DIY Quail Cage 3.0

[mdees88]

Well I started on this one a few days ago. It is very similar to version 1.0 but has some improvements built in. This one is 5ft x 2ft x 18 inches tall. The floor sits 3 and a half feet off the ground to help protect them from predators. It has an egg trough and a metal roof. After a trip to Lowe's it's time to get started...

I built the bottom and top of the cage first. I built them identical to the dimensions of the wire (5ft x 2ft). I cut the boards on a 1 in 12 pitch so the floor would slope. I cut the top the same with a slop also... just because. I forget to buy bolts while at Lowes so I added some supports to the 2x4 legs for the floor to sit on. I cut them on a 1 in 12 pitch also. I screwed and glued them in. You can see the top leaning up against the boat. I used some scrap wood to help square everything up.

Once the floor was attached I added some 2x4 pieces cut 1 in 12 to sit on top of the floor. Once I screwed them into the leg posts I set the top of cage on them.

After that I closed in one end with some fence boards and ripped a 2x4 to make a door frame. I made one door out of fence posts and one out of a split 1x4.

Instead of sliding doors I just did two regular openings going into the sheltered side. Also the entire floor is wire and there is no wood anywhere under the floor. This means that all the droppings fall through and they do not pile up around the edges like my first cage.

I cut down the 2x4 leg posts, notched them, and added two 2x4s to support the roof. I screwed some 1x4 straps to the 2x4s and attached the metal roof to them. the roof is 4ft wide and the cage is 2ft wide. I'm hoping that the roof is wide enough to keep any wind blown rain out of the feeder. If it's not I might lower the roof 3 inches and or make it wider.

I did the same egg trough as my Version 2.0 cage. It is a 1x4 bottom with a ripped 1x4 front and a 1x6 top. I used a Kreg jig to attach it to the cage.

The feeder is my PVC no waste feeder. I did a write up on building it, here's the link... https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/diy-no-waste-quail-feeder.1232052/ I am also going to add an LED light strip for artificial lighting.


I'll update after I get the watering system installed. I think it's going to work great. It's the same system as my Version 2.0 cage with the float valve inside the bucket so it always stays full. I will be using horizontal nipples this time and see how that goes. I really need like 5 more of these, lol. I think I'm going to build one more cage in a week or two. It will be 5ft x 10ft with a partition down the middle and dividers every 2ft. This way I could have 10 individual five square foot cages for my breeders. Or I could have 5 breeder cages on one side and two 5ft x 2.5ft grow out pens on the other. Hopefully this will be my last cage... for a while anyway. Here's a link to my other two cage designs...

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/diy-quail-cage-1-0.1231344/

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/diy-quail-cage-2-0.1231366/

Thanks for checking it out,
Matt

 

[ButtonquailGirl14]

Nice!!!

 

[Sweets2005]

Great job!!!!

 

[Hungarianquail]

I love it. It's so much work! But very satisfying once it's done. I know my hands suffered from building just one. You're on a roll! I love your designs!

 

[rum3002576]

i like it

 

[mdees88]

I love it. It's so much work! But very satisfying once it's done. I know my hands suffered from building just one. You're on a roll! I love your designs!

Thank you... I used all screws and a miter saw so hands are good

Cost a little more money but a lot less pain.....

 

[Mamacast]

I get inspired when I see yours and can't wait to build mine. 11 days left till hatch day Are you able to provide more detailed pics on your egg protector? What a great resource you have been.

 

[mdees88]

Thanks

The best tool I have ever used for woodworking is the Kreg jig. I used it when making the egg trough, the doors, and the floor and roof frames. It would be pretty difficult to copy my exact egg trough design without that tool...

I will take some more pics of the egg trough and explain how I made it.

I'm 90% done with my last cage and I will do a write up on it in a couple days.

Thanks for checking it out.

 

[mdees88]

So my floor is a simple 2x4 frame with wire on top. I set it on a 1 in 12" slope. I attached another 2x4 1.5" above the floor. This creates the "gap" for the eggs to roll out.

The egg trough is a sideways (flat) 1x4 screwed directly into the 2x4 frame, even with the floor. The only way this is easily done is by using a Kreg jig.

I screwed the 1x4 to the the 2x4 and I also screwed the front lip of the egg trough to the 1x4 (pocket screws going both directions). This is looking from underneath the trough.

The front lip is a ripped 1x4. Then I cut out end pieces and stapled them to the trough. I used a 1x6 for the top "door" to the egg trough.

 

[mdees88]

There is a simpler way to do it if you do not have a kreg jig. Look at this picture. My floor is 5 ft long and 2ft wide. Imagine if my floor was 2.5ft wide but I kept my 2x4 legs spaced at 2ft. This would create a 6" overhang in my floor. It would stick out 6" past the front legs. Then you just screw a 1x6 lip around the front and sides and add a 1x6 top door.

It would be very simple this way. But I would buy a 3ft roll of wire and make a 5ft x 3ft floor. Then I would space my legs 2.5ft apart. This way inside the cage would 5x2.5ft and you would have a 6" egg trough sticking out the front (and you don't waste any wire).

Hope that helps...