All Things Habitat - Lets talk.....

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Wonder how well built this blind is @ Menards

That add really doesn't tell you much at all. I would be very careful before I bought one. You may get a pile of sheet metal and a 1 page diagram!
 
Price? Height inside needs to be 6'6". legs could be added.
price showed up as $940 in my local store. I doubt they have a display, but I can check if anyone is really interested.
 
Yeah I would want to see it before. Looks like they are made in Iron Ridge, WI. If you got 11% off it would be $836+tax.


This would only be a gun stand. NO way you could bow hunt out of those windows.
 
You could build that for $250 easy.

Yeah if you were good at building stuff. :(


I've built these stairs but that is about it for my skills.

IMG_1741_zpsa5a97df7.jpg
 
Bj I could ask my dad if he'd be interested in building you one alot nicer than that? I could get u pics of one he built last year? He's a retired carpenter and very skilled.
 
Bj I could ask my dad if he'd be interested in building you one alot nicer than that? I could get u pics of one he built last year? He's a retired carpenter and very skilled.

Yeah I'm interested. Its not a rush and its not for this coming year anyway.
 
You could build that for $250 easy. The floor needs to be at 8 feet in a swamp and 16 feet in hardwoods. Metal siding in rain/hail is chinese torture.
I like the sound of rain on a metal roof - hail.....that may be a different story. Both of my home-made jobs have sheet metal roofs. I think I built my last one for a couple hundred bucks, but that didn't include the leg structure.
 
You know what they say...."Some assembly required" These are sold as a KIT. Unless they changes the process since I left the contractor dept , you buy it in the building materials dept and get the slip to go into the yard and collect the pcs. There are no windows and that camo steel is VERY expensive compared to the stock colors. I usually build my shooting houses with cheap osb sheeting on the outside and then keep an eye out for their Bargain Area steel for the exterior. The osb keeps things way quieter when the weather gets nasty. Easier to heat too.:) BJE80, you could build a heck of a lot nicer shack on top of that platform for a lot less.
 
Maybe I need to get off my high horse and just build something. I think I could frame it no problem. The hard part for me would be finishing it with siding or whatever.
 
The pole barn steel and trims are really quite easy to work with. Just need a good set of snips for cross cuts and a simple utility knife for cutting length wise. If you can frame, you'll do just fine covering it up with steel. Don't fall for the "Camo" steel thing though. I just went on Menards website and you can buy an 8 ft sheet of any color standard steel for $15.60. It is $39.01 for the same sheet of camo. Occasionally they will have some pop up in their bargain area for roughly half price. The deer don't care what color it is. A couple of mine just have house wrap on them while I search for cheap steel. I would probably use a lighter color if the stand is out in an open area though and darker in the woods.
 
I like the design, except for the windows. I need to be able to bowhunt out of it. I will probably imitate this design and change the windows on a few blinds that we build this spring/summer. I like how it isn't fixed into the ground making it difficult to move.
 
Maybe I need to get off my high horse and just build something. I think I could frame it no problem. The hard part for me would be finishing it with siding or whatever.
Just slap some OSB or plywood on the outside and seal it! Use some metal siding for the rood with the proper nails and caulk and be done. Use the canned expanding foam to seal up and gaps and Tada! Your not building the Taj Mahal - and you ain't hiding a 2 story building from the deer. I build and put mine up by myself without plans and simply wing-it! Maybe it shows a little, but who cares. I will say if your not going to have help - build it in a modular format and simply screw it together during the final install. Thats what I do. I can't speak to building the base, but the rest is very basic construction. I do it - and I'm an idiot!
 
Just slap some OSB or plywood on the outside and seal it! Use some metal siding for the rood with the proper nails and caulk and be done. Use the canned expanding foam to seal up and gaps and Tada! Your not building the Taj Mahal - and you ain't hiding a 2 story building from the deer. I build and put mine up by myself without plans and simply wing-it! Maybe it shows a little, but who cares. I will say if your not going to have help - build it in a modular format and simply screw it together during the final install. Thats what I do. I can't speak to building the base, but the rest is very basic construction. I do it - and I'm an idiot!

See I think building the base is easy. Use the elevator brackets (shown in my picture) and it is a snap.
 
See I think building the base is easy. Use the elevator brackets (shown in my picture) and it is a snap.
Never said the base was difficult - I just have not had to build on yet - so I don't have the experience to say one way or the other. I have heard lots of folks speak well of those brackets.

I had a full blown 3D cad model of mine once - but that just took the fun out of it! I like the creative thought process of projects like these. Yep - I'm just weird.
 
What do you guys do about windows for the home built blinds? Or do you just leave them open?
 
I currently have 2 different styles - I am looking into different modifications however.

My original design uses a wood panel that is hinged at the top. I use a cord to hold the window open. Cord is held in the lower portion of the window and then thru the wall above the hinge. Not the best but it works.

hinge windows.jpg


My other style is more of a guillotine style where the wood panel simply slide up and down in loose tracks and is held in position with a light duty chain for max height adjustments. Again nothing fancy but they work. I don't have a good pic of those.

My biggest issue is that since I hate the cold I need a way to see while still retaining more heat inside - so I am looking at other options as far as windows go as well. My biggest issue is: A - I'm cheap!, B - I'm worried about window fogging.
 
I see you have a flat roof. I would do trusses or slope the roof (to the rear) if I did it. Too much snow load around here to be flat IMO. Do you think your roof could hold 3' of snow?
 
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