| How to Build a Simple Dog House Posted: 18 Dec 2021 12:00 AM PST Whether you have an outdoor or an indoor dog, dog houses are a worthwhile investment. A dog house can serve as a permanent shelter for outdoor dogs, or as a place for indoor dogs to hangout while they're outside. However, building a dog house is a somewhat difficult task. Not only do you have to design the dog house, but you've got to cut the wood and put the dog house together. Thankfully, with a little bit of time and some knowledge, you'll be able to build a dog house in no time. [Edit]Planning the Dog House - Determine how long and how wide you want the dog house to be. While some people will construct a dog house that just fits their dog, others will want to build a supersized jumbo dog house. Think about how big you want your dog house.
- Measure your dog to see the minimum size your dog house needs to be. Always make it larger than your dog.
- Add at least half a foot above your dog's height.
- Plan to make your entrance half a foot wider than your dog.
- For simplicity, try to round the measurements of your house to the nearest half foot. This will help not only in sketching, but also in measuring and buying materials.
- Sketch the dog house. Before you can start constructing the dog house, you need to spend a little time sketching it so you'll have a plan to work with. Sketching your doghouse will enable you to start the construction process with confidence that what you're building will turn out as a well-crafted product.
- When sketching your dog house, use one inch to represent a foot. Use half an inch to represent half of a foot. Since you rounded to the nearest half foot in an earlier step, this should be relatively easy.
- Draw the base (perimeter) of your dog house with all four sides having a measured value.
- Draw each face of the dog house with all four sides having a measured value. Include a measured value for the entrance.
- Sketch the roof outline for each face, and from the top looking down. Include a measured value for all sides.
- Make sure each piece of your frame is labeled and has a measured value.
- Make sure each piece of plywood siding that will go over the frame has a measured value.[1]
- Pick a good spot in your yard. You also need to pick a spot in your yard to place the doghouse once it's built. Picking a safe and convenient spot is extremely important as your dog will likely be spending a good bit of time there. When picking a spot, consider:
- Proximity to the house. You might want it to be close in case you need to feed or check on your dog.
- The contours of the ground. Make sure to pick a spot that is high and flat. You don't want water pooling around the dog house.
- An area with shade. If you're dog will be out during the summer, you probably need to make sure the dog house is in a shaded area. Otherwise, the sun will beat down on its roof all day and heat up your poor pup.
- Prepare the ground for your dog house. After you've chosen a place to put your dog house, you need to prepare the ground. You'll need to even any uneven areas and remove any grass or organic material. This is important, as the floor of your dog house is going to be the ground on which it sits.
- Use a shovel to dig up any grass or plants from the spot.
- Get some soil from nearby or from the store to fill in any holes that might be left.
- Use the backside of a rack to flatten and even out the soil.[2]
[Edit]Gathering Your Materials - Get all of the appropriate tools. There are a wide variety of tools you're going to need to build your simple dog house. Make sure you get all of them before you start any aspect of your construction. If you don't, you'll have to pause construction to run over the neighbor's house or to the hardware store. You'll need:
- A saw. A table saw or a hand saw will work just fine.
- A hammer.
- An electric drill.
- A paintbrush.
- Small roofing tacks.
- 1.5-inch screws, 2-inch screws, and 1-inch nails.[3]
- Buy wood. To build your dog house, you'll have to buy a decent amount of wood. The amount of wood depends on the size of the house and on your sketch. Make sure you buy enough wood.
- Consider buying at least 10% more wood than you think you'll need. This will provide you with extra material if you make any mistakes or make any unplanned additions.[4]
- Buy 2x4s for the frame and support.
- Buy plywood (your choice of gauge) for the siding of the dog house.
- Use waterproof wood for the house if you plan to store the house outdoors.
- Have your wood pre-cut at the store if this works for you.
- Decide on and buy roofing material. In addition to plywood and 2x4s, you'll also need to decide on roofing material. Roofing material is important because it will protect your dog house from rain and snow and help prolong the life of your creation.
- Consider 3-tab roofing tiles.
- If you have old roofing supplies from previous projects, feel free to use them.
- If you want to put tar paper, felt, or other roofing paper underneath the roofing tiles, you can.[5]
- Pick a paint color. You also need to buy some paint. Painting your dog house will both help protect it from the elements and it will add a measure of style to your new creation.
- Consider a color that matches your house.
- For almost all projects, one gallon of exterior paint will work fine.
- Avoid interior paint. Only use exterior paint as it provides a measure of weatherproofing.
- Feel free to use extra paint if you have some laying around from another project.
