The Shearing Shed/Workshop Takes Shape

After several months of being too busy to make progress on the new shed it was time to get stuck into it. Helpers were organized and materials and tools readied.

Then it started to rain. Three days later it dried up enough to allow work to commence. The walls needed the framing completed. Downstairs there are four windows, two doors and a chute that have to be framed with all the timber notched into the round pole posts. While that was happening our willing wwoofer was screwing down the flooring. This might have been an easy task if the building was square and the timber the same size. Some planks had dried more at one end so they were a centimetre thinner than the other end. A large triangle piece was added to assist with making the floor squarer and the planks alternated to reduce the impact of the unequal drying. It looks good but the whole floor will need to be lifted and moved to reduce the gaps caused when the planks shrink fully. Hence the flooring screws rather than nails.



 

The upstairs flooring is cut and fixed.

 

The upstairs flooring is seasoned planks from the old shed we pulled down so it was much easier to lay them down and nail them. This gave a platform to work on the ridge pole. The three round poles were not quite tall enough to allow movement upstairs so an extension was fitted on each pole before the ridge pole was fitted. The next job will be adding the rafters.

The end walls were both sheeted with iron and the hole for the chute was cut out with the angle grinder. Progress at last!

 

The recycled tin being screwed on to the end walls.

The shed as at 9th January.

The Shearing Shed/ Workshop shapes up

 

We dismantled a collapsing shearing shed on a nearby farm. There was plenty of tin, round posts and assorted lengths of timber to be recycled. The aim is to build a shed that we can use to shear our small flock of sheep, hold a workshop in and have some space where visitors can roll out a swag.

 

Working with tree trunks for posts is always challenging as they are rarely straight. We have termites so I did not want to put the posts into the ground. So each post is set on a concrete stump set lower than the stumps that hold up the bearers for the floor joists. By chiseling out each post where it meets the sub-floor each of the nine large posts can be locked in and the frame is stronger.

 

 

The south facing wall has a doorway framed with straight timber which will be where the sheep enter the shed to go into a holding pen. The pulleys and rods seen through the doorway are an authentic working shearing plant from the original shed. This will be mounted on the west wall but will be for aesthetic reasons only - Michelle will shear with an electric handpiece powered by a generator. By recycling the tin and timber and framing the shed with round poles we hope it feels as if it has been there for a while.

 

There is a big window to go in the north facing wall which is not a feature of an original shed but should let plenty of light in and allow visitors a good view down the valley. Plenty of work to go but the project is at an exciting stage where the shape and feel of the shed is emerging.

Wanted: Timber/Tin Shed for Removal

We need another shed. This one is to be multipurpose - a shearing shed, a workshop space, a storage shed and a place where visitors could roll out a swag if they don't fancy camping.
We want this 6m x 4m shed to look more like an authentic Monaro shearing shed in both the design and the materials. So we put up some posters in the local town asking if anyone has a shed we can pull apart. There are plenty of farms that have changed a lot since the heydays of the 50s and 60s. Back then farms had farmworkers and plenty of money coming in as Australia 'rode on the sheep's back'.
Before anyone could answer our request Michelle asked a farmer friend if he had any spare sheds in need of a new life. He replied that he had just the thing. This farmer only raises cattle so the 60 year old shearing shed had been lying idle for a while. A strong wind had all but collapsed it about a year ago and he hadn't had the time or the inclination to pick up all the pieces. We were welcome    to it and a more recently built and collapsed hay shed was thrown into the deal.

We went and had a look at his shed and while it has certainly seen better days it is ideal for our purposes.

The rusty tin will look fine on the walls and there should be enough framing timber for us to use. I like the idea of using the original round timber posts to hold up the roof as well as the pole rafters. It will take a while to dismantle and sort out what is worth bringing back to Opportunity Farm but in a few months some parts of this old shed will gain a new lease of life.

Scouts on Farm

 

 

Last night we had visitors to Opportunity Farm. A party of scouts and leaders with some parent helpers needed a place to stay. They were looking for an Anzac Day Dawn service to take part in and after which they could cycle back down to the coast. This year Delegate was hosting its first Dawn Service so we offered our paddock as a suitable venue. This gave a spur to complete the toilet and shower rooms.  

 

The toilet and shower in the paddock

 

The last couple of weeks have seen the plumbing and drainage completed, most of the outside walls and all of the inside walls clad and the doors put on. The toilet door was made out of floorboards from a property we renovated and the shower door used to be the front door of the same house. While the new building is not finished it is usable. The shower finally ran hot water just three hours before the visitors were due to arrive.

