made of
hard, closely-grained wood that will not readily absorb
moisture. The boards for the floor of the box should be
selected with care, choosing those that are edge-grained
rather than flat-grained, as the latter are apt to become
splintered and rough after they have been in use for a
short time. This mixing box should be about two feet
wide and should have straight sides twelve inches high,
with the ends sets sloping. It is not easy to mix feed
in boxes with square ends. For mixing wet mashes a
large garden hoe and an ordinary dirt shovel or a spade
will be found serviceable. One more galvanized
bushel baskets and a few 12 to 16-inch galvanized pails
are needed on every poultry plant.

or

Where corn is bought on the ear, it usually is desir-
able to have a corn sheller, and where fresh meat
butchers’ scraps can be secured to good advantage. a bone
cutter becomes a necessity. There are few
which the poultryman can crack and grind his feeds as
cheaply as he can buy them at the feed mill or store, but
a small mill for preparing special feeds often proves a
convenience and a time-saver. In all cases where home
mixtures are prepared, or where feed is ground at local
mills, some means of sifting should be provided. The
use of unsifted cracked grain, in particular, is a wasteful
practice.

There are a variety of uses to which a good feed
cooker can be put, such as cooking vegetables, steaming
for providing hot water to meet the

or

cases in

clover, etc.; also
numerous requirements of the average poultry plant in
wintertime. While somewhat more expensive than the
ordinary sheet-metal feed cooker, a small boiler that will
furnish steam for cooking, heating water, etc. will be
found much more convenient in the long run.

Plenty of well-constructed bins should be provided in

AT WEST VIRGINIA EXPERIMENT STATION

a
wo

162—CONVENIENT BINS IN FEED HOUSE

FIG.

Above illustration shows a convenient arrangement
of feed bins, which in this case are built with a 6-inch
space between bins and floor and walls, to allow cir-
culation of air. Illustration shows two bins with the
fronts down for filling and two with receiving boxes in
place, ready for shovelling out feed.

the feed house, and these should be large enough to meet
all probable requirements without carrying the sides too
high. It should not be necessary to have to lift grain
bags more than shoulder high in order to empty them.
The plan of having bins for ground grains on the sec-
ond floor, with chutes to conduct contents to the feed-
mixing room on the ground floor, has already been sug-

POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

made thoroughly tight on all sides, using well-seasoned
T. & G. boards. Lumber should be used that is not liable
to split, as it is necessary to use large-sized nails and a
good many of them to make these partitions strong
enough to withstand the heavy pressure to which they
will be subjected. Bin fronts should consist of loose
boards sliding in a groove so that they can readily be re-
moved and replaced for ease in filling and emptying. The
bottom board in the front should have a sliding door
large enough to admit a scoop shovel. It is easier to
shovel from the bottom of the bin than to lift the feed
out over a high partition. See that the boards forming
the floor of the bin run from front to back, instead of
from side to side, for convenience in shoveling.

Another way of arranging feed bins is shown in Fig.
162. Here the bins are built independently of the house,
with a 6-inch air space between flours and walls to pro-
tect contents from dampness. The bins can be filled from
the top, which is hinged, and the fronts also are made
with an upper hinged section to be let down for greater
ease in filling. A receiving box is provided so that when
door at bottom of bin is opened the contents will not
run out on the floor. This box is so made that it can be
pushed back under the bin floor, out of the way, when
not needed.

It is always desirable to make the feed room of am-
ple dimensions, as it frequently is necessary to spread
new grain or damp feed of any kind loosely on the floor,
rather than to put it in bins where it will quickly heat
and mold. This is particularly true in the case of corn
meal and new shelled or cracked corn, which can seldom
be placed in large bins with safety. For storing ear corn
in the fall it is desirable to have a ventilated crib of slats
or wire screen so that air can circulate through it. If it
is to be stored in a feed house or a limited supply kept
for immediate use in the poultry house, the sides of the
bin should be made of wire screen or l-inch mesh poultry
netting, rather than of tight boards.

ADMINISTRATION BUILDING FOR LARGE
PLANTS
Large Plants Need a House Like This One Where Much
of the Daily Work Can Be Performed Under

One Roof.
The house plans illustrated and described in the pre-
ceding pages, cover all practical requirements of the aver-

gested. Wherever the bins are located, they should be age poultry plant, large or small, as regards accommoda-
—— 30°* — ——— —— ~ - 3o’e —_——
J ; i I
a4 —-— —— Jol?
SS 7= = = YEG a a — =I

ES

1 Cement Floor
ye
ae
I] @Drain

wee

Cory FRCOT

i — A

Refrigerator
A Room

| ea
Le Ruling Stands]

FATTENING 7P°OM

fattening Creates

k Af Pee Gat

os

S/oping Buithead
With Door To
cellar

hil
1 PL
batty

\

FIG. 1683—FIRST FLOOR PLAN

IN

ADMINISTRATION BUILDING

ADMINISTRATION AND OTHER SPECIAL BUILDINGS

tions for brooder chicks, laying
flocks, breeding pens, etc. There are
few large poultry farms, however,

that do not require a large, central-
ly located house where feeds and
miscellaneous supplies can be stored
and in or about which can conveni-
ently be grouped facilities that are
necessary for efficiently administer-
ing the work of the farm. Generally
such a building should be planned on
a sufficiently large scale to provide
ample storage on the ground floor,
with a room for killing and dressing
table fowls. A basement will afford
for incubators at much less
cost than the construction of a sepa-

room

ie
' (o'x ~
GESS COA inn!
6° STONE WALL. *~ be’,
LAIDDRY ALL
BELOW GRADE !
v g/s

o

zit %

sor

uF

Killing Stand

/NCUBATOR F°°7

Drain From

rate building for this special purpose.

A second floor will provide comfort- $
able quarters for one or more of the &
men employed on the place, and an 3
extension may be added on one side & /
for a long brooder house to be vy,
equipped with lamp-heated hovers,

colony hovers or a_ hot-water pipe
brooding system. On the other side

an extension for crate feeding table
fowls will be found most convenient

when these are to be produced in
considerable numbers.
Such an administration house is

illustrated and described on this and
following pages. It is large enough to meet the require-

ments of quite an extensive farm and needs only to be
reduced proportionately all round to adapt it to a much
Any competent carpenter will

smaller place. be able

FIG. 164—CELLAR FLOOR PLAN IN ADMINISTRATION BUILDING

readily to make the needed changes and adapt the bill
of materials to lesser proportions.

Fig. 164 gives the floor plan of the incubator cellar
which is large enough to accommodate 20 to 30 large-
sized lamp-heated incubators, or two mammoths if they
are preferred. Where extra-large hatching capacity is
required, the cellar can be extended under the fattening
room, thus doubling its size. The ventilation of this cellar
is not indicated in drawing but the plan shown on page
79 should be followed. Build the intake flues into the
concrece or stune foundation wall, however, thus mak-
ing them practically indestructible. Where there is no
sewerage system available it will be necessary to provide
a cesspool or septic tank outside the building to take
the waste from the killing room, men’s toilet, etc., and

NIATITA

Dye yee Let Le

| hl ee
j=---

| (hee saa

| fil =
—— |

FIG.165

SIDE ELEVATION OF ADMINISTRATION BUILDING FOR LARGE POULTRY FARM

88 POULTRY HOUSES AND

number of fowls are to be fed, the
noise which they make when all the
birds are feeding at one time is often
considered objectionable as it is lia-
ble to cause disturbance among the
fowls.

Fattening crates do not have to be
located in a house but may be kept :

in any sort of shed or, in mild
weather, may be placed outdoors in
the shade in any convenient, quiet

spot. It is only necessary to throw
a couple of boards or a strip of roof-
ing over the top to keep the rain out,
in order to make the birds comfort-
able.

Where fowls are to be fattened in

large numbers the use of portable
feeding batteries, which can be

bought ready-made, is recommended.
A battery consists of 8 to 16 separ-
ate compartments, each holding sev-
eral fowls. They usually are made
with woven-wire and with
droppings pans under each compart-
ment, so arranged that they may be
removed easily for cleaning. Each
battery rests on castors or small
wheels, by means of which it may
readily be moved wherever wanted.

The battery shown in Fig. 170 has a double tier of
coops containing 16 compartments in all, and is capable of
accommodating in the neighborhood of 100 fowls—mcre
than that number if small, and less if full grown. The
feeding troughs with this battery are of galvanized iron
and the floors are of wire, which offers no chance for the
droppings to stick to the feet of the fowls. The drop-
rings trays are of wood. =

floors

A COCKEREL HOUSE
A House for Surplus Cockerels and for Wintering Breed-
ing Males.
For Fitting Exhibition Fowls.

Where fowls are bred in large numbers, there is
always need for a building in which the surplus males
may be kept when
not wanted in the
breeding pens,
where exhibition
birds may be fitted
and trained, and
where fowls of any
sort may be cooped
individually when it
is desirable to do
so. Plans for such
a house are shown
in Figs. 176 and
177. This house is
13x60 feet in the
clear and provides
room for 120
coops,

Convenient Conditioning Room,

indi-
vidual each
1 foot, 8 inches by
3 feet, and 2 feet 2
inches high. Coops
of this size afford
ample room for sin-

FIG.

173—INTERIOR OF COCK-
EREL HOUSE

. 174—CROSS SECTION OF FATTENING

FIXTURES

SHED IN ADMINISTRA-
TION

BUILDING

gle individuals, or for two or three small or medium sized
birds for a short time, if they get along peaceably to-
gether. In addition to the coops there is a conditioning
room at one end of the building and room at each end of
the cooping room for storage of food, litter, etc.

Fig. 176 shows the floor plan of the building. The
provision for 17 2-sash windows may seem excessive but
it must be remembered that much more window surface is
required to light numerous small pens than would be
needed for one large open room.

Pen floors arid partitions are to be of tongue-and-
groove ceiling boards nailed to 7gx2-in. strips as shown in
cross section. The pen fronts are to be of a good grade
of wire fencing with the upright wires spaced about two
inches apart and the joints welded or fastened with wire
locks so that there will be no sharp wire ends to injure
combs or cut neck feathers. The pen doors are of the
same material and arranged as in Fig. 175, which makes
their construction quite simple. Fig. 173 is from a photo-
graph of a house built in accordance with this plan but
considerably larger
than the one shown
in the drawing. In
cold climates this
house should be
built with double
walls, the inside
wall being of
tongue - aud -groove
ceiling and warmly
constructed through-
out. In
stances a concrete
floor should be pro-
vided. but the lower
pens should have
board floors, laid on
l-inch furring to
make an air space

most in-

2f' ‘Facing’ All Around

FIG. 175—PEN FRONT IN COCK-

EREL HOUSE

ADMINISTRATION AND OTHER SPECIAL BUILDINGS 89

* co" + YB" —+»

77 1 se ——— a

Wasting ana Ci ond tioning

Room

Go ” 60> x 60"

HK
*

oo

n

*
ar]
ON
s
:
*
~
aS

!

2
8
Ly
x
g
2
mh
uv
ee
®
‘
8
wv
ws
a
&
>
*
B

== C/o"-———_-4
*
Tr =r I a’) =a = 2 HE = { = mi} = :
= Go Bae + 60" ¥ 60 ee 2S
FIG. 176—FLOOR PLAN OF COCKEREL HOUSE
between concrete and pen floors. The following is the A DRYING COOP
bill of materials required for this cockerel house. Will Pay for Itself in a Season if Many Fowls Are to

Be Fitted for Exhibition. Can Be Equipped
for Oil Heater.
Inches Feet Pieces

Ren A AG The specially constructed drying coop shown in Fig.

+ Poet 14 2 178 is a most convenient piece of equipment for the con-
2x4 10 12
. 2x4 10 34

BILL OF MATERIALS FOR COCKEREL HOUSE

Size Length No. of

Use Remarks

Sills, sides
Sills, ends
Pilates) 2s
Stuas, front

Studs, rear _.. . 2x4 12 17 1 piece cuts 2.
seen ends & sche ee ae an Cut to fit.
ACIS) ccose sce -crecea eee 2x
Window and door
sills 6
als poate x 7 ie meas. Surfaced.
siding 5 . meas
Ceiling " . bd. meas.
Flooring for pens,
Rios etch) eee. Iyx4 1200 ft. bd. meas.
Furring for floors
G os porrom Pens ass 275 lin. ft. Surfaced.
elling oaras or
ets meee ae 7x4 1600 ft. bd. meas.
oor and window
Bomes peers 300 lin. ft. Surfaced 4 sides.
rips base o
windows ......:..--.-: Vex 75 lin. ft. Surfaced 4 sides.
eetner strip 100 lin. ft. Surfaced 4 sides.
rim oards for
Ae fronts.. bee me lin. ft. Surfaced 4 sides.
squares prepared roofing.
12 squares sheathing paper.
17 2-sash windows, 12-light, 10x12-inch glass.
420 sq. ft. heavy wire fencing, for pen fronts.
12 anchor bolts, %x12-inch, with 2-inch washers.
BE 8-inch T-strap hinges.
asps.

