Need some strength

[Rhodie Ranch]

Hi all, esp Baymule (my hero lady). I need some strength. Hubs has done all the repairs and projects for 30 years. Now that he has abandoned me and this wrecked house, I need to do the projects.

1. Garden: surrounded on one side 40' long with plastic fencing. Three other sides board fencing and cattle fencing. Bad red cattle dog keeps getting into humongous compost pile. Today he came in with rancid croutons breath. I cannot afford to replace the 40+ ft of plastic fencing. He's made a hole in the fence and I've woven sticks thru it, tied it up with string, etc. Suggestions?

2. One year old coop is leaking from the roof down to the nesting boxes and then seeping into the coop floor. I need to clean it out, place a heater on it for a couple of days. I need a gutter which I can buy at HD and bring home. Approx 8' which I'll somehow jam into my Toyota Venza and out the side window. How do I attach the gutter? Are gutters plastic? Can I slant it down on one side to let it drain?

3. We do have freezes here. A few weeks ago it got into the 20's and all of the sprinkler timer battery stations slowly exploded over that week. I found where to turn off the main water to the lawn, but there are still areas of PVC piping that are active. I don't know how to turn them off. Are these styro covers effective?

Gonna go take pics. Thank you for your advice.

 

[Rhodie Ranch]

 

[Rhodie Ranch]

 

[Rhodie Ranch]

 

[digitS']

Sure you will get some freezes!

You will need to empty those hoses before they split. A sunny afternoon will help warm them so that they can be rolled up. Underground sprinkler systems? I don't know anyhing about them ...

Gutters should come with some hardware to hang them. Seems that I used a screwdriver, long screws, tubes for screws and holding sides of plastic gutter ... Straps to attach to roof may not be needed for a small shed.

Could you fit a roll of livestock fencing in your car?

I remember a morning in Medford when it was -2°f ... Our crawl space was open and the pipes froze. I am pretty sure that Dad just used a blowtorch to thaw them. You don't want to have to do that. Winterize!

Steve

 

[thistlebloom]

Oh, I am so sorry you've been left high and dry Murphysranch. I'll not comment on your almost-ex, except to say what a jerk.

I'm sure you will get excellent advice from many members here.

Re the sprinkler system - those are usually turned off and blown out in the fall. Turning off the main water supply is good but there will still be residual water in the lines which will freeze if not blown out. It's usually about a $35 charge around here to have a sprinkler or landscape company do it.

If you don't need your hoses for watering during winter I would roll up and put away (blowing them out first) If those faucets in the garden beds are still charged, i.e. not connected to your main sprinkler system and you can't turn them off, then wrapping them will help. Hoses should be removed.

I have bought those foam faucet covers but found them a pain for the outside faucet coming out of the house that I need to use for the animals all winter. What I do now is wrap them in bubble wrap and slide a plastic nursery pot over the top. Same idea as the foam I guess, but more durable and free. Probably a pain still, but it's how I do it.

Re your dog. I have had a lot of cattledogs and you gotta love their tenacity, lol.
I could tell stories about the escapades of one, Boomer, our cross eyed heeler, he was a character and he invented trouble.

What worked best for me, and him, was a hot wire. It's self educating and harmless, but leaves a lasting impression. It can also be cheap and very easy to install and remove to take with you.

I wish you well, and hope the fixes you find are effective and doable by you. I know you don't have a lot of resources to dump into this.
But you can do it!

 

[Nyboy]

Sorry I hire people so can not help. Handyman on craigslist calls himself rent a husband. I know it very different for a signal woman but craigs list has a section called giggs people looking to have odd jobs post there. Decide what you can afford for a job like $30 to hang gutters on chicken coop. Have a friend with you when they come to do work Hang in there. Is house on market ? If so you really need to fix before any showings

 

[Nyboy]

Not suggesting this but ............ I had a friend whose ex husband screwed her over bad. She had to meet with him one day. They met at a coffee shop when he wasn't looking she sprayed visine eye drops in his coffee. For the next 2 days hubby couldn't leave the toilet

 

[baymule]

On the chicken coop, it looks like water runs down the window, down the outside wall and behind the shield over the nest box. Look closely at where the shield meets the wall. Maybe you could fix it with several beads of silicone seal, letting each bead dry before applying another. Ask at the big box store how to use the nifty metal applicator thingy (I don't know the name of it) and the tube of silicone. They also make a 4 corner bead tool with different rounded corners, it sure beats using your finger to smoosh the silicone down in the cracks. Ask for help and they will be glad to show you how to operate the metal applicator, in fact, have them show you how to use it on a scrap of paper or something just so you know how to use it. You can do this.

 

[baymule]

On drying out the chicken coop, use a fan, not a heater. Fire danger.