Air Power

I’ve got a small building project going on. It’s a chicken coop which is 6 foot by 8 foot and 8 feet high with a salt box roof. I’ve had all sorts of coops over the years, and it is time that I did one on a larger scale. It will be nice to have a walk in place in the coop to store straw and food. Egg collection will be easier being I will be able to walk right in and stand without crouching.

This building is of the size that it is neither big nor small, yet it’s big enough to bring out the framing nailer and the compressor. It just makes more sense to shoot ten nails in the time it takes to hammer just one.

The funny thing about framing nailers is that when you get a box of nails for the gun you generally get enough to build an entire house. The last box I got was enough to build the last addition on my house and build two sheds and some walls in a friends barn. I needed more nails for this job and at $50 a box I was almost tempted to use a hammer, but I have them now and it is probably a life time supply.

I also have a roofing nailer which I should be using on the project tomorrow. Out of all the construction tools I’ve ever purchased the compressor and nailers have saved me more time and energy over the years. When I think back to doing a roof with a hammer and nails, it’s like thinking about the stone age in comparison.

For small projects I use a pneumatic brad and quarter crown stapler. It is so nice no longer banging my fingers with a hammer, and to date I haven’t shot myself.

Anyway, this small project reminds me how I don't miss building. When I first moved here I knew little about construction. I remember putting in my first sky lights with my limited tools. I actually used a jig saw for everything back then. When the time came for the first addition our architect convinced me I could do all the work my self. Most people would have hired a contractor, but that would have tripled the price. We were on a tight budget, so I read the codes and studied the requirements of the plans and learned about things from the ground up and it all worked out. I never failed an inspection, though I did have to replace one window that needed to be tempered because it was too close to a bath tub. I've been wondering what to do with that former window for years now, so I decided to use it in the storage room of the coop.

For the promised update, we could no longer stand having the chickens in the garage so we set them free in the green house until their coop is finished. I need to finish it quickly because we need to plant tomatoes in there.