17 pr. 2-inch butt hinges for top sash.
Plumbing for washing room.

Nails, double-pointed tacks and paint. FIG. 178—DRYING COOP USED IN FITTING FOWLS
MATERIALS FOR FOUNDATION AND FLOOR FOR SHOW ROOM
90 bags Portland cement. a4 E s
2006 cu. ft. of sand. ; ditioning house. The size will be regulated by the num-
Beomcu. its crushedstonegemieneuel: arr ber of fowls that are to be handled, but the one here

200 cu. ft. crushed stone or gravel for filling.
shown in about three feet wide,

three feet deep and five to six feet
long. As will be seen, it is warmed by
means of hot water pipes in the bot-
tom, the heat being supplied by a
small gas burner. Perches are pro-
vided on which the fowls perch while
drying and underneath are trays for
the droppings. With the front cur-
tains down the temperature can be
quickly raised to any desired point
and held there quite uniformly by oc-

SSSSSSSSSSISssSEsS tS

casionally consulting the thermome-
ter suspended in the chamber. Mak-
ing use of a drying closet like this

Cy"

will be found much better than the

SSSoSSS SESISSESS
——j

laborious method of fanning, and
better too than placing the birds in
an open coop in a warm room and
leaving them there ta dry out slowly.

a = KaSSa é i

BESO Se BBE EP ae aheht AE e ee Ome e3 2th When gas is not available for use it

ae mist = = ‘a $ . . .

K_toncrete Floor will not be difficult to adapt a good
FIG. 177—CROSS SECTION OF COCKEREL HOUSE blue flame oil burner to the purpose.

90 POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

CONCRETE MANURE SHED
Save the Droppings and Make Them a Source of
Added Profit.

By DR. RAYMOND PEARL *

One of the most valuable by-products of any live-
stock industry is the manure. Its proper care and use is
one of the distinguishing features of a successful stock
farm. The high nitrogen content of poultry droppings
makes them in certain respects the most valuable of farm
manure. At the same time this quality necessitates special
treatment to preserve the nitrogen and utilize it econom-
ically.

This Station (Maine) recently built at its poultry
plant a manure shed large enough to accommodate the
droppings from one thousand adult birds over a period of
a year; also the droppings collected from the range where
three thousand chicks are annually reared. The inside
measurements of this shed are 7x12 feet. It is 5 feet high

roof boards and gables. The roof is covered with roofing
paper. In one side of the roof are two trap doors also
covered with this roofing. Each of these doors is 2 feet
4 inches by 2 feet 10 inches and fits over a frame in the
roof, to which it is hinged at the top. The end of a lath
is attached by a double screweye to the inside of each
door at the right edge, about half way from bottom to
top. The edge of this lath is provided with notches
which hook over a nail on the inside of the door frame.
When hooked this lath holds the door open. A 2x4
strip is nailed across the inside of each door frame a lit-
tle more than half way from bottom to top. This serves
as a rest for the basket when droppings are emptied into
the shed.

This shed is placed at the end of the line of poultry
houses and the raised walk which extends along the en-
tire front of the houses is continued past the shed and
built on an incline, so that at the end of the shed it is
only 1 foot 8 inches from the eaves.

HOSPITAL FOR SICK FOWLS

Every person who keeps large
numbers of fowls needs a special iso-
lated building where sick or injured
birds can receive treatment. This
hospital should be conveniently lo-
cated, and properly equipped for the
work. Do not make the mistake of
selecting some old building for this
use simply because it is worthless
for any other purpose. It is imprac-
tical to bother with hospital cases at
all, unless a convenient building is
provided in which to do the work,
and in which the fowls can be kept
comfortable.

Sick or injured fowls should never
be penned together in flocks, but
should have small individual coops
similar to those shown in the cock-
erel house described elsewhere in
this chapter. An ideal fowl hospital
can be provided by building a section

FIG. 179—CONCRETE MANURE SHED
Photo from Maine Exp. Station.

at the eaves and 8 feet 2 inches to the peak of the roof.
See Fig. 179. The foundation is a solid block of cement
and rock smoothed off at the ground level to form the
floor. At the edges of the foundation the cement is con-
tinued up into the wall forms which were built so that
the walls are 10 inches thick at the base and six at the
top. The droppings are thrown into the shed through
trap doors in the roof, and taken out from one end, which
is of removable plank. The cement wall in the plank end
is continued far enough from either corner to provide a
place for the slot into which the planks are slipped. This
slot is a groove two inches deep and a little more than
two inches wide, and is formed by placing an angle iron
post within the board forms.

The gables are of boards. The gable at the open or
plank end of the shed is removable, to give more head
room when shoveling the manure into carts. It is held
in place with hooks. The roof is secured to the walls by
bolts and rings, as shown in Fig. 179. The plates and
rafters are of 2x4 timbers. Inch boards were used for

* Condensed from Maine Station Bulletin No. 216.

of this cockerel house of suitable
size. For small numbers the width
can be reduced to about eight feet,
with coops along the rear wall and
across the ends, but always leave an operating room not
less than five feet in width along the front, where there
should be provided an operating table and a set of
shelves stocked with suitable remedies, disinfectants, and
such other materials as are needed in caring for the sick
or injured fowls. For convenience in cleaning, the bottom
bar of the coop front should be two or three inches above
the floor so that all litter, droppings, etc., may be easily
scraped into a suitable pan or trough on the outside.
This opening should be closed by a narrow door to pre-
vent the litter from being scratched out by the fowls.

The hospital building should have a concrete floor and,
in cold climates, should be double-walled and provided
with some means of heating it. Sick fowls are not
able to stand the degree of cold that healthy fowls find
entirely comfortable, and if special treatment is to be
given, the operator will find it much more satisfactory
to be able to warm the house to a comfortable temper-
ature.

CHA Pi Bano x

Interior Fixtures and Equipment

Practically Everything Needed to Equip the Poultry House is Here Illustrated and Described—Partitions and How to
Build Them—Location of Perches and Nests—Various Types of Nests for Layers—Trap Nests for the
Breeding Pens—Feed Troughs and Hoppers, Water Vessels, Trolleys, Oat Sprouters,

Advantages of Winter Illumination—Coops for Broody Hens, Etc.

OST of the poultry house plans given in this book
are simple and plain almost to the point of bare-
ness. This is not due to any failure to appre-
ciate the importance of suitable fixtures and

equipment, but because in plans intended for general use
it is better to omit everything that is not clearly essen-
tial and leave it to each individual to add, from time to
time, such labor-saving features as his own experience
and his particular needs indicate will be necessary or
helpful. About everything that is likely to be required
in the way of fixtures and equipment, inside and out-
side of the poultry house, will be found described and
illustrated in the following pages, and it is a simple
matter to adapt any of them for use in the house plans
already presented.

Simplicity in the poultry house is desirable, but sim-
plicity may be overdone. It is well to recall, now and
then, that the house and its facilities are provided as much
for the convenience of the attendant as for the use of the
fowls, and anything that will make the work of caring for
the fowls easier should by all means be installed. Time
and labor-saving equipment about the poultry plant is of
the first importance, especially where fowls are kept in
large numbers, and it is a serious mistake to fail to pro-
vide anything that will save time or make the work lighter.

For the most part, the equipment of the poultry house
should be simply made, and easily removable for cleaning.
This does not apply to such fixtures as partitions between
pens or along alleyways, which are properly a part of the
house and should be permanently constructed. As a rule,
this also applies to the droppings platform and nest sup-
ports. These can be made movable, but it is simpler and
easier to fasten them in place. If the house becomes in-
fested with lice and mites, it is, of course, desirable to be
able to take everything out for thorough treatment, but
there is no practical advantage in an arrangement which
involves continual inconvenience because it would be de-
sirable to be able to throw everything out of the house in

FIG. 180—INTERIOR OF WELL-EQUIPPED LAYING
HOUSE

Department of Agriculture.

Photo from U. S.

the event of its sometime being overrun with mites—a
condition that need never be encountered with reasonable
care. It is better to determine to take the proper pre-
ventive measures from the start, and if that is done there
will never be any occasion for the unpleasant job of
emptying the house out to fight lice and mites.

FIG. 181—PEN FRONT IN HOUSE WITH PASSAGEWAY

PASSAGEWAYS AND PARTITIONS
When Passageways Should Be Used. Planning Them to
Save Labor. Partitions That Protect
the Fowls.

Where passageways are provided it is possible to in-
corporate a number of features that will aid greatly in
the work of caring for the fowls. A practical plan for a
passageway partition is shown in Fig. 181. This partition
is nailed permanently to studs, the spacing of which will
be determined, of course, by-the width of the pens. The
baseboard should be at least six to eight inches in width
and better if ten inches, as the fowls will scratch the litter
out into the passageway and the feed trough if the board
is too narrow.

The feed trough is provided especially for use where
a wet mash is fed, but it will be found convenient also for
feeding kitchen scraps, green food, and various other arti-
cles, and for that reason should be provided even though
it is the intention to supply the mash dry in hoppers. The
square frame next to the trough is to support the water
vessel, which may be a bucket or crock. Place the vessel
about.as high as the fowls can well reach so as to keep
the litter from being scratched into it. It is a good plan
to provide a platform on the inside for the fowls to stand
on, making it about a foot high and with the water
vessel correspondingly raised.

The upright pieces may be of two-inch strips surfaced
and the edges rounded so that the fowls’ neck feathers
will not be worn off by rubbing against sharp corners.
These slats should be about 22 to 24 inches long, if nailed
on, as shown in the illustration. A neater way of fasten-
ing them is to cut them the exact length of the space be-
tween A and B (about 18 inches) and set them with the
face of the strips flush with the front of A and B, toenail-
ing them in place, or nailing to back-strips attached to the

91

a

inside faces of A and B and extending beyond them about
half an inch, thus providing supports for the top and bot-
tom of the uprights.

Above strip B is an eight-inch board which forms the
door into the nests, by means of which the eggs may be
gathered without entering the different pens. Strip D
should be four inches wide and above it is another door

BAN

ig entire |}

IU
lensth of building ——->3f

UZ

6"door runnin

SSN

SSIS

FIG. 182—DETAIL OF CONSTRUCTION OF DROP-
PINGS PLATFORM, PERCHES, AND NESTS

opening flush with the top of the droppings platform so
that the droppings may be scraped directly into a box or
trough provided for the purpose and which can be wheeled
readily from one pen to another. This door should be
about 12 inches wide and is hinged to the four-inch strip
(F) above.

In the illustration the partition from this point to the
top is wire netting, but it is a much better plan to make
it of heavy muslin, or at least to provide a curtain of this
material that can be used in cold weather to protect the
fowls from drafts when on the perches. The door into
the pen, which is indicated on the right, should be at least
2% feet wide, and should be constructed with a framé of
four-inch lumber with wire netting to cover it. There
sheuld be an 8 to 12-inch baseboard, which should be
made movable, supporting it by means of cleats, so that
it can be taken out and the dirt on the pen floor swept
out into the passage.

PARTITIONS

The style of partition shown in Fig. 64 will be found
suited to the requirements of most persons. The base
of the partition should always be at least two feet high
end built tight to prevent the fowls from being distracted
by whatever may be going on in the adjoining pens, and
aJso to prevent floor drafts. Next to the rear wall the
partition is carried up tight to the rafters and should ex-
tend one or two feet beyond the front perch. This forms
a sort of open closet for the perches, helping to keep the
fowls warm on cold nights and screening them from direct
air currents. The rest of the partition may be of two-inch
netting carried up to the rafters.

As a rule, the best place for the partition door is close
to the front, so that the attendant may pass through from

92 POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

one pen to another with the least possible disturbance to
the fowls. Partition doors should be wide—not less than
2% feet—wider is better—so that it will be possible to go
through without crowding, or to use a wheelbarrow in
cleaning out the pens. Use double-acting spring hinges, if
possible, as they save time and trouble and the doors are
sure to close, If spring doors are not used, attach
weights to the doors so that they will stay shut without
having to be fastened, or use the simple door fastener
shown in Fig. 213 on page 101.

DROPPINGS PLATFORMS AND NESTS
Why Droppings Platforms Are Provided. How to Build
Convenient Laying Nests.

Droppings platforms should be located about 2% to
3 feet above the pen floor, unless heavy fowls are to
be kept, in which case they should not be over two feet.
With the platform 2% to 3 feet high there is room
for nests under the platform, which is the most desirable
place for them, as a rule. Platform boards should always
run the short way of the platform, or in the direction in
which the droppings are to be scraped out, which makes
cleaning much easier. Use tongue-and-groove boards
with a smooth surface, such as flooring boards, and re-
member that the lumber will swell when the droppings be-
gin to accumulate on them, for which reason the boards
should not be driven up tight together, but left with room
to expand. Platforms should always be built level, not
sloping, and should extend fully a foot beyond the front
perch.