The Outdoor Kitchen is a hive of activity

The Scouts arrived just after dark but were soon making use of the Outdoor Kitchen to cook their dinner. Some even planned to roll out their swags on the floor rather than bother with a tent. Despite it having rained consistently for more than a week the ground was not too soggy and the skies cleared to reveal stars above the campfire. It was really inspiring to see Opportunity Farm hosting a group of visitors and know that they had everything they needed - warmth, plenty of space for tents and vehicles, running water and a flushing toilet, a sink for dishes, a barbie for cooking on and a chance to chat around the fire, recite Monty Python jokes and for the adults a taste of our cider.

They retired early as they had to get up, pack up camp and be ready for the Dawn Service at 6am. They may have been our first camping visitors but they didn't get a good look at the place - they arrived in the dark and left in the dark! 

Cladding

Three weeks to go until we have a troop of scouts staying at Opportunity Farm. The farm is the starting point for a bike hike involving up to 50 kids who will head off down to the coast after attending a dawn Anzac service in the local town.

 

This group will be the first to camp on the farm and use the facilities we have been building for visitors. There is a toilet and a shower near an outdoor kitchen in a paddock which has a good camping spot with a fine view down the valley.

 

The toilet room with cladding on the inside walls

 

Today we worked on lining the inside walls with plywood. The toilet and washbasin are in and connected up. The wall that separates the two rooms is now clad. Two sheets to go on the walls with windows. Then we will have to finish putting corrugated iron on the outside, hang the doors and complete the plumbing. We found a NGO that sells simple solar lights - a small panel that charges the light for 16.5 hours on 8 hours of sunshine. They were designed for mass production for homes in Africa so a proportion of the cost goes to subsidise their distribution there. We will use place one inside each room for the convenience of anyone staying.

Once we have had our scout visit then we will be able to host other visitors and share this farm and what we are doing on it with more people.

Building from the Bottom Up

Today I found two eggs in the coop where my Light Sussex Chooks are. Despite earlier excitement there are definitely three hens and three roosters in the batch I incubated in September. The cocks have begun to test out their voices so I was hopeful it was egg time. Five months is pretty standard for hens to start laying but I had been led to believe that this breed were a bit slow.

First-time eggs are always small but they should increase in size over the next few weeks. Once they are full size then I can collect some to incubate and start the breeding cycle again. Another six months and I hope to have chickens ready for the pot and if all goes well a rolling program of chicks following on to both breed up more layers and have plenty ready for the freezer whenever needed. It all takes time but today is an important starting point. Up to now we have purchased a few ISA brown pullets each year from a peripatetic chook van. Now we can keep it in house and concentrate on Light Sussex. They lay for longer and are a much bigger bird so are dual purpose. I reckon they look much more beautiful too.

Another project that was started in September and needs a bit of a move on is building a toilet/shower shed. We have 50 scouts coming to stay the night in April and so there is a greater sense of urgency.
So far the building has foundations, floor, stud walls, roof and ceiling.  Now it needs the deck on the front to complete the floor level work.

First I had to dig three holes for stumps to match the others already there. They had to be leveled in all directions and then I tipped a bag of ready-mix concrete in each hole and added 2.5 litres of water. Half an hour later I could add three home made ant caps, a bearer and then six joists. The deck now just needs decking.

 I also inserted one of the windows into its frame so the building looks more alive now. Just having some time to reacquaint myself with this project felt positive and all the challenges and the possibilities start to turn over in my mind. Nine weeks left to complete it - once the harvest eases off.

Making Connections

We have always wanted to share Opportunity Farm with others. As teachers we have organized and run camps for students aimed at realizing their potential by having them achieve at real tasks and initiative challenges. Our paths and interests in education have steered to supporting and unlocking students with special needs.  We have discovered the empowering way that Scouts brings out the best in young people. So to make a connection between all of these we have been planning a site on the farm that could host groups, families or individuals in a supported camp.
Eighteen months ago we started to construct an outdoor kitchen area by laying a slab and supporting a hexagonal structure on bush poles. This was finished in time for an activity day in November 2013 in which 30 students from three local schools came to undertake initiative challenges. Soon after that we put in underground pipes to bring water from a new tank down to the kitchen area. Last year we put in more pipes and drains and in September the shell of a toilet/shower room was put up.

The Outdoor Kitchen with the tank up the hill

We found out a few days ago that a coastal scout group is going to commence a bike hike from our local town following the Dawn Service on Anzac Day. About 50 of them are going to be staying on Opportunity Farm the night before the ride.

Time to get more done over at the camp site. So today I finally connected up the water lines so that the pipes are primed and water is available at the two taps and under the toilet building. It may have taken a long time to get water that far but steadily our dreams are coming together and the connections made.