Pro tip: check your coop's hardware cloth after a storm

We had a huge windstorm here in Spokane a couple weeks ago that knocked a tree branch onto my run. It bent the frame and pulled the hardware cloth away from the wood, leaving a gap big enough for a raccoon to get its arm through. I found it the next morning and had to use a staple gun and some extra washers to secure it all back together before letting the girls out. Has anyone else had to do a quick patch job like that, and what did you use?

3 comments

3 Comments

matthew_owens92mo ago

What did you use to bend the frame back into shape? I've had to use a car jack and a block of wood before to slowly push a bent run post back up, then just screwed a metal mending plate over the cracked wood for extra support.

amy8587d ago

Oh man, I tried the car jack method once too and it worked okay but it felt kinda sketchy. For a bent frame on an old gate I used a 2-ton bottle jack with a 2x4 block on each side to spread the pressure out evenly. I would crank it a little, wait a minute, then crank more - slow and steady over maybe 30 minutes. Then I actually used two metal mending plates on both sides of the crack with 2-inch structural screws, not just one plate like you'd think. That was three years ago and the gate still swings straight, no sagging or anything. I think the trick is getting the wood to flex back a bit past straight so it settles into place.

david8212mo ago

Metal plates over cracked wood are just a band-aid. The wood fibers are already broken and won't hold long-term weight or stress. You really need to replace the whole damaged section. A proper splice with new lumber, glued and screwed, is the only fix that lasts. Jacking it straight just hides the problem for a little while.