Platforms are provided in order to keep the droppings
from mixing with the litter, also to make the floor space
under the perches available for scratching purposes. They
should be supported on 2x4 stringers, front and back, so
that the platform will always hold its shape and remain
level. One-inch lumber when used for this purpose will
bend under the weight of the platform and must be sup-
ported at frequent intervals. Numerous supports are a
nuisance in cleaning the floor, however, and it is better
to use 2x4 stringers, in which case the upright supports
may be spaced at least eight feet apart.

A Manure Pit for the Laying House
In some instances droppings platforms are omitted
and a 10-inch board is placed on edge on the pen floor,
about a foot in front of the perches. The droppings are
allowed to fall on the floor and accumulate there until it
is convenient to remove them: By this plan it is possible

FIG. 1883—MANURE PIT TO TAKE THE PLACE OF
DROPPINGS PLATFORM
Reproduced from Ex. Bul. 16, Clemson (S. C.) Agr. Col.

to avoid the frequent cleaning that is necessary where
platforms are used, and if earth or fine litter is sprinkled
over the droppings often enough to keep them dry, they
may be allowed to accumulate for a considerable time be-
fore there will be any noticeable odor. The following de-

INTERIOR FIXTURES AND EQUIPMENT

scription of a manure pit designed to take the place of
the droppings platform, and to facilitate cleaning out the
droppings, is given by Prof. F. C. Hare in Extension
Bulletin 16, Clemson (S. C.) Agricultural College:

“The dropboard under the roosts to prevent the ma-
nure of the roosting fowls soiling the floor, answers the
purpose for which it is designed, but it is unsightly.
With small flocks, a frequent scraping of the dropboard
will keep it presentable, but, unless large dropboards are
cleaned daily, the accumulation of manure from a flock
of several hundred hens becomes quite objectionable in
even a few days. To remove the manure daily requires
labor and time that frequently cannot be provided in busy
seasons.

“T have designed a manure pit from which the ma-
nure can be hauled away in a wagon. It is unnecessary to
remove the manure more often than once a month if the
moisture is absorbed, and during this time the manure
cannot be seen by anyone walking through the house.
To absorb the moisture, the manure is covered every few
days with an inch of dry earth or sand. This procedure
is identical with that prescribed for making a compost
bed for fertilizing the garden, so that the manure is being
improved while it is being collected in sufficient quantity
to warrant hauling it away.

“The floor and 12 inches of the front and rear walls
of the manure pit should be built of concrete. A good
formula is: one part of cement, 2% parts of clean, sharp
sand, five parts of coarse gravel. The remaining, or up-
per two feet of the front wall, is made of lumber. The
roosts are fastened together in sections to slide forward
out of the way, or the sections are hinged to the front
wall of the pit and raised with a cord. The manure is
removed through a door in the rear. In long houses a
door for this purpose is put in every 20 feet.

“A road should be made at the rear, or north side of
the house, for the use of the horse and manure wagon.
The manure and earth, collected in this way once a
month, or when required, can be taken to the vegetable
or flower garden and used at once. It is an excellent
fertilizer. If you wish still further to improve it, sprinkle
16 per cent of acid phosphate over the manure just be-
fore you cover it with earth. The acid hastens the ripe-
ning of the manure.” See Fig. 183 for cross-section of
house with manure pit as herein described.

Perch Supports
There are various methods of supporting the perches.
Under most conditions it is desirable to have the roosts
back as close as possible to the rear wall, in which case

FIG. 184—SATISFACTORY WALL NESTS

93

4’3"
FIG. 185—FRONT ELEVATION OF WALL NESTS

they may be supported over the platform, either as shown
in Fig. 85, where metal lice-proof perch holders are used,
or by means of a horizontal bar suitably notched, the bar
being supported in front ona short leg or block and inthe
rear by a four-inch strap hinge, by means of which the
perches may readily be raised when the platform is to be
cleaned. If the perches are not too long the supporting
bar can be attached directly to the sidewalls, but it
is not desirable to have perches over 12 feet in length, un-
less they are supported in the middle. Instead of hinges,
the horizontal bars often are suspended from the rafters
by a stout wire at each end. This arrangement makes it
practically impossible for mites to pass back and forth
from walls to perches and nothing but the grossest neg-
lect will permit mites to infest the house.

Perches should be of 2x4 material if over six feet long,
and should be surfaced, and the upper edges of the perches
should always be rounded. Square-cornered perches will
cause corns, which may later develop into bumblefoot.
The back perch should be 10 to 12 inches from the rear
wall and the rest spaced 12 to 14 inches apart. Round
poles with the bark off make good perches, but should be
well seasoned before using, as they are much stiffer than
green poles, which frequently bend so badly as to become
quite uncomfortable for the fowls.

Roosting Closets

In severe climates roosting closets sometimes are a
necessity in order to protect from injury the combs and
wattles of valuable
breeding fowls. Fig.
186 shows a_ sim-
ple way of provid-
ing such a closet by
installing a shutter
in front of the per-

ches, making it

wide enough to

reach from _ drop- se

pings platform to FIG. 186—ROOSTING CLOSET FOR
roof. The shutters LARGE COMBED FOWLS

should be made in sections, as here shown, when the plat-
forms are more than 8 feet long. Do not use heavy ma-
terial for covering the shutters, as it is not desirable to
restrict air circulation more than is necessary to prevent
frosted combs. As a rule, burlap will prove sufficient for
the purpose.

94 . POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

Platform Nests

The platform nests shown in Fig. 182 are easily con-
structed and will be found practical and convenient. The
brackets and bottom boards are permanent while the rest
may readily be removed for cleaning and disinfecting. The
: bottom board is two inches
narrower than the nest par-
titions, so that when these
are in place there will be an
space on each side of
boards, which
makes the self-clean-
ing to some extent. Instead
of placing the front platform
stringer flat, as in the illus-
tration, many prefer to make
the platform two _ inches
higher so that the stringer
may be set on edge, making
the platform more rigid.
Nests should be made of
light-weight material, such
as white pine, for ease in
handling, but do not use too
thin boards. Three-quarter-
inch or 13-16-inch stuff is as
light as it is advisable to
use. Nest boards should be
surfaced on all sides. It is
easier to keep them clean if smooth and it takes less
time and less material to paint them with lice paint or
disinfectants. Do not make the nests too long. A
set of four or five nests is easier handled than when
longer. For a set of platform nests the following material
will be required. .

inch
the bottom
nests

FIG. 187—CROSS SECTION
OF WALL NESTS

BILL OF MATERIALS FOR FIVE PLATFORM NESTS

Door inches 6 lin. feet
Front (below door) inches 6 lin. feet
Nest bottom ..... inches 6 lin. feet
Back strip eae inches 6 lin. feet
Top strip, front and bacl inches 12 lin. feet
Pambi tom sage pete cence ess inches 7 lin. feet
Running board . inches 6 lin. feet
Bracket inches 10 lin. feet
1 pr. 4-inch T-strap hinges.

1 wooden button, ‘ ;
No allowance made for waste in cutting.

Orange Box Nests

Fig. 188 shows how ordinary orange boxes mdy be

utilized as nests. Such nests are a trifle small for large

FIG. 188—NESTS MADE FROM ORANGE BOXES

hens, but for Leghorns they are quite satisfactory. If at-
tached to the wall or partition by means of a couple of
hooks and eyes, as shown in the illustration, they will re-
quire no other support and can be taken out for cleaning
with the slightest possible trouble.

Wall Nests

A good type of nest is shown in Figs. 185 and 187. The
construction is easily understood from these illustrations.
It will be noticed that the bottom board in front of each
set of nests is hinged at the top so that it may be raised
up and the nests conveniently cleaned without moving
them. These boards are held in place by means of small
screw hooks and eyes. Fig. 184 shows a set of 18 wall
nests arranged in three tiers, but for ordinary use eight
nests in two tiers are as many as it is advisable to build
together. For such a set the following lumber is re-
quired:

BILL OF MATERIALS FOR EIGHT WALL NESTS

Tep boards: -=-- awe ste %x10 inches 9 ft. Zein= insitt
Back Boards ...%x10 inches 15 ft. 0 in. lin. ft.
Sidess= = ..%x7T inches 12..f£t, Ovine links
Bottoms %x8 inches 8 ft] 6.in? ins re
Bottoms ........ igx7T inches 8 ft. 6 in. lin. ft.
Running boards 7x6 inches 8 ft 6 int ime ete
Partitions) 2s ...%x12 inches (te 10 inine nee
Front boards, bottom .%x4 inches 8 ft. 6 in. lin. ft.
Front boards, top .-- inches 8 ft. 6 in. lin. ft.
Support for running bds....%x2 inches 7 ft Asing lintett:
Strips) 5. 5-5 es %x% inches 7 ft? Osin sins tt

If T & G boards are used for top, back, ete, get 55

ft. board meas. °
2 pr. 11-inch butt hinges.
4 2-inch hooks and eyes.

No allowance made for waste in cutting.

Sectional Nests.

The nests shown in Fig. 189 are adapted for use either
in the laying house or for sitting hens. They are built
with solid bottoms, backs and ends, and may be stacked

SECTIONAL NESTS

FIG. 189—CONVENIENT
up one on the other in the fashion of sectional bookcases,
which suggests the name. The doors are on hinges and
are supported in a horizontal position by means of strong
cords or wires, and in this position serve as running
boards. They can be closed when necessary, turned to
face the wall, or placed in any other position. They can
be made in sets of two, three or four, though the latter is
not advisable unless light-weight wood is used. For sit-
ting hens they should be made 13 to 15 inches high, and
about 14 inches square.

TRAP NESTS
Plans for Trap Nests That Are Easily Made and
Reliable in Action.

A simple, convenient trap nest that has given the best
of service for many years is shown in Figs. 190, 191 and
192. The hen in entering the nest raises the door slightly,
which releases trigger B in Fig. 191, and as soon as she
has passed from under the door it drops in place and the
hen will have to remain in the nest until released by the
attendant. Fig. 190 shows all the different parts that enter

INTERIOR FIXTURES AND EQUIPMENT 95

into the making of the nest.
studying the illustration:

A. Galvanzied iron door 9x9 inches square. Edges
turned to stiffen. Upper edge has No. 9 fence wire in-
serted in fold, this wire extending about 34-inch at each
end beyond sides of door.
in width and thickness, and 2% inches in length.
notch cut in lower end. Upper
staple driven in part way, with
through this one. Is fastened to cross top rail (see Fig
191) so that galvanized iron door will just clear it nicely
when raised. C. Top rail 74x2x12 inches. Trigger (B) is to
be attached to this rail. D and E, front and back of nest—

Use the following key in

B. Wood trigger, 7#¢x7@ inches
Has
end has common wire
an extra staple looped

duplicates; 12%4 inches wide by 1034 inches high. Bottom
rail 74x3x12% inches. Top rail 7x1%4x12¥% inches. Side
rail 7gx2x6™%4 inches. Strips are 7¢x7gx1034 inches. Back

of nest can be made solid, if desired. F and I, sides of
nest, each 34x10%4x20% inches. G. Bottom of nest or
floor, °8x1274x20% inches. H, Strip 7¢x234x12 inches, used

FIG.

190—PARTS REQUIRED IN PRACTICAL
TRAP-NEST

mid-way between front and back of nest to hold nest ma-
terial in place. See Figs. 191 and 192 for construction of
nest and nest in use.

The Connecticut Trap Nest
By ROY E. JONES and LESLIE CARD

The trap nest shown in Fig. 193 was developed in con-

nection with the International Ege Laying Contest at
Storrs. The important parts of this nest are the door and
trigger. The door is hung at the top on No. 8 or 9 wire

by means of strips of hoop iron tacked along the edges of
the door. These strips extend above the top of the door
and a hole is punched in the upper end through which
the wire runs. The door is made narrower at the bottom
than at the top to prevent its binding on the sides of the
nest. The door when completed and in place is practically
proof against trouble as there is nothing to get loose or
wear out.

The dimensions of the trigger are shown in the dia-
gram (Fig. 193). The trigger is perhaps more easily made
from a 7@x2-inch strip. The 4%-inch dimension and the
2%-inch dimension may be measured off on the two par-
allel edges, which are two inches apart. Then the 4%-inch
dimension may be drawn and the %-inch one perpendicu-
lar to it. These leave only the 25¢-inch line to be drawn,
which is easily done. The point for making the screw hole
is determined as follows: draw a line parallel to the 4%-
inch side and % inch from it. Then measure along this
line to a point 234 inches from the point of the trigger.

c

FIG. 191—HEN ENTERING TRAP NEST

This point will be the center of the screw hole. The screw
hole should be large enough to allow the trigger to work
freely. It is well to put one of the small tins sometimes
used in laying tar paper behind the trigger with the
rounded side out. This will tend to let the trigger act
more freely. The screw holding the trigger should be
placed at a point about 5% inches from the bottom of the
nest and 3% inches from the front.

