turkeyman55
Senior Member
Keep in mind there is more then one right way to do anything... As for me and our Chunnel, I used 3 foot- 1x1 inch hardware cloth. Hardware cloth is strong. It's also predator proof compared to chicken wire, and I have 12 children, plus grandchildren and a sweet dog, we also live by the mountains with predators so our housing needs to be sturdy!
I ran the Chunnel from my main coop/run behind my shed. I have about 18" behind the shed and it's 10 ft long. Because the shed has a big gap underneath I made the Chunnel a full 72 inch circle. I clipped the raw edge, overlapped a two inch seam at the top so the hens wouldn't be walking on it and tied with zip ties. Note: To avoid injury, every time I cut a new piece of hardware cloth I trimmed the pointy raw edge off. This just seemed like a good idea.
I spanned the space between the main coop/run and the Chunnel with wooden screen panels. I used the hardware cloth again, stapled to wood 2x2's. The panels are lockable for security and removable so I can clean under the coop.
The next 20 feet, runs from the shed to the second Run. I made the Chunnel in a half circle of 5 ft 4 inches, using the same 1x1 inch hardware cloth. Seven- 3 feet sections, overlapped a couple of inches and connected together with zip ties. Note: The extra 4 inches of hardware cloth in the half circle that hits the ground, I folded over tight, about 2 inches both sides to keep the edges clean and safe should a hen try to scratch under. I secured the arch to the ground with heavy duty landscape pins.
Every 3 feet I supported the arch with 5 foot lengths of 1/2 inch electrical conduit bent in a half circle and secured to the ground with 1/2 inch- foot long, rebar. The structure is permanent but some of these lengths are removable for cleaning by clipping a couple zip ties and pulling a few landscape pins and pulling up the section off the rebar.
Yes- that's my little boy in there trying it out with the girls!
Notes: I got most everything at Home Depot and the guy in electrical, bent the seven 5 ft lengths of conduit into a half circle for me. I love Home Depot for their attention to their customers. They may not do this at your store but playing a bumfuzzled middle-aged mom with two little ones in tow sometimes works wonders. Now come-on if your a woman you've played this card...
Hope this reads ok. Contact me with any questions- happy to share any info. This project was not hard, just labor intensive. I recruited helping hands where I needed to, but mostly built it myself. I free range my hens in the yard at about 7:00 pm till roost, but during the day the coop, runs and Chunnel keeps them happy and safe.
Enjoy your project- we're here to help you!
