Rex deWolf
Established Member
Hi Everyone.
My dog is threatening to leave home if he doesn't get somewhere more comfortable to live! I've been promising to build him something new for some time, but haven't gotten around to it yet. Being a hardy border collie he lives outside all year round and only comes in at night.
He needs a new insulated box approx 4 ft x 2.5 ft by 3ft high, with a removable pitched roof (for cleaning purposes). I thought of making this from treated fence boards but was put off after reading that some wood treatments are poisonous to animals??? - I doubt this, but the boards are around 20 x 95mm which might make it a bit heavy. I want to put the box on castors so as the opening is not facing into the prevailing wind.
Another thought was that I have a full 8x4 sheet of 12mm OSB. Measured carefully this would be big enough to make it all. The roof would be covered in felt and if the floor was raised off my concrete yard, would this be enough to stop water seeping in where the sheet has been cut? I've never use OSB for outdoor projects before, but you often see it used as hoardings and to block up windows on building sites etc.
Any thoughts on the choice of materials, or possibly some one may even have plans to share? Look forward to your replies
My dog is threatening to leave home if he doesn't get somewhere more comfortable to live! I've been promising to build him something new for some time, but haven't gotten around to it yet. Being a hardy border collie he lives outside all year round and only comes in at night.
He needs a new insulated box approx 4 ft x 2.5 ft by 3ft high, with a removable pitched roof (for cleaning purposes). I thought of making this from treated fence boards but was put off after reading that some wood treatments are poisonous to animals??? - I doubt this, but the boards are around 20 x 95mm which might make it a bit heavy. I want to put the box on castors so as the opening is not facing into the prevailing wind.
Another thought was that I have a full 8x4 sheet of 12mm OSB. Measured carefully this would be big enough to make it all. The roof would be covered in felt and if the floor was raised off my concrete yard, would this be enough to stop water seeping in where the sheet has been cut? I've never use OSB for outdoor projects before, but you often see it used as hoardings and to block up windows on building sites etc.
Any thoughts on the choice of materials, or possibly some one may even have plans to share? Look forward to your replies