The two cuts at the bottom of Fig. 193 show all the
other dimensions of the nest. The backs are left open to
facilitate cleaning, with the nests hung against the wall. lf
placed under the droppings boards the tops may be left
open also. If used for a large flock the nests may be
tiered up in rows, in which case only the top row would
need to be covered as the bottom
would be the covers

of one row of nests
for the row below.

To set the nests when the door is closed, insert the in-
dex finger beneath the door and depress the forward end
of the trigger sufficiently to allow the door to open. Open
the door until it rests in the notch of the trigger when the

FIG.

192—HEN IN NEST—DOOR CLOSED
rear end of the latter is raised. When a hen enters the
nest she lifts the door slightly with her back, the trigger
at once drops and the door swings shut. A small block
is placed under the trigger at such a height that when the
rear end of the trigger is resting upon it the front end is
held at a point just above the lower edge of the door when
closed. This prevents the door from opening inward to
admit another hen until the occupant of the nest has been
removed and her egg recorded. A stop is necessary in
front of each door to prevent the door opening outward

96 POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

LITT,
a

MG Lipp

UP .

FIG. 198—PLANS FOR THE CONNECTICUT TRAP NEST

doors. Whatever form of stop is used
should be fastened to the partition be-
tween the nests in such a way that it will
stop the door flush with the front of the
partition. The key to the successful oper-
ation of the nest lies in the correct adjust-
ment of the door and trigger.

MATERIALS REQUIRED FOR A SET OF
THREE TRAP NESTS

Boards.......... %x9 inches, 7 feet long.

sx8% inches, 3 feet long.

‘ ‘Jsr4 inches, 3 feet 4 inch long.

Furring........ 3—%x2 inches, 12 feet long.

Wires 40 inches No. 8 or 9.

Lo ;-inch, 6 feet long.

Nails Sa . pound 6d.

The “Gravity” Trap Nest

The trap nest illustrated in Figs. 194
and 195, is one of the simplest and easiest
to operate. This nest can be made by any-
one who is handy with tools. There are no
triggers or special attachments to make
or to get out of order.

It is 24 inches long, 12 to 14 inches
wide and 12 inches high. The top of the
nest is covered with poultry netting and
the revolving door in front also is covered
with 1l-inch netting, or with galvanized
wire cloth. The sides of the door, as will
be seen in Fig. 195, are each made of a
piece of 7-inch lumber. The circular face
of the door is approximately one-third of
a full circle and should measure 13%
inches, while the straight edges should
each measure 7% inches. The two sides of
the door are fastened together at top and
bottom by means of strips about %xl™%
inch. The door swings on screws that pass
through small holes in the extreme back
part of the door frame and are screwed
into the sides of the nest.

Care must be taken to see that the door |
swings freely back and forth and is so
balanced that when it is open a hen pass-
ing underneath will tip it forward. When
the door is open, ready for use, it rests

and thus allowing the hen to escape. This may consist of on a nail driven into the box, this nail being so placed
a screw hook bent over a small block of wood or one of that the door is just balanced when open. After the hen
the small iron buttons commonly used to fasten cupboard enters the nest she has to step onto or over a 4-inch strip

FIG. 195—CONSTRUCTION OF “GRAVITY” TRAP NEST

This section through side of nest shows dimensions,

method of hanging door on screws, also location of nail
which supports door when open. Hen in stepping over

f low board in front of nest lifts door and causes it to
FIG. 194—“GRAVITY” TRAP NEST WITH DOOR CLOSED roll forward along dotted line. Original drawing from

Photo from American School of Poultry Husbandry. American School of Poultry Husbandry.

INTERIOR FIXTURES AND EQUIPMENT

that is nailed across the bottom and forms the front of
the nest proper. This raises her back so that it touches
the door, which then gently rolls forward and closes be-
hind her. With a little care in adjusting the door and se-
curing a proper balance, the nest is accurate and depend-
able.

FEED TROUGHS AND HOPPERS
Troughs That Fowls Cannot Get Into. Hoppers That
Prevent Wasting of Feed.

For feed troughs to be placed directly on the floor,
the one shown in Fig. 198 is probably as good as any. It
cannot readily be upset nor can the fowls get into it. It
can be made in any length or width to meet individual
requirements. A
simple, easily
made trough is
shown in Fig. 196.
It consists
dinary galavanized
eave troughing,
preferably four or five inches wide, and nailed to suit-
able wooden supports. Bend the ends up to close them.
Metal troughs are easy to clean and keep in sanitary con-
dition.

The wooden trough shown in Fig. 197 is easily and
cheaply made. For adult fowls make it with a 6-inch
board on the one side and a 7-inch board on the other
in order to have both sides the same height. The divid-

of or-

FIG. 196—METAL FEED TROUGH

FIG. 197—WOODEN FEED TROUGH WITH REMOVA-
BLE DIVIDING BOARD

ing board is provided to keep the fowls from getting into
the trough and soiling contents. The ends of this board
are bevelled and slide in slots cut into the end pieces,
making it easily removable for cleaning.

Feed Hoppers
For feeding dry mash or grain the hopper shown in
Figs. 199 and 200 is highly recommended. This hopper is
made three feet long, 13 inches wide and 20 inches high to
top of roof. A hopper of this size will hold sufficient food
for 40 to 60 adult fowls or growing stock for a week.

\
FIG. 198—METAL FEED TROUGH WITH DIVIDING
BOARD

97

FIG. 199—GRAIN AND MASH HOPPER FOR INDOOR
AND OUTDOOR USE

It is not essential
that hoppers be fill-
ed full once a week.
In practice it is
found that it is well
to fill them about
half full; then keep
an eye on them
when going about
to the coops with
water, etc., and re-
fill any that appear
to be getting low.

It will be noticed
also that the parti- -
tion dividing the
hopper into two
compartments is not
in the center. As a
matter of fact, the
partition is set over

just half an inch pyq 200—CROSS SECTION OF GRAIN
from the exact cen- AND MASH HOPPER FOR _IN-
ter, so that the DOOR AND OUTDOOR USE
throat of the side

containing the dry mash shall be an inch wider than the
side containing whole or cracked grain. The dry mash

Back 90

-->

FRONT SOARD
6%

FIG. 201—SIMPLE HOPPER FOR DRY MASH FEEDING

98 POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

Qoor for Filling

ef

FRONT VIEW

FIG.

This easily constructed compartment feed hopper
mash, grains, grit, oyster shells, charcoal, ete.
cannot perch upon it. Reproduced from Cir.

than does grain, and the inch wider
throat for the dry mash side is desirable to prevent its
clogging.

In the drawing of a cross section of this hopper (Fig.
200) the bottom and ends are made of inch boards 13
inches wide and the sides and partitions are made of half-
inch or five-eighth-inch boards. The partitions and roof
can easily be-made of a good roofing fabric, or of galvan-
ized iron. When made of roofing fabric, half-inch strips
of board should be tacked to the ends and bottom of the
middle partition; then these strips of board are nailed to
ends and bottom of hopper, holding the partition firmly in
place. Two laths, one on each side, are then securely
nailed to the top of the partition and they make the ridge-
pole of the hopper. a

The sloping partitions forming the two sides of this
hopper are made similaily, excepting that a single lath,
planed smooth so that the fowls’ combs will not be
scratched by the rough edges, is securely tacked along the
lower outside edge of the partitions. A single lath is not
stiff enough to hold the outward thrust of half a bushel
of grain, therefore a piece of %-inch wire (telephone wire)
is cut the right length and bent over so it can be tacked
to the hopper front with a couple of staples and will
reach into the lath of the’ partitions.
-This will hold the partitions securely in
place.

The slats forming the fronts are made
of laths, planed smooth, and are nailed
about two inches apart. Along the top
of the front is nailed a lath, extending
inward and slightly downward, as shown
in Fig. 200. This makes a “lip” and
tends to prevent the chicks from throw-
ing out the food as they pick at it. A
little grain will be thrown out probably,
but they eat from the ground now and

flows less freely

then, especially after a rain has soaked
the grain, hence there is practically no
FIG. 208. waste.
GREEN FEED The cover of the hopper is made slop-
HOLDER 2 ad oy m
ing, just like a roof, and the eaves,

should project full four inches over each side. The ends
are cut from half-inch box boards and strips of the same
material three inches wide are cut for the support of the

eaves. Two or three laths are nailed lengthwise between

202—FEED HOPPER WITH THREE COMPARTMENTS

can be used for
Made with sloping top fowls

26, Utah Agricultural College.

the eaves and the ridge to support
the roofing fabric which makes
the roof. The lath and eaves strips
are let into the end pieces, so the
roofing fabric nails closely down up-
on the ends. A hook and screw eye in
the center: of each end secures the
roof in place so the wind cannot lift it.

A Simple Feed Hopper For Mash

or Grain

One of the easiest feed hoppers to
make and one that will give good
satisfaction, is the one shown in Fig.
201. Use any convenient box—one
with the dimensions indicated in the
illustration, if available; or, if not,
any other suitable size. Remove the
top and trim enough off the edges
to let it fit between the sides, then
adjust it in the position of the dotted
lines and nail fast. Make a hinged
cover, as shown; or, if increased size is no object, simply
saw the upper end off with the proper slant and use the
end thus secured for a cover. The hinges can be dis-
pensed with, if preferred, nailing a cleat on the underside
of the loose top near the front so that when it is in posi-
tion it will be held in place by the cleat which rests
against the upper edge of the sloping front. If the’ fowls
waste the food by throwing it out over the front board,
nail a piece of lath along the upper edge of the board,
letting the lath extend in so as to form a lip which *
catches any food that may be thrown up by the fowls.

SEC TION.

dry

FIG.

204—A LOW-COST COMPARTMENT HOPPER

Compartment Hoppers

For small flocks a compartment hopper to hold sev-
eral articles, such as grit, oyster shell and dry mash, often
is wanted. The ones shown in Figs. 202 and 204 meet
this need and are easily made. The number of compart-
ments that may be provided will be determined to some
extent by size of box. They should not be made so small
that the contents will not feed down readily. The inside
surfaces of all boards used in making hoppers should be
smooth, as hoppers made of rough boards are apt to
clog. The hopper shown in Fig. 204 will be improved by
providing a “lip” on the front of the feeding section, ex-
tending inward, as shown in Fig. 200, which will prevent
the fowls from throwing the contents out on the floor.

Green Feed Holder

A convenient means of supplying bulky green food,
such as cabbage, mangels, vegetable leaves, etc., is by the

INTERIOR FIXTURES AND EQUIPMENT 99

FRONT VIEXY END VIEYY

An Automatic Feeder

There is always more or less de-
mand for an automatic feeder that
will meet the requirements of the
back-yard poultryman who must be
absent from home at the time when
the fowls should have their grain
feed. This is especially liable to be
the case in the evening. Probably the
great majority of shop and office
workers in this country do not get
home from work until after dark,
during the winter months, and it is
not always possible to have someone
else to do the feeding, and do it just
the way it should be done. The auto-
matic feeder illustrated in Fig. 205
was devised by C. C. Holmes as a
means of insuring that the hens
shall get their meals on time. It is
comparatively inexpensive and sim-
ple in construction, and should an-
swer the purpose in a very satisfac-
tory manner. The following direc-
tions for making this feeder are sup-
plied by Mr. Holmes.

Feed—Take an inch board nine
inches wide and 18 inches long. Cut

END VIENXY REAR

CEeTOEMES

FIG.

use of an open mesh holder like the one shown in Fig.
203. It may be made of loosely-woven cord, or of 2-inch
mesh poultry netting. Suspended from ceiling or rafter
at a suitable height, so that the fowls will have to make
some effort to reach it, this feeder not only protects the
contents from being soiled or wasted, but also promotes
healthful exer-
cise. Pieces of
meat, butcher’s
scraps, etc.,

may
also be fed in
this way.

VIENY

AO MAGA Fink DER

205—THE HOLMES AUTOMATIC POULTRY FEEDER

hole two inches square through board
4%4 inches from end and sides of
board to center of hole. This affords
an opening through which the grain
onto the spreader after the
liberated by

passes
hinged
the trigger.

Hinged Door—To be constructed
similar to the cover on a tobacco
box, and secured to bottom of board

door has been

in such position as to entirely cover
hole.

Trigger—After hinged door
been placed, the trigger is to be lo-
cated so as to hang plumb, the notch
to project slightly over the edge of hinged door. Cut nar-
row slot through board long enough to allow trigger to
move backward and forward freely. Where trigger passes
through top of board make a small hole, through which
put a nail and secure same to top of board with a staple
at each end. Trigger can be made of metal or wood, with
small hole to fasten string. .

Hopper—To be eight inches square and such height
as may be required, the bottom portion to be cut and bent
in, so as to form a two-inch square opening at bottom of
hopper. At each corner of hopper solder metal standards
of proper length, bent at bottom to receive screw. Plac*

has

pi) UxX¥"xX2B" et
') Foot Board | |

FIG. 206—CONVENIENT MASH PAIL FIG.