[Edit]Building the Dog House - Cut your wood, unless you had it pre-cut at the store. The first step you need to take when building the dog house is to cut all of the wood you'll need to use in the construction process. Pre-cutting your wood will make sure you have all of your materials ready to go once you've started the construction process.
- Make sure to cut with precision and remember that you used one inch to represent one foot on your sketch.
- Cut 2x4s to use for your base. You should have four base pieces (two long and two short).
- Cut 2x4s to use for your framing. Your framing will include four corner posts. It will also include four pieces to use as the top of your frame (these will match the dimensions of your base pieces). If your dog house is longer than three feet, consider adding extra support frames.
- Cut plywood to use for your siding.[6]
- Attach the base. Take the four base pieces and the bottom plywood piece and attach them to each other. The base will create the foundation of the house, so make sure to do it correctly.
- Turn the 2x4s up so the 2 inch sides are on the ground.
- Make sure you're working on a level surface.
- Take one short piece and one long piece and attach them (2 inch side on the ground) by screwing a two inch nail into the wood with an electric drill.
- Take the now L shaped foundation and attach the other short 2x4 to the opposite side of the original short 2x4.
- Take your final long piece and complete the rectangle by screwing another 1.5 inch screw into the corner of the rectangle.
- Use a square to make sure the side pieces are attached at a right angle.[7]
- Complete the rest of the frame. After you've got the base together, you need to consult your sketch and complete the frame of the dog house. Since the frame is the most important, you need to do this slow and carefully.
- Take the corner posts and use an electric drill to screw (and attach) them to the base. Make sure the long face of the 2x4s are parallel to the long side of the dog house.
- If you have extra support 2x4s, place them equal distance between the corner posts on the long side of the dog house.
- Top off the frame with the four pieces that were measured the same as the base. Use your electric drill to screw them into the corner posts. In addition, make sure to use two inch screws to screw them into each other.
- Use a square to make sure the side pieces are attached at a right angle.[8]
- Build the roof. After you've framed the house, you need to frame the roof. Your roof frame and shape will follow whatever you chose in your sketch, so make sure to follow it.
- If you chose a gable roof (a roof that has two sides that slope and a triangle-shaped "gable" wall at each end), make sure to frame your "A" shape well. Use an electric drill to screw 1.5 inch screws into your roof frame. Use more 1.5 inch screws to attach the roof frame into the main frame of the dog house.
- If you choose a flat roof when you made your sketch, you can move on to the next step.[9]
- Attach the plywood to the main frame and roof frame of the dog house. After you've framed the roof, it's time to move on to attaching your plywood siding to the dog house. Your plywood siding will create the walls of your dog house and serve as a stabilizing force.
- Take your pre-measured plywood and attach it to the long sides of the dog house. Use 1-inch nails and hammer them into the frame. Use 3 nails for each corner post, spacing them evenly. Use another 2 sets of 3 nails to secure the plywood to the base and to the top 2x4 of the frame. If you used an extra piece of 2x4 for support, use 3 more nails to secure the plywood to it.
- Take your pre-measured plywood and attach it to the short sides of the dog house. You should have cut special wood (based on your sketch) for the dog house door. Use 3 1-inch nails to secure each side of the plywood into each corner post.
- If you chose a flat roof, simply attach your pre-measured plywood to the main frame of the dog house.[10]
[Edit]Putting on the Finishing Touches - Nail on your roofing material. After you've secured the plywood to the frame, it's time to attach your roofing material. Attaching your roofing material is important as you'll want to protect the dog house from rain and snow.
- If you've chosen to put down tar paper or other material underneath shingles, put it down.
- Use ½ inch tacks or nails to secure the paper.
- Lay your 3-tab or other roofing material on the roof of the dog house.
- Use ½ inch tacks or nails to secure the 3-tab.[11]
- Paint the dog house. Coat it with some paint of your choice. Coating it with paint will help preserve it. It will also add to the aesthetics of your yard.
- Take your paint brush and apply a thin and quick coat of paint to the dog house.
- After the first coat has dried, apply another coat of paint.
- If you want, you can flip the dog house upside down and paint inside. This might help the wood stand up to the elements longer.[12]
- Inspect the dog house. After you've finished the roof and painted the dog house, it will be time to inspect the dog house. Inspecting the dog house is important, as you want to make sure it is safe for your dog. Put as much time as is needed to inspect the dog house thoroughly.
- Look for any nails or screws that are protruding from wood. Pay special attention to nails that might be coming through the roof or frame of the roof.
- Make sure each piece of the dog house is attach to each other and to the frame.
