The Duck Deck Is Done!

Remember all of the scrap wood and that old bathtub?

Well, it's finally been turned into something!

The tub was in a travel trailer one of our boys bought.  When he was re-doing the bathroom, he ripped out the tub and all the plumbing as was going to throw it all away.  I kept the drain lines and the tub.

What we thought would be a 2 day project turned into an all-week event with having goats kid and working around the weather.  The plan was to set up a small pen for 3 of the ducks (1 pair of the buffs + a white pekin hen).  The tub would be mounted into a raised deck, allowing the ducks to be on the top of the deck or to go underneath...which given the vertical space added a bit of square footage to the pen.  Also in the pen would be a duck house, with hinged lid for easy egg removal (if they cooperate and actually put their eggs in the duck house).  The tub would drain directly into the compost area, adding water and nutrients.  And so the project began...

First we added fence posts and figured out how to lay it all out.  Then we framed the tub...

We were able to use the drain line, but had to buy a new drain opening for the tub.  It cost $5.  Then we started on the deck frame...

It took some time because we were using those scrap shipping crates.  Each one had to be dismantled, screws removed (which we re-used), and all the staples removed.  Once the frame was built, we started cutting and attaching the deck boards...

We were a bit concerned about the tub frame being able to hold the weight of the tub once full (especially with the ducks partying in there) so when we painted it, we also added some supports for the tub...

As you can see, it's pretty sturdy.....but yet it is somewhat portable.  If we decide to move the pen later on, the tub and deck can be moved as well.

I still want to build them a little chaise lounge and put an umbrella by the pool...but I think Bob might have a stroke if I do. 

The next step was to get the deck into position and install the plumbing...

Which brings me to our next expense for the project.  I didn't want to have to stick my hand into the tub to pull a drain plug, so we bought a ball valve to go onto the end of the drain pipe.  I can drain the tub without even stepping into the pen...

The finishing touches were using one of the shipping crates to make their duck house, and used scrap to make the ramp...

We used an old chain link gate for the gate, and used fencing that a friend had given us when he tore down his dog pen...

That loose piece of fencing is covering a blueberry bush so that the dogs don't squash it.  I'll be building a better fence for it soon.

I think it turned out kinda nice.  Purchased materials were tub drain $5 and ball valve $12.  Total project cost was less than $20 using scrap.

Oh, and I put together this little feeder with some of the scrap wood.  Hopefully it will keep some of the rain out of their feed plus keep them from shoving their bowl all around their pen.