207—PLATFORM FOR WATER
DISH

FIG. 208—WATERING PLAT-
FORM, PAIL HOLDER

100

two-inch square hole in hopper directly over hole in board
and secure same by screwing standards to top of board.
The lid of hopper is to be made similar to hinged door on
bottom of board.

Spreader—To be made of metal, conical in shape, and
dia-

sus-

12 inches in
at base,
pended with wire
hangers soldered to
spreader and
screwed to bottom
Hangers
are to be of proper
length to suspend
spreader low enough
to clear hinged door
when open.

Clock—An ordi-
nary alarm clock is
then placed in such
a position that it
brings the center of
spool over center of
board. After clock
has been securely
fastened with metal strap, bent over top of
clock and screwed at each end to top of board, plumb
down from side of spool and bore hole through which
string passes. On board under hole place
small wooden pulley around which string passes from
spool to trigger.

meter

of board.

FIG. 209—TROLLEY FEED CARRIER

which is

bottom of

Spool—To be secured to alarm winder in a sub-
stantial manner by welding a short shaft to winder over
which slip spool and secure with set screw.

Finally—Wind clock and set at correct time, then give
spool (alarm) about two turns after setting alarm for the
desired time you wish to feed. When the hour comes you
have set your alarm for, the spool will turn, winding up

FIG.

210—TROLLEY

ON WIRE CABLE

POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

the string which pulls the trigger and liberates the hinged
door. The grain then falls upon the spreader and scat-
ters in all directions. The feeder is to be hung from
ceiling of poultry house near roof, or can be suspended
out of doors if so desired. The birds will soon become
familiar with the ringing of the alarm and know it is time
ior the meal.

MISCELLANEOUS EQUIPMENT
Various Handy Devices for Making the Poultry Work
Lighter, and Saving Time.

A Mash Pail.

Where mash is to be fed, either wet or dry, a pail
with a hood that will keep the mash from spilling will be
found a decided con-
venience. Such a pail

in shown in Fig. 206
and can be used in

filling hoppers or pour-
ing mash into troughs

without having any ®
of the contents =
wasted. Q

GB

A Trolley Feed

Carrier
In long compart-
ment houses a trolley
by means of which pq. 211—CROSS SECTION OF
feed, litter, droppings, WATERING PLATFORM
etc., can be conveyed

back and forth, relieves the caretaker of much hard work.
The carrier illustrated in Fig. 210 runs on a wire cable
and is provided with a grapple by which feed box, bar-
rels for droppings, bales of straw, etc., are readily picked
up and _ pushed
along to their des-
tination with a
minimum of ef-
fort. Where trol-
leys are used, the
partition
generally are made
in pairs

doors

and hung
on double - action
spring hinges, the
carrier pushing
them

open with-
special
from
tendant.
Fig. 209
another method of
installing
using

out
tion

atten-
the at-

shows

trolleys,
2x4 timbers
the track
suspending
these on metal
stirrups. The
shown in illustra-
tion is held by
hocks which can
readily. be disen-
gaged and used in
bandling other
loads.

to form
and

box

FIG. 212—HOME-MADE OATS
SPROUTER
Photo from Purdue University.

INTERIOR FIXTURES AND EQUIPMENT

Water Vessels

Water vessels may be of metal or earthenware, but
should never be of wood. Earthenware is liable to be
broken by dropping or freezing, but with careful handling
will last a long time and is fairly cheap. Galvanized ware
is usually preferred and where the flocks are large may
consist of plain 10 or 12-quart pails supported as in Figs.
208 and 211. The platform should be wide enough to allow
the fowls to stand and drink on three sides and the hole
in which the pail fits should be just large enough to
hold the pail about one-third above the platform, which
gives the fowls easy access to it, and prevents it being
tipped over. The stand should be high enough so that
litter will not be liable to be scratched into the water.
For small flocks and for use in the alleyway shown in
Fig. 181, one or one and one-half gallon crocks with
straight sides are very satisfactory. If to be used in-
side the pens, a slatted platform should be provided as
illustrated in Fig. 207.

For winter use various types of “nonfreezing’
founts are made. In extremely cold climates the most
practical plan is to use heated founts. These are pro-
vided with a small lamp underneath the water vessel.
which keeps the water well above freezing temperature
and requires only a limited amount of kerosene for the
purpose. Small oil heaters or stoves are available for
those who wish to provide homemade devices. It is not
desirable to use anything that supplies much heat, nor
should lamps with glass bowls or chimneys ever be
used. Especial care should be taken with all such appli-
ances to avoid danger of fire.

Where the cold is not too severe, it is possible to
utilize the “fireless cooker’ principle in protecting the
water so that it will remain free from ice for a number
of hours at least. For this purpose an ordinary galvan-
ized pail of suitable size may be used providing for it a
wooden enclosure to be packed with newspapers, chaff,
planer shavings or similar material. The enclosure
should be large enough so that the pail may be sur-
rounded by an insulating layer two to three inches in
thickness. If properly made, the water vessel can be
removed for emptying or cleaning without disturbing
the insulating material. So protected, a pail filled with
warm water in the morning should keep free from ice
all day long, unless the temperature drops extremely
low.

’

water

Hook for Catching Fowls

For catching individual fowls nothing is better than
a crook similar to a shepherd’s crook. It may be easily
and cheaply made
of heavy galvanized
wire. Use about 5%
feet of wire so that

when the crook
(about six inches
long) has been
turned on one end
and a loop for the
handle on the
other, the finished
implement will be
at least 4 feet long.
The crook should
be left wide enough
so that it may be
heavily wrapped
with cloth or adhe-

sive tape to protect

FIG. 213—DOOR FASTENER

101

FIG.

214—PORTABLE DUST BOX

the fowls’ legs from injury. A loop of lighter wire may
be used, attaching it to a wooden handle, but it is diffi-
cult to fasten it securely in place and an all-wire crook
is not so easily seen and hence will disturb the fowls
es Home-Made Appliances

There are various appliances that may be made from
empty cans, tin boxes, etc., which will answer the purpose
zlmost as well as the more expensive ones purchased at
the poultry supply store. It is an easy matter to overdo
the matter in practicing economy by the use of such
devices, however. The true test in every case is not how
much can be saved in first cost by the substitution of
home-made articles for manufactured ones, but whether
they are as good, as nearly wasteproof, and as convenient.
If not, then it will pay better in the long run to spend a
little money and have equipment that will really answer
the purpose and save feed and time. However, the handy
poultryman can make grit and shell boxes, watering
founts, etc., from waste boxes and cans, which may an-
swer fully as well as manufactured appliances.

Handy Door Fastener

The simple, inexpensive door and fastener
shown in Fig. 213 will prove very convenient under many
conditions. It consists simply of a wedge-shaped wooden
block nailed to gate post or door frame and adjusted in
width so that when the door or gate swings shut it will
bind on the surface of the wedge and will be held se-
curely until it receives a strong push or pull. On a par-
tition door or small gate, place it low enough so that the
foot can be used in pushing the door open.

A Portable Dust Bath
This dust bath (Fig. 214) is made from any convenient
box, with a barrel hoop for a handle, and four pieces of
wood for legs. Make it about 12 inches deep and not
less than 2 feet square, and set it in a sunny place in the
house, when the fowls cannot get out, and see how quick
ly they will discover what it is meant for.

gate

A Safe Way to Poison Rats and Mice
The difficulty of using rat poison about poultry houses
without endangering the fowls, can be entirely overcome
by providing the appliance illustrated in Fig. 216, par-
ticularly if the poison is mixed with corn meal so that

102

the rodents cannot carry it out. A convenient
size for the box is about 12x12 inches and 6
inches high. However, the dimensions are of
no special importance. The top of the box
should be removable, but must be fastened
securely in place with hinges, hooks, or other-
wise, so that it cannot be accidentally dis-
placed. Provide a number of 1%-inch holes
along the lower edge as shown. The small
tin box, indicated by dotted lines, which is to
contain the poisoned food, is to be nailed se-
curely in the center of the bottom.

The trap is regularly baited with a mix-
ture of one-third sugar of lead and two-thirds
corn meal. It has proved quite successful in 2
the extermination of these pests. No poultry
keeper whose premises are infested with rats
can afford to let up in the warfare against
them. Provide as many of these safety poi-
soning devices as necessary and keep them
baited at all times.

OAT SPROUTING EQUIPMENT
Sprouted Oats Are Unequalled As Green Feed for Fowls.

Convenient Plans for Making Oat Sprouters,
With or Without Heat.

Sprouted oats form one of the best sources of green
food and almost every poultry plant these days needs

some arrangement for producing them. Where large quan-
tities of oats are to be sprouted it is better to have a sep-
arate room for the purpose so that temperature and other
conditions may be exactly controlled.

FIG. 215—HOME-MADE OATS SPROUTER WITH LAMP

COMPARTMENT

POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

Pat Power recxed with corre wee te Es
Ain box pleced under the larger wood box,

Cut holes shout Lh inch high

FIG.

216—SAFETY RAT POISONING DEVICE

To succeed with oat sprouting in winter requires a
fairly warm room, and to economize floor space, racks or
cabinets with shallow sliding trays should be provided, as
illustrated in Figs. 212 and 217. Shallow galvanized iron
trays 22x26 inches and one inch deep should be provided.
These are kept on racks with about eight inches between
each tray, as illustrated herewith. Holes are punched in
the bottoms of the pans so that the surplus water used
in sprinkling can drain away. Instead of galvanized pans,
fine-mesh wire netting can be used for the bottoms of
wooden trays, or wooden bottoms may be used. The use
of wooden trays, however, is not recommended on account
of the difficulty of keeping them sweet and free from
mold. Soaked oats are liable to sour and mold if the trays
are moldy, and for that galvanized iron trays,
which may be thoroughly wasted and disinfected after

reason

each using, are much more satisfactory.

Soak the oats over night, then put in a coarse sack
and drain, after which they are spread in the pans to a
depth of one-half to three-fourths of an inch. They should
be sprinkled daily with tepid water, and in four to ten
days are ready to feed, depending on the temperature of
Some light is needed for sprouting oats prop-
A fairly well-lighted base-

the room.
erly, but not direct sunlight.
ment or cellar answers nicely.

Inexperienced persons in sprouting oats spread them
out an inch or an inch and a half deep. Where this is
done many of the oats will smother and fail to sprout,
and there is also more danger of mold. If spread only
one-half inch in depth they will sprout rapidly and be in
much better condition. The chief difficulty in sprouting
oats is to prevent mold. Moldy food of any kind is unfit
for poultry feeding and sprouted oats are no exception to
the rule. If oats are spread only one-half inch thick, suf-
ficient warmth supplied, and care taken to clean thor-
oughly and sun the sprouting pans and buckets used in
soaking, there should be no trouble from this source.

As an additional precaution against mold, a solution
made by adding one ounce of formalin to four gallons of
water will be found effective. The dry oats should be
sprinkled with this solution until wet enough to pack in
the hand. They then should be spread out two or three
inches deep on the floor or in trays or boxes and covered
with cloth or bagging for two hours, after which they may
be uncovered and allowed to dry before soaking for
sprouting. Buckets and trays should be washed with the
formalin each time they are used.

INTERIOR FIXTURES AND EQUIPMENT

Circular 37 of Purdue (Indiana) Experiment Station
illustrates and describes a cheap, easily made oat sprouter
(see Fig. 212) that will provide sufficient green food for
a good-sized flock. It can be made to take trays of the
dimensions previously described or modified to meet any
special requirements. This sprouter can be located in any
convenient building or room and for cold weather it is
entirely practical to enclose it and provide a small lamp
or lantern underneath to get proper warmth for germi-
nation.

A Lamp Heated Oat Sprouter
Where only a comparatively small number of fowls
are to be provided for and the oats must be sprouted in
: a cold house’ or

room, the lamp-
heated sprouter
shown in Fig.
ZS ews) | ipjarstic—
ularly convenient.

The cabinet can be
made in any desired
size, making the
trays as directed for
the oat sprouting
room described on
page 102, but grad-
uating the spacing
for the trays as in-
dicated in the illus-
tration. Under the
trays a water-tight
drawer is provided
and a_ ventilated
lamp chamber un-
derneath. Use a
lamp or small oil
stove and regulate
the flame so that
the temperature in
the cabinet will be
about 70 to 75 de-
grees, and the oats
will grow rapidly.
In order to avoid
mold, the trays and
the entire inside
chamber should be
thoroughly disin-
fected at frequent
intervals. Formalin
solution is excellent for the purpose, spraying or mopping
all inside surfaces.

FIG. 217—A CORNER IN AN OAT
SPROUTING ROOM

Illuminating Poultry Houses

The illumination of poultry houses in winter months
with a view to increasing egg yields is receiving much
attention at the present time. One of the main difficul-
ties in securing good winter production appears to be the
shortness of the hen’s working day. Short days reduce
her time for eating, also her time for digestion and assimi-
lation. In mid+winter when the fowls go to roost at four
or half-past four in the afternoon and remain until seven
or eight in the morning, comparatively little of the day
is left for eating, laying, etc., and the extremely long fast
through the night clearly must cut down food consump-
tion.