- Do a soft shake test. Rattle the dog house a little to see how stable it is. This will give you an idea of how it will stand up to your dog moving around in it.
[Edit]Related wikiHows [Edit]References |
| How to Preserve Insects in Resin Posted: 17 Dec 2021 04:00 PM PST Whether you want to make a really cool paperweight or preserve a rare butterfly specimen for years to come, encasing (casting) an insect in resin is a great DIY project. This article walks you step-by-step through a simplified preservation process, but also offers some advice on doing a more detailed preservation in the last section. Either way, you'll be amazed by the results! [Edit]Preparing the Insect for Preservation - Sanitize the insect in alcohol for at least 5-10 minutes. Ethanol (70%-80%) is the best choice here, but isopropyl (rubbing) alcohol (70%-80%) is easier to find and gets the job done. Add the insect to a cup, bowl, or jar of alcohol for at least 5-10 minutes to kill bacteria, or seal it in a glass jar of alcohol for days, weeks, or even months until you're ready to preserve it in resin.[1]
- If you're catching a live insect to preserve, putting it in alcohol for at least 10 minutes will kill it while also cleaning it. But also keep in mind that it's usually fairly easy to find dead insects that are still intact if you're willing to look around for them.
- You may get better preservation results with living soft-bodied insects (like caterpillars, grubs, and larvae) by putting them in boiling water for 1-2 minutes. After that, transfer them to a container of ethyl or isopropyl alcohol.[2]
- Remove the insect from the alcohol and let it air dry. It'll take around 5-30 minutes for the insect to dry completely, depending on its size and how long it's been soaking. Since you're aiming to do a simplified preservation process, move straight on to preparing the resin for casting.[3]
- If you're interested in doing a more detailed preservation process that's closer to what professional entomologists do, skip this step and check out the "Advice for More Detailed Preservation" section of this article before proceeding.
- While it's definitely more time-consuming, the detailed process reduces the chance of the insect rotting inside the resin and increases the visual appeal of the insect's appendages.
- Set up in a ventilated area with safety gear before mixing the resin. It's extremely important to work with resin in a highly-ventilated location, such as in a garage with all the doors and windows open. For additional safety, wear disposable gloves, protective eyewear, and a protective mask that filters out the resin fumes.[4]
- Check the specific safety recommendations for the brand of resin you're working with. Insect preservationists typically use one of several brands of clear polyester casting resin.[5]
[Edit]Setting the Insect in Resin - Stir together a small batch of resin in a disposable container. A clear disposable plastic drink cup is a good choice here. Resin is made by combining the resin base with the catalyst. You should follow the specific mixing instructions on the resin package, but here's a typical mix to make a base layer for 4-5 individual molds: pour of resin base in the bottom of the cup, add 40-45 drops of the catalyst, and stir slowly but thoroughly with disposable wooden tool (like a crafting stick or chopstick) for about 1 minute.[6]
- Stir slowly so you don't add lots of air bubbles into the resin. These will show up in the finished product.
- It's impossible to completely clean out the mixing container once you mix resin in it, so always opt for something you can throw out. However, do not use a styrofoam cup or bowl, since it may react with the resin.
- Slowly pour a resin layer into a silicone mold. Silicone baking molds are great for at-home insect preservation, since the hardened resin pops out easily. (But, to be safe, don't use them for baking any time afterward!) Pour a slow drizzle of the mixed resin into the silicone mold until it the base layer is about deep.[7]
- Pour slowly to cut back on the number of air bubbles you introduce into the resin.
- Ice cube trays work okay for smaller bugs, especially if they're made of silicone instead of hard plastic.
- Silicone molds made specifically for resin casting are available online and in some craft stores. Try these if you need shape and size options that you can't get with baking molds.
- Wait about 30 minutes for the resin to get thicker (but not gelatinous). This thickening process can take anywhere from 20-50 minutes, but typically takes about 30 minutes. Starting at about 15 minutes, poke at the surface of the resin with a clean toothpick every few minutes. It's ready for the next step once the consistency is somewhere between heavy cream and sour cream—do not wait so long that a gelatinous "skin" forms on top.[8]
- While poking with the toothpick to check the thickness of the resin, take the opportunity to pop any air bubbles that are near the surface.
- Very gently press the insect into the resin with tweezers. Use the tweezers to carefully center the insect on the surface of the base layer of resin, right-side up. Press down on its back ever so slightly so that the underside of the insect becomes set into the resin. Don't press down so hard that the insect touches the bottom of the silicone mold.[9]
- If the insect floats freely, the resin hasn't set up enough. Carefully remove the insect and wait a few more minutes before trying again.
