Thankyou for your reply.

I guess I will give the dome a try with the polypipe and try and cover it
over with some tarps. I live in Brisbane so our winters are not that cold.

I really want to try this design as it utilises the chooks as tractors for
the mandala garden. I do have another book that uses strawbale as housing -
but you can't make a round chookhouse out of strawbale! grin

Tracy

"Fran Higham" wrote in message
...
"KingLillis" wrote in message

Would anyone have any suggestions on building a chook dome? I have
Linda
Woodrow's book "Permaculture Home Garden" which outlines using one in a
mandala garden, however I have since read (from other sources) that the
design is not stable enough in high winds and doesn't offer enough
protection in the weather for the chooks.

I've never built one as I have a house for them, but I do have a friend
who
made many of them. She always had at least 3 on the go and was
constanatly
moving them around the village on the back of her ute. (Don't ask
why -it's
one of those really complicated life stories that make one shake ones head
in wonder at how others live!) She built them from all sorts of materials
usually found at the tip.

The materials list included PVC pipe, electrical conduit, old curved bits
of
metal that fitted and all sorts of tying, binding, holding together
agents.
She covered the outsides with everything and anything including old
sheets,
polytarps, chicken wire and bird wire, old feed bags and anything else
that
could be tied to the surface.

I always viewed then as being both and eyesore and so flimsy that they'd
fall apart at the drop of a hat. I was wrong as they were surprisingly
sturdy (given the rattyness of the building technique and the makeshift
look
of them). She did lose some choks to a fox but then not as many as I have
over the years when I've forgotten to lock the night house.

The one thing I never liked about them though was that they don't give
good
shelter in our cold climate. In a warmer climate (or if only used in
summer) they may be OK, but here where it is so cold in winter, I think it
is rather cruel and especially given the nutritional needs of layers who
also need to keep warm.



Also, PVC piping apparently is
not a great choice of material as it breaks down quickly?

?????? I think this is an odd statement and have never had any polypipe
break down quickly. Even in the stock yard where it is left leaning up
against a fence in the full sun for years on end.


(Damm, I was
going to use it to create makeshift gazebo's etc!)

Someone has suggested using a yurt design or teepee - however the
structure
needs to be moved every fortnight.

Sound like a lot of hard work.


Any feedback would be appreciated.

Tracey