: 103

Experiments made by practical poultry keepers have
shown that artificially lighting the poultry house for a
few hours, morning and evening, so that the fowls have
daylight or its equivalent for twelve to fourteen hours
out of the twenty-four, regularly results in a marked in-
crease in egg production, other conditions being favor-
able. Similar results have been secured at certain of our
Agricultural Experiment Stations, particularly at Cornell
University, where the subject is being carefully investi-
gated and where striking results in favor of illumination
have been secured. The advantage in the method appears
to be due to the fact that with a longer day the fowls
have more time for eating and digesting the large amount
of food essential to heavy production. They must have
not only sufficient food to maintain their physical well-
being, to keep up or increase their flesh, and to furnish
fuel for warmth on cold winter days, but they also must
consume a sufficient amount of food in addition, to fur-
nish ample material for the formation of eggs.

The following is an illustration given by Professor
Rice of Cornell, showing the results obtained by a New
York State poultryman who kept an accurate record of
results secured with a flock in an illuminated house and,
for comparison, the record of a similar flock
illumination:

without

PRODUCTION OF ONE HUNDRED HENS IN UNLIGHTED

HOUSE
March Price

Eggs Laid PerDoz. Receipts
Decem Per! evens eeereeee ee ns ee = 14 .69 $ .82
January er(al 21.12
February 57 30.10
March -43 44.35
April -43 42.35
May . .38 42.14
June ... -43 28.38
Total $176.00
PRODUCTION OF ONE HUNDRED HENS IN ILLUMI-

NATED HOUSE
March Price

Eggs Laid PerDoz. Receipts
DC CEM DET Meera a aware rence ..1410 $.69 $81.08
January at! 46.15
February 548 57 26.90
March ... 483 -43 17.23
April = 451 -43 14.25
May .... 771 .38 25.04
JUNMES soo ee 704 .43 25.20
Totalese 4286 $235.90

This experiment and numerous others of a similar

character clearly prove that by this method the poultry-
man can get more high-priced eggs from his fowls by
the use of lights. It seems to be clearly established that
illumination does not actually increase the number of
eggs laid by hens in a season, but it changes the time of
laying or advances production from the low-price months
of spring to the high-price months of early winter. In
other words, the poultryman may not get more eggs in
number by this method, but he should get them at the
time when they bring the most money.

Where electric lights are available, poultry houses can
be lighted conveniently and with little expense. The size
and number of bulbs to be used are determined by the
amount of light needed properly to illuminate the house
or pen. They should be located where they will light the
house to best advantage. It is usual to provide a low-
powered bulb as well as a high-powered one, so that
when the bright light is turned off there will still be suf-
ficient light for the fowls to find their way readily to
roost. Numerous poultry kepers who do not have elec-
tricity are reporting good results with acetylene, gas and
gasoline lights.

CHAP T BuRv X51

Exterior Fixtures and General Equipment

Advantages of Double Yarding for Fowls—How to Plan Yards, Build Fences, Etc.—How to Keep Yards Clean and Free
From Disease Germs—Outdoor Feed Hoppers—Feed Wagon—Brood Coop—Labor-Saving Method of Supplying
Water on Range—Providing Shade—Other Special Poultry Plant Equipment.

UTDOOR runs are chiefly to afford
fowls a means of securing plenty of healthful ex-
- ercise in the open air, and in a general way are
regarded as indispensable to successful and profit-
able poultry keeping. It is true that many back-yard flocks
are kept confined to their houses the year around and
with excellent results and, of course, yards have little
value in the north, in winter weather. Nevertheless, the
advantages of having outdoor runs of ample size are so
great that few poultry keepers care to dispense with them
except with quite small flocks or for a limited time.

One important advantage afforded by runs or yards,
though it often is overlooked or neglected, is the oppor-
tunity to produce green food for the hens. A growing
crop, properly managed, not only provides a continuous
supply of this healthful and economical part of the ra-
tion, but by using up the accumulating fertility keeps the
ground in a wholesome condition and lessens the danger
from disease. Bare, unproductive poultry yards ought to
be regarded as inexcusable unless
they are necessarily so small that it
is impossible to keep anything green
growing in them.

The amount of yard room that
should be provided per fowl cannot
be arbitrarily fixed. A little is better
than none; and a good deal is better
than a little. The only general rule
that can be given is to provide as
much as possible, remembering, how-
ever, that the cost of fencing large
yards amounts to a considerable fig-
ure, and obviously there are limits
beyond which it is uot practical to
extend them. Under most conditions
one hundred square feet per hen, di-
vided into two runs of equal size and used alternately,
will keep them in green food throughout the entire
growing season. But the same amount of ground in one
yard to which the fowls have access at all times, will
soon be picked off so close that the growth will be killed
and the ground left bare.

Wherever practicable the runs should be made large
enough and be so fenced that they can be cultivated by
horsepower. Spading is a tedious and laborious operation
and, while it must be resorted to with small yards, it is
always a handicap, and the necessity for doing it should
be avoided if possible. Small yards cost much more in
proportion to the amount of land enclosed.

A satisfactory arrangement of runs for the laying or
breeding flock is illustrated in Fig. 218, in which the
house is shown between two runs, one on the north and
the other on the south side. The width of the yard is
determined in this case by the width of the house pen,
but it can be as long as necessary or as the limits of
available land make possible. In the case of a continuous
house the gates in the yard fence next the house should
always be made wide enough for the passage of a team
so that, in cultivating, the horses can turn from one yard
into the next instead of having to make a complete turn

provided

104

a al

NORTH YARD

in the same yard, which usually results in much injury
to the fencing.
Fig. 220 shows another double-yarding plan that
often can be utilized to good advantage where only a
limited amount of land is available. In carrying out this
plan, each pen is provided with a small outdoor yard on
which no attempt is made to keep anything growing ex-
cept, possibly, one or two trees which will afford agree-
able shade in hot weather. Adjoining these small yards
are large runs occupying all the rest of the available
ground and planted to a suitable growing crop. The hens
are given access to the small yards at all times, but are
allowed to have access to the large runs only when the
crop is in proper condition for their use. It is generally
understood that fowls, if allowed to overrun a small plot
of green stuff, will soon kill it off, whereas if they are only
given access to it for a limited time, the plants will keep
growing right along and will furnish a constant supply of
green food, week after week. This method of yarding

SOUTH YARD
Slide Door

HOUSE PEN
16-0 X 20-0"

FIG. 218—DOUBLE YARD PLAN FOR SINGLE OR COMPARTMENT HOUSE

calls for more fencing and more gates than the plan in-
dicated in Fig. 218, but it is well adapted to the condi-
tions of the back-lotter, and of small producers generally.
Another double-yarding method, where the yards can be
any desired width regardless of the width of the house,
is illustrated in Fig. 219.

BUILDING POULTRY FENCES
Directions for Putting Up Wire Fence, That Will Make
the Work Much Easier.

In building permanent poultry fences it pays to use
only the best materials. Fence building is an expensive
matter at best, on account of the amount of labor re-
quired, and if poor material is used or the work careless-
ly done, the final cost is greatly increased. If wooden
posts are used, black locust, catalpa, cedar, and chestnut
are the most durable of the timbers generally available. It
will pay to give the lower end of all posts a coating of
creosote or hot tar before setting them in the ground.
Where sand and stone or gravel are available, concrete
posts are cheapest in the long run. Even though the line
posts are of wood it pays to make gate, end, and corner
posts of concrete. It is not a serious matter to replace

EXTERIOR FIXTURES AND GENERAL EQUIPMENT 105

FIG. 219—DOUBLE YARDING METHOD FOR a
LARGE YARDS

an ordinary line post, but with wire fences, the failure
of an end post lets the entire fence down and stretching
it a second time may be more difficult than at first. The
corner and gate posts should always be larger and set
deeper than the regular posts and should be well braced
so that they will stand any strain to which they may be
subjected.

In the purchase of poultry fencing there is only one
injunction that can be given and that is to get the best
obtainable. Ordinary hexagonal netting, if well galvanized
after weaving (not before), generally will last quite well,
but it is difficult to stretch it evenly, especially where the
fence is to be built on irregular ground. There are other
kinds of poultry fencing that will stretch better and pos-
sibly last longer, but unfortunately the weight of the
fence or the thickness of the wire is no indication of qual-
ity, as some comparatively heavy fencing is so lightly
galvanized that it rusts out in much less time than lighter
wire that is heavily galvanized.

Stretch the fence carefully, using a good stretcher,
which usually can be sectired from the dealer who sup-
plies the fencing, if the poultryman does not have enough
of such work to warrant owning one of his own. Where
the fence must be stretched without a regular fence
stretcher the following method, described by Don Harri-
son, may be used in putting it up:

“Among the methods employed for putting up poul-
try netting, I have found no way which is so expeditious
and in every way satisfactory, as the following:

“Nail the boards on which you intend to fasten the
bottom of the netting in such a manner as to form a
straight line, as netting cannot be nicely put up over a
line, one part of which is higher than the rest, without
cutting and lapping the netting. Have the posts extend
at least 4 feet 4 inches above the top of the boards.

“Now drive nails about '%2inch into the
posts 4 feet from the board. Next loosen the roll of net-
ting and run a slender stick lengthwise through the cen-
ter. I use a measuring stick 8 feet long. Have two per-
sons take hold of the ends of the pole and walk as near
the posts as possible, thereby causing the netting to un-
roll. Now your netting lies flat on the ground. Get on
the opposite side of the fence with staple and hammer,
and staple the selvage strand to the top or edge of the
board, pulling the wire just enough to take out the kinks.
Do not try to stretch it. Now one edge of the netting
is fastened to the base board and the other edge lies about
4 feet from you on the ground. Pick up the free edge
and hook it over the nails previously driven in the posts.
Fasten the ends of the netting to their respective posts,

six-penny

FIG. 22i—FEED AND WATER WAGON FOR

COLONY FLOCKS

Where fowls are kept in small colony flocks more or
less scattered over the fields, a convenient low-down wagon
or truck is a great convenience. The wagon here shown
on Poultry Plant of Cornell University, carries a water
barrel provided with a hose and faucet, a box for feed and
a milk can in which a supply of sour milk may be carried,
and a pail for distributing feed and water when needed.
There is room on the truck also for supplies of charcoal,
grit, oyster shell, ete.

SERVING

a

7 ae

a =p x

Fd aig

FIG. 220—PRACTICAL DOUBLE YARDING METHOD WHEN SPACE IS LIMITED
Photo from N. J. College of Agriculture.

106

POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

FIG. 222—CONVENIENT END
pulling fairly taut and fastening securely. Make a notch
on the end of your pole deep enough to hold the selvage.
With this pole push the netting up on the post, having
pulled the nail when you attached the pole, until the net-
ting is firm and straight. Staple the selvage wire to the
post, repeating the operation on each post. After you
have done this, staple to the post as much as you think
necessary. I use two staples between selvages, making
four to each post, and as for the bottom I staple every
2 feet:

“With a boy to help unroll the netting, you can put
up a roll in twenty minutes. Our yards are on level
ground and we have posts sawed 3 by 3 inches and 8
feet 4 inches long. We drive them 2 feet into the ground
and put two 12-inch boards at the bottom to prevent the
males from fighting.”

Where the yards are to be used by breeding flocks
it is always desirable to make the first two feet solid as
described by Mr. Harrison. For ordinary laying flocks
this is not imperative, and as this method of construc-
tion adds considerable to the cost it 1s customary to use
only one 10 or 12-inch board which is needed in order to
have a substantial base to which the bottom wire or sel-
vage can be securely stapled. Wire fences usually re-
quire posts about every 16 feet with
a short post between each to support
the middle of the base board and
keep it from warping.

It is always desirable to make am-

ple provision for getting the plow
team into and out of the yards.
Where the yards are narrow the

plan of having the end of the yards
closed with one big gate, as in Fig.
222, is a good one. With these gates
open the team can be taken into the
yard for plowing, turning it in the
open space at the foot of the yard.
If the yards are connected at the
other end with wide gates so that the
team can turn through into an ad-
joining yard instead of having to
make a complete turn in one yard, it
is possible to plow and _ cultivate
quite narrow runs with comparative-
ly little difficulty.

Gate Fastener

A simple and effective gate fast-
ener is shown in Fig. 223, which any

GATES FOR POULTRY

blacksmith
ments’

can make in a few mo-
time. It consists of a strip
of strap iron about %-inch wide and
bent in the shape of a U with the stem
long enough to extend over the gate
as shown. In the closed end a plain
iron ring 1% to 2 inches in diameter
is hung loosely on a rivet and the
whole device is screwed firmly to the
gate post. The ring drops down on
the rivet and in this position will
hold the gate securely so that it can
not be opened until the ring is
raised by hand. With a little trim-
ming on the inside edge of the top
the gate the ring will
automatically raise up as the gate
swings shut and then will promptly
drop into place again.

rail of

YARDS

Yard Tools

Small yards should be cleaned and spaded at fre-
quent intervals in order to keep them free from accumu-
lations of filth, Many careful poultry
keepers make it a practice to sweep
small yards once a week, for which pur-
pose there is nothing better than a fibre
brush like the one shown in Fig. 224.
Where this attention is given, the yards
will look better, smell better and keep
in much more wholesome condition.