- Mix more resin while the base layer gelatinizes in 5-10 minutes. Once you lightly press the insect into the thickened resin, it'll take roughly another 5-10 minutes for a gelatinous "skin" to form on the resin—test it with a clean toothpick to be sure. While waiting, make more resin by following the same mixing ratio as before. However, mix up more resin this time if necessary—you want enough resin to cover the top of the insect by at least .[10]
[Edit]Finishing the Preservation Process - Submerge the insect in another layer of resin, again pouring slowly. The slower you pour, the fewer air bubbles you'll add to the resin. Keep pouring until there's at least a layer of resin covering the top of the insect.[11]
- As the resin begins to thicken over the following 20 minutes or so, you can use a toothpick to pop any air bubbles that appear. Don't try to pop bubbles once the resin becomes gelatinous.
- Allow the resin to set in the mold for at least 24 hours. The resin should be fully hardened within 24 hours, but the surface will remain tacky for a few more days. Give the resin 3-4 days before unmolding it, if possible.[12]
- No matter how careful you've been, there will almost certainly be some air bubbles trapped in the resin. Just accept them as part of what makes your preserved insect unique!
- Pop the resin-preserved insect out of the silicone mold. Don't worry—the hardened resin will release from the silicone mold without any difficulty. Press up from the underside of the mold while peeling it away from the sides of the resin. At this point, your creation is ready for use as a paperweight, a jewelry pendant, or just a really interesting conversation piece.[13]
[Edit]Advice for More Detailed Preservation - Empty the abdominal cavity and sterilize it with alcohol. Take this step after soaking the intact insect in alcohol for at least 10 minutes. To remove the innards of a medium or large insect, use a very sharp crafting knife to slice open the underside of the abdomen, then carefully clear out the cavity with tweezers, cotton swabs, toothpicks, and similar fine tools. Clean the tools in alcohol to sterilize them, then use them to fill the cavity with small pieces of alcohol-dipped cotton balls so it retains its shape.[14]
- If the insect is too small to cut open, or you're just not interested in cutting it open, use a needle to inject the abdominal cavity with alcohol.
- If you don't take this step, the innards may potentially rot while the insect is encased in resin, which does not totally prevent air penetration. If this happens, the abdomen may shrivel up, discolor, and possibly ooze out some unpleasant-looking gunk!
- Pin the insect into its display position on a styrofoam block. Do this after removing or sterilizing the innards. Lay the insect right-side-up on a scrap of styrofoam, then carefully run a #2 or #3 insect pin through it to hold it in place—the ideal spot varies somewhat by insect, but is typically slightly off-center and about one-third of the way down the thorax. Use tweezers to spread out the legs, antennae, wings, etc., as desired, then press pins into the styrofoam (not through the appendages) to hold them in place.[15]
- For insects with delicate wings, pin down thin strips of wax paper over the wings to hold them in position. Don't put pins through the wings.
- Insect pins are available online and at some craft stores. Avoid using regular household pins if you can, since they might rust and discolor your insect specimen.
- If you leave the insect out to dry without pinning it, its appendages may twist, curl, and shrivel in undesirable ways.
- Leave the pinned insect out to dry until its body is rigid. The body of an insect with a hard exoskeleton may become rigid in 2-3 days, while a soft-bodied insect may take 7-8 days. To play it safe, set the pinned insect in a dry, airy spot for a week. Remove the pin(s) holding an appendage in place and see if it holds its position. If so, the insect is sufficiently rigid.[16]
- Once the insect is rigid, carefully remove the pins so it's ready to be encased in resin.
- Cut the resin with a band saw instead of popping it out of silicone. Entomologists who cast insects for scientific purposes want resin blocks with perfectly straight and smooth edges, which isn't possible if you use flexible silicone molds. This level of precision requires the following: casting the resin and insect in a petri dish; cutting the result out of the dish and into a straight-sided block with a band saw; and smoothing the block with a belt sander and buffer.[17]
[Edit]Things You'll Need - Ethanol or isopropyl alcohol
- Cup, bowl, or jar (lidded glass jar optional)
- Tweezers
- Disposable gloves
- Protective eyewear
- Disposable cup
- Disposable stirring stick
- Polyester casting resin
- Silicone baking mold / casting mold
- Toothpicks
- Breathing protection (optional)
- Crafting knife (optional)
- Cotton balls (optional)
- Insect pins (optional)
- Styrofoam block (optional)
- Once you get the hang of casting insects in resin, you can try your hand at preserving everything from dried flowers to Lego figures!
[Edit]References |
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