Once a month is not too often to
spade the yards if they are quite small.
It is not necessary to do all the spad-
ing at once, but a spading fork like the
one shown in Fig. 224 should be kept
handy and a small portion of the ground

spaded day to day. Sa
spade from ay to day. The fowls Ae ee
will appreciate the worms that will FASTENER
be turned up, and if the prac-

tice is formed of sprinkling a small amount of grain over
the ground before spading (oats are excellent for this pur-

FIG. 224—BROOM AND SPADING FORK FOR KEEPING YARDS CLEAN

EXTERIOR FIXTURES AND GENERAL EQUIPMENT

FIG. 225—OUTDOOR GREEN FOOD PROTECTOR
pose) the fowls will get double enjoyment out of it. If
they do not find some of the grain until after it sprouts,
so much the better.

. 226—A COOL SPOT ON A HOT DAY

Green Food Protector

In small yards it often is desing to use a frame such
as is shown in Fig. 225 for protecting small plots of
— + so that the fowls can help themselves to the
leaves when they reach the proper height, but which will
keep them from trampling over the plants, scratching
them out or killing them off by pick-
ing out the tender green hearts as

107

considered merely temporary however, every effort being
made to get some fruit trees growing in the yards as soon
as possible. Fruit trees provide the best of shade and
will soon prove a source of additional income as well.

MISCELLANEOUS OUTSIDE EQUIPMENT
Omit None of These Articles of Equipment That Can Be
Used to Good Advantage. They Save
Time and Strength. —

It does not pay to abuse broody hens; neither does

it pay to allow them to continue sitting indefinitely before
breaking them up. If taken in hand as soon as broodi-

FIG. 227—OUTDOOR COOP FOR BROODING HENS
ness develops they can be broken up more quickly and
will be ready to start laying again in much shorter time
than will be the case if they are allowed to sit for several
days before being placed in confinement. The best way
to break them up is to confine them to a suitable coop
such as the one shown in Fig. 227.

In warm weather it is more satisfactory, as a rule,
to have the broody hens confined to these outdoor coops
rather than indoor coops such as are illustrated on page
91. This outdoor coop is used and recommended by
the Missouri State Poultry Experiment Station, and its

they almost invariably do when
given the opportunity. Make the
frame of any convenient size, using
boards 6 to 8 inches wide for the
sides and covering with l-inch poul-
try netting, using sufficient cross
pieces to hold the wire at the proper
height.

Shade for Bare Yards

It is not as clearly understood as
it should ‘be that fowls and chicks
suffer greatly from extreme heat—
more so, perhaps, than from cold,
and it is not only an act of hu-
manity, but a source of added profit
as well, to provide for their comfort
during the hot weather by seeing to
it that they have nvlenty of shade.
Where there is no natural shade it is
necessary to provide it in some ar-

tificial manner. Almost anything
will answer, though in permanent
yards it pays to set up substan-

tial shelters, such as the one shown
in Fig. 226. These shelters should be

FIG. 228—OUTDOOR FEED HOPPER

Photo from United States Department of Agriculture.

108

construction is easily understood from the illustration.
The bottom is slatted so that the fowls cannot sit on the
floor and so that the droppings will fall to the ground,
thus avoiding the necessity for frequent cleaning. The
top is made movable so that it can be lifted off to change
or to clean and disinfect when that becomes
necessary. If placed under a tree or open shed the hens
will be quite comfortable, and if well fed will soon be
ready to resume laying again.

the hens

Labor-Saving Watering Device

Where large numbers of fowls are to be watered, and

a water tap is available, a convenient, labor-saving method
is to provide a

with an
ordinary woodet
faucet near the
bottom, ar -
ranged to drip
into an earthen-
ware crock, gal-
pan, or
trough of
ble size (see Fig.
229), from which
the fowls drink.

barrel

vanized
suita-

The barrel’ jis
filled by means
of a hose and

the faucet is set
to drip just fast
enough to meet
; the requirements
229A LABOR SAVING of the fowls.
WATERING DEVICE Where water has
to be hauled and
practicable to

waste must be avoided it is
use a regular hog-watering device which is ~attached
to the bottom of a barrel, or a _ suitable tank,
and provided with a float by means of which a fresh sup-
ply is turned on whenever the water in the drinking cup

is lowered to a certain level.

Outdoor Feed Hopper

The feed hopper for grain and mash, illustrated in
Fig. 228 is especially designed for outdoor use.
be made in any desired size, but for
use on the range should be large
enough to hold two or three weeks’
supply of feed at a time in order to
avoid frequent refilling. The com-
partments can be adjusted as to num-
ber and size according to individual
requirements. The extended sides
and top protect the feed trough from
both wind and rain, and the top is

Le can

POULTRY HOUSES, AND FIXTURES

cramped for room, to change young stock from one yard
or house to another, separate pullets from cockerels, or
double up yards in order to make room for others. With-
out a carrying crate the poultryman is obliged to carry
the fowls by the
legs, five or six
at a time, which

not only tends
to make them
wild, but there

is danger of in-
juring many fine
birds. With this
crate, which has
a small door or
a loose lath in
the top, a dozen
or more can be
caught at a time
and _ transferred
wherever they
are. wanted, and
this can be done
quietly and rapidly without injury to the birds and with
much less labor than carrying them in the usual way.

KNAPSACK SPRAYER FOR
AND GENERAL
SPRAYING

FIG, 230

DISINFECTING

A Sparrow Trap

In many localities sparrows are a source of con-
tinual loss to poultry keepers. Often clouds of them
will regularly visit outside feeding places, especially
where chicks are fed, and will go through inch-mesh win-
dow netting, to get at indoor feed hoppers. As poison-
ing is unsafe because of the danger to fowls, about the
only means of exterminating them is by the use of traps.
The one shown in Fig. 232 is practical and convenient.

This trap is made of galvanized wire cloth, or half
inch poultry nettidiaes here illustrated is about a yard
in length, and 15 to inches high and wide.
of the trap are bent in as shown, and provided with a
3-inch hole next to the ground. About this hole sharp-
ened wire spurs are bent in so that while the birds have
no trouble in passing through, it is impossible for them
to fly out again. The white spot near the center of the
trap is a piece of bread, used as bait. This trap is to be
set on the ground on the lawn or in the poultry yard,
and its efficiency will be increased if two or three spar-
rows always are left in it as decoys.

covered with a good grade of pre-
pared roofing. Top is fastened in
place with hooks so that it cannot
blow off.
roof is

In illustration, one side of PIG.
unhooked and set aside to
show interior construction and the middle supports that

prevent roof from bending out of shape.

A Box for Carrying Fowls

Another useful, in fact almost indispensable article
around the poultry yard, is a carrying box or crate. It

often is necessary, especially where one is somewhat

231

SIMPLE CARRYING CRATE FOR FOWLS

Wheelbarrows and Carts

A good wheelbarrow is an essential article of equip-
ment on every poultry plant, and there is no economy in
trying to get along without it. One with a flat bottom
and removable sides is much better adapted to the poul-
try keeper’s requirements than the cheaper kind with
sloping bottom made for handling dirt, sand, etc. Hand-

EXTERIOR FIXTURES AND GENERAL EQUIPMENT 109

FIG. 232—SPARROW TRAP
Photo from Rural New Yorker.

ling feed, litter, droppings, etc., in this way saves a great
deal of hard labor. For this reason all doors and gates
should be so planned as ¢o make the use of a fwheel-
barrow possible. Generally where there are baseboards
running under doors, these should be movable and held
in place by cleats or otherwise, so that they can be taken
out when necessary.

Jnder many conditions a two-wheeled push cart will
be fou very convenient, as it requires less labor than
handling a similar weight on a wheelbarrow. If only
one of these implements can be provided, the latter will
be more generally useful, but the cart also is very de-
sirable and on larger poultry plants should always form
a regular part of the equipment.

Sprayers for Disinfecting and Whitewashing

Every poultry plant should be provided with some
convenient means of spraying disinfectants, also for
whitewashing. It is not only much more convenient to
do this work with a sprayer than by the use of a brush,
but the work can be more thoroughly done. For use
about the poultry house the hand-sprayer shown in Fig.
233, or the knapsack sprayer shown in Fig. 230, are
practical, and low enough in cost so that everyone who
keeps fowls can
afford to have
them. For large
poultry plants,
barrel outfits such
as shown in Fig.
234 will be found
more powerful and
rapid. These
sprayers serve a
double _ purpose
since every poul-
try keeper has or
should have va-
rious fruit crops

FIG. 233—HAND SPRAYERS FOR
DISINFECTANTS

growing on the land and these require regular spraying
in order to give best results.

The Use of Disinfectants

Disinfection should be looked upon as a preventive
—as insurance against disease, rather than a remedy to
be resorted to after disease has broken out. This import-
ant detail of poultry work usually is greatly neglected
on the average poultry plant however, because, as or-
dinarily done, it is a laborious and most unpleasant job.
The best way to guard against neglecting it is to make
it-as easy and as convenient as possible to do the work.
Get a good spraying outfit and keep suitable spraying
materials on hand, mixed ready for instant use.

Whitewash. For fences, small coops, runs, etc., also
for interiors, whitewash is desirable and.low in cost.
With the spraying outfit shown in Fig. 234, it can |
easily and quickly applied. Whitewash brightens up
dark interiors surprisingly, but as usually made and ap-
plied, it rubs off readily and scales, so that a house whive-
washed a few times presents a decidedly unattractive ap-
pearance unless thoroughly scraped and cleaned, which
few persons ever take the trouble to do. For use with
sprayers, whitewash must be carefully strained and it is
desirable to have a special non-clogging nozzle. Formu-
las and directions for making whitewash will be found

7€

on pages 23 and 24.

Fumigation. This method of disinfection is effective
only when the building to be treated can be tightly
closed so that the interior may be subjected to the ac-

FIG. 234—BARREL SPRAYERS FOR WHITEWASH
AND OTHER DISINFECTANTS

tion of the fumes for a period of several hours, which
rarely is possible in the case of poultry houses. For ex-
terminating red mites carbon disulphide often is used
in small buildings and coops with excellent results, but
for combating disease germs fumigation is of little prac-
tical value in the average poultry house.

Disinfectants. The various coal tar disinfectants on
the market are excellent for all disinfecting purposes.
They are comparatively cheap and are easily prepared,
as it is only necessary to add the proper amount of water
to the disinfectant as purchased. Coal tar disinfectants
are effective against lice and mites as well as disease
germs, and if used frequently about the perches, nests,
etc., these pests will never make any serious trouble.

If for any reason the poultry keeper desires to make
his own disinfecting solution, he cannot do. better than
provide the “cresol disinfectant” which is highly recom-
mended by the Maine Experiment Station. The method
for making this is described in Bulletin 179, as follows:

“The active base of cresol soap disinfecting solution
is commercial cresol. This is a thick, sirupy fluid vary-
ing in color in different lots from nearly a colorless
fluid to dark brown. It does not mix readily with water

110

and, therefore, in order to make a satisfactory dilute so-
lution, it is necessary first to incorporate the cresol with
some substance like soap which will mix with water and
_ will carry the cresol over into the mixture. The com-
mercial cresol, as it is obtained, is a corrosive substance.
being in this respect not unlike carbolic acid. It should,
of course, be handled with great care and the pure
cresol should not be allowed to come in contact with the
skin. If it does so accidentally, the spot should be im-
mediately washed off with plenty of clean water.
Measure out 3 1-5 quarts of raw linseed oil in a 4
or 5-gallon stone crock; then weigh out in a dish 1 Ib.
6 oz. of commercial lye or “Babbit’s potash.” Dissolve
this lye in as little water as will completely dissolve it.
Start with ™% pint of water, and if this will not dissolve

POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES

a clear watery fluid it can be used in spray pumps with-
out difficulty. For disinfecting brooders or incubators
which there is reason to believe have been particularly
liable to infection with the germs of white diarrhea or
other diseases, the cresol may be used in double strength,
and applied with a scrub brush in addition to the spray.

A CREMATORY
Dispose of All Dead Chicks and Fowls By Burning Them,
and Thus Avoid the Spread of Disease.
By DR. RAYMOND PEARL *

On every poultry plant and around every farm there
is bound to occur, from time to time, a greater or less
number of deaths of chicks and adult fowls from disease
or other natural causes. The only really sanitary method
of dealing with these dead bodies is

to incinerate them. The difficulty
of doing this is that the poultryman
or farmer usually does not have any
suitable source of heat ready at all
times. To meet this requirement
there has recently been devised the
small crematory here described, and
illustrated in Fig. 235. This crem-
atory consists of a cement base or
fire box, bearing on its top a series
of grate bars which in turn are cov-
ered by a cremating box or oven in
which the material to be incinerated
is placed. The crematory here de-
scribed is large enough to take care
of all the needs of a plant carrying
1,000 head of adult stock, raising
3000 to 4000 chickens annually and in
which a good deal of anatomical and

siological research is going on.
- building, an excavation was
first made for the base, a
lot of loose stones and gr were
placed, in order to secure adequate
drainage below the cement. On top
of this the cement base and fire box
were made. The base consists of a
rectangular box made of cement,

FIG. 235—CONCRETE CREMATORY
Photo from Maine Experiment Station.

all the lye, add more water slowly.

the solution is cold; then add the cold lye solution very
slowly to the linseed oil, stirring constantly.
than 5 minutes should be taken for the adding of this
solution of lye to the oil.
tinue the stirring until the mixture is in the condition
and has the texture of a smooth homogeneous liquid
soap. This ought not to take more than a half hour.
Then while the soap is in this liquid state, and before
it has a chance to harden, add, with constant stirring,
814 quarts of commercial cresol. The cresol will blend

perfectly with the soap solution and make a clear, dark

brown fluid. The resulting solution will mix in any
proportion with water and yield a clear solution.

Cresol soap is an extremely powerful disinfectant.
For general disinfecting, such as houses, incubators,
nests, and other wood work, it should be used in a 3 per
cent solution with water. Two or three tablespocnfuls
of the cresol soap to each gallon of water will make a
satisfactory solution. This solution may be applied
through any kind of spray pump or with a brush. Being

.

Let this stand for at
least 3 hours until the lye is completely dissolved and

Not less

After the lye is added con-

open at the top and with a small
opening in front through which the
fire is fed and which serves as a
draught. The walls are about 6 inches thick. The inside
dimensions of fire box being 2 foot 3 inches by 1 foot
914 inches by 1 foot 4 inches. Across top of fire box there
were laid, while the cement was still soft, some old grate
bars from a small steam boiler which had been dis-
carded. These were set close together and held firmly
in place when the cement hardened. They form the
grate on which the material to be incinerated is thrown.
The incinerating chamber was made from galvanized
iron by a local tinsmith. This consists of a rectangular
box 2 feet 2 inches long, 1 foot 10 inches wide, and 1
foot 6 inches high. In the top is cut a round hole 12;
inches in diameter, which is protected by a hinged cover
15 inches by 14% inches. This galvanized box has no
bottom. It is placed on top of the grate bars and held
firmly in place by cement worked up around its lower
edges. At the back of this iron cremating box is an
opening for a stove pipe which is necessary in order to
give the proper draught. A wooden box is provided
which sets over the galvanized portion to protect it from
the weather when not in use.

* Condensed from Maine Station Bulletin No. 216.

INDEX*

Administration Building for Large Plants . 84
Air Space Required for Fowls ..
Anchoring the Poultry House ..
Back-Yard Poultry Keeping, Neatness in

Back-Yard Poultry Plant, Laying Out the...........00000.0. 0... 25
Baffler, Cornell Wind ..... 21
Box for Carrying Fowls -108

Breeding House, Convenient Hight- Pen E
for Mild Climates seorzee@ ---- 63
One sP en =...
Small Two-Pen 2

Brooder House, Comb. Hot Water and Colony Hover.
for Lamp-Heated Hovers
Massachusetts Open Pipe ....................
Single Compartment Colony Hover
Two-Compartment Colony Hover
with Underneath Heating System ........

Brooding Houses, Capacity of Colony Hover.

Construction, Details of House Design and.

Coop, Drying

Coop for Broody Hens ....

Cost of Building -...

Crates, Fattening

Crematory, A. .«..:...:-:

Cresol Disinfectant ate

Curtain-Front Poultry House for 100 Fowls

Curtains, Muslin Shutters and

Design and Construction, Details of .-

Dimensions of the Laying House .

Direct Sunlight in Poultry House

Disinfectants, The Use of .

Door Fastener, Handy

Doors and Windows ....

WOoors;, Ward <......2-....

Double Yarding Plan

Drafts in Small Houses, Preventing .

Droppings Platforms and Nests

Dust Bath, A Portable .

Eaves, Finishing the .....

Equipment, Miscellaneous Outside

Feeder, An Automatic ... ~ Oe)
Feed and Water Wagon . 3 105
iol ONVEG O OTe: n= eeeeecrannececenene=n 108

- Combination Laying and . 83
House, Equipment for the - 83

Troughs and Hoppers -_.
Fences, Building Poultry
Floors, Board

Clay

Concrete

Concrete Slab TULA

Earth
Foundation, Concrete
Foundation, Squaring the
Framing the Poultry House
Fumigation
Gate Fastener
Green Feed Holder
Green Feed Protector .
Hardware
Homemade Appliances
Hook for Catching Fowls
Hook for Moving House
Hoppers, Compartment
Hopper for Mash or Grain, A Simple Feed_.
Hoppers, Heed, <-.-..-..—- aaletecsassccosepiseseevecss
Hospital for Sick Fowls | =
iHiouse, A, Cockerel -:...........

An Attractive Piano Box ..

and Run Combined, Portable

A-Shaped Back-Yard

Building Block

Canadian Farm Poultry ..

Combination Incubator and Brooder

Combination Laying and Feed ....

Concrete Poultry

Cornell Model Poultry

Elevated Poultry ...............

for Adult Fowls or Bantams

for Cold Climates, A Laying
for Extreme South

House for 100 Fowls, Curtain-Front Laying.
for? Lwenly OWLS: Meet een, eS

for Warm Climates, A Laying .
Gable Roof Portable
Inexpensive Back-Yard Poultry
in Morristown (Tenn.) District
Large Semi-Monitor
Low-Cost Piano Box
Maine Station ...........
Mammoth Incubator
Minnesota Model
Missouri Poultry
New England Laying
Open-Front Laying
Scratching Shed
Sectional Colony
Sled-Runner Colony
Six Compartment Laying
Straw-Loft Laying
Straw Poultry
Two-Pen Back-Yard Poultry
Western Washington Poultry _..
With Elevated Floor
With Semi-Monitor Roof
Houses, Other Warm Climate ~......
Houses for Adult Fowls, neater ore
Illuminating Poultry Houses
Incubator House, A Small
Incubator House, How to Build ...
Intensive or Extensive Methods .
Layout for Large Poultry Plant
Layout for One Man Poultry Farm
Locating Poultry Houses
Low-Cost Houses, Building
Lumber, How to Order ..............
Manure Pit for the Laying House -
Manure Shed, Concrete
Mash Pail,
Materials to Use ...
Nest, Orange Box .
Platform
Sectional
The Connecticut Trap
The “Gravity” Trap ...
Wall
Nests, Trap
Oat Sprouting Equipment
Open-Front Laying House
Paint
Partitions
Passageways and Pactitions. BS
Perch Supports
Permanent’ Brooder Houses, Advantages of..
Planning ¢o Save Labor
Portable Houses, Advantages of .
Rats and Mice, A Safe Way to Poison
Roofs, Different Types of Poultry House...
Roosting Closets
Runs and Yards .....

Shade for Bare Yards .... 107
Shutters and Curtains, Muslin 19
Laying House With Divided 21

Substitutes for
Sparrow Trap
Sprayers for Disinfecting .
SERN (ORCS scence -c-cce-encve-neunnaes
Temporary Poultry Houses, Building ...
Tools
Trolley Feed Carrier ...
Ventilating System, King .
Ventilator, Rear Wall ....
Walls, Constructing the
Watering Device, Labor Saving ...
Water Vessels
Wheelbarrows and Carts .._.....
Whitewash Formula .....
Whitewash, The Use of
Windows and Doors .............
Yardroom Required, Amount of ...
Yards, Advantages of Double ...
Yard Tools

>

Boos FOR POULTRY KEEPERS

~

x

poultry industry.

HE sixteen reference books in the R. P. J. Poultry Library—
published in Two Series—are designed expressly to meet the
need for reliable, up-to-date information on all branches of the

One series consists of books devoted to

PRACTICAL POULTRY KEEPING, for those who wish to engage
in the profitable production of market poultry and eggs. The BREED
BOOKS describe breeds and varieties, and give complete information

on how to breed and rear superior-quality exhibition fowls.
As an earnest, practical poultry keeper, can you afford to do

titles!

Read the

without at least some of these Truly Helpful Books?

Seven Practical Poultry Books

All About the Profitable Production of Market Poultry and Eggs

ARTIFICIAL INCUBATING AND BROODING—
New and enlarged edition just off the press. Com-
pletely revised, down-to-date and full of helpful in-
formation on how to operate incubators successfully
and how to raise the chicks after they are hatched.
Worth many times its price to anyone who raises
chicks. 112 pages, 9x12 inches, illustrated. Price $1.09.

POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES—New edi-
tion completely rewritten and brought down-to-date.
The most complete book on the subject. Over two
hundred helpful illustrations. Plans for houses to
meet every practical requirement. Special chapters
on planning and building, also on interior and ex-
terior fixtures and general poultry-plant equipment.
112 pages, 9x12 inches. Price $1.00.

SUCCESSFUL POULTRY KEEPING—Size of book
9x12 inches, 176 pages, profusely illustrated. Treats
on such subjects as: The Poultry Industry; Value of
Standard-Bred Fowls; Starting in Poultry Business;
Incubating and Brooding; Market Poultry and Eggs;
Turkeys, Geese, Ducks, etc. Price $1.00.

Nine Valuable Breed Books —

EGGS AND EGG FARMS—Size of book 9x12
inches, 96 pages, well illustrated. Special subjects
treated are: The Egg Industry; Successful Egg Pro-
duction; Leading Breeds; Egg Markets; Supplying
Private Trade; Breeding and Feeding for Eggs; Win-
ter Egg Production; Egg Farms, etc. Price 50c.

THE CHICK BOOK—Size 9x12 inches, 80 pages,
attractively illustrated. Following is a _ partial list
of subjects: Selecting Breeding Stock; Hatching and
Rearing Chicks by Natural and_ Artificial Methods;
Feeding and Care of Young Chicks; Day-Old Chick
Business; Marketing Poultry, etc. Price 50c.

RELIABLE POULTRY REMEDIES—Plainly de-
scribes symptoms of diseases and gives practical
home remedies. Special attention to prevention of
disease. 86 pages, 6x9 inches. Price 25ce.

EGG RECORD AND ACCOUNT BOOK—A simple
method of keeping accurate poultry accounts. Hew
much do you make from your poultry? It is easy
to tell exactly what your fowls are doing if you use
this system of keeping accounts, Price 25c. —

They Tell How to Succeed in Mating, Rearing, and Exhibiting Standard Fowls

THE PLYMOUTH ROCKS—Barred, White, Buff,
Silver Penciled, Partridge, Columbian. A complete
and authoritative text book and instructive treatise.
Color plates. 160 pp., 9x12 inches. Price $1.00.

THE WYANDOTTES—Silver, Golden, White, Buff,
Black, Penciled, Partridge, Columbian. An excellent
breed book devoted to the Wyandotte family. Color
plates by Sewell. 160 pp., 9x12 inches. Price $1.00.

THE LEGHORNS—AIll varieties. Most complete
book ever written about Leghorns. Color plates by
Sewell and Schilling. 144 pp., 9x12 inches. Price $1.00.

THE ORPINGTONS—AlI varieties. An instructive
book which tells how tu select and mate for best
results. Color plate by Sewell. 80 pp. Price 75c.

THE ASIATICS—Brahmas, Cochins and Langshans.
Information on mating, breeding, exhibiting, ete.
Color plates by Sewell, 100 pp., 9x12 inches. Price 50c.

THE CAMPINES—Silver and Golden. The largest
and most profusely illustrated work on this breed.
Color plate by Sewell. 88 pp., 9x12 inches. Price 75e.

DUCKS AND GEESE—A guide to profitable duck
and goose rearing. Articles by foremost breeders.
Well illustrated, 104 pp., 9x12 inches. Price 75c.

RHODE ISLAND REDS—Rose and Single Comb.
The most complete and authoritative book on “Reds.”
Color plate by Sewell. 88 pp., 9x12 inches. Price 75e.

TURKEYS—Their Care and Management. How to
mate, rear, exhibit, and market. Beautiful color plate
by Sewell. 96 pp., 9x12 inches. Price 75ec.

THE RELIABLE POULTRY JOURNAL
GRANT M. CURTIS, Editor

THE WORLD'S GREATEST MONTHLY POULTRY MAGAZINE! Each year it gives

over 1200 pages of pri
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cal down-to-the-minute information treating on every import-
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Address all orders to

The Reliable Poultry Journal Publishing Co., Quincy, Illinois

LL ————————————

a
i yy } ) ieee a Ne py tn ing Ss LIBRARY OF CONGRESS |

LW

002 83