How to Build an Almost-Free Doghouse

By JEREMIAH McNICHOLS

For a dog who sleeps outdoors, a doghouse is a necessity; for an indoor dog, it is a luxury. But storebought doghouses can run $100 or more, and building your own generally isn't much cheaper, and requires some very real, if basic, carpentry skills. This doghouse design marks one of those occasions where being cheap andresourceful is actually easier than knowing what you're doing.

This doghouse will work for dogs up to 100 pounds or so. It can be enhanced to offer better cold protection if you live in a cold climate and you can trust your dog not to tear at anything with a loose edge. Ours is a certified demolitions expert and we have mild winters, so we kept it simple indeed.

Go to a tile shop and ask if they have any wooden shipping crates they would be willing to give you. Most businesses love to give away old pallets and shipping materials, because they have to pay to have them removed anyway. A shipping crate is essentially a cube of pallets with one side, the top, absent, used to carry heavy materials that are most conveniently shipped in cube form. A lot of such materials are now mummy-wrapped in plastic to a single pallet instead, but tile doesn't ship well this way. You may also be able to find them at garden supply stores.

The beauty of these crates is that they are built much stronger than your typical pallet. They are designed with economy in mind (cheap wood, heavy-duty staples rather than nails as fasteners, etc.) and are not too heavy, but they are solid and structurally reinforced, the bottom especially so. These pallets are basically constructed as a cube of 2x4s with single braces running through the center of the faces (Fig. 1) and are strengthened with thin boards attached to both sides of the framed "walls" (Fig. 2). For the purposes of this article, we'll call those thin boards the "ribs." This ribcage makes the perfect exoskeleton for a very cheap and easy-to-build doghouse.

Use a hand saw to cut out one half of one face of the cube, removing half of the central brace but removing only one of the horizontal framing pieces (the pink shape in Fig. 2). The top and bottom structural pieces, along with the vertical edge and central rib, now frame a doorway. Glance quickly at your dog and make sure he will fit through that hole. If not, this is not the doghouse for you.

If you are using store-bought plywood and are feeling fancy, rub your wood down with linseed oil to better protect your doghouse from the elements. This is sort of like waxing a lawnmower, but if you feel like it, go ahead.

Now you are faced with a choice. How normal do you want to appear to your friends and neighbors? If you would like to hide the fact that you are building your dog a home out of an old shipping crate, cut your scrap wood to cover the outside of the frame and nail it in place. If you value efficiency over beauty in your architectural endeavors, or simply find it appealing to show the world how resourceful you are, there is an easier and, frankly, better way to do this: Carefully measure the inside perimeter of your doghouse and cut your wood to fit. Do the two sides first, hammering them in place with your mallet; the key here is a snug fit. Then measure the length of the back (a little shorter due to the edges of the side pieces) and cut another piece to fit. Resist the temptation to put in a window. This is a den, not a place for tea parties. Also resist the urge to put in a floor. A blanket or dog bed should do the trick, and the lack of a solid floor makes the doghouse easy to clean. Measure and cut a piece to cover the front, sans doorway. This piece, sadly, will have to be nailed in place.

Take one of the vertical ribs you removed from the doorway and cut two foot-long pieces off of it. Attach one of these pieces to either end of the top edge of the front of the doghouse, pointing up, so that they reach up six inches or so above the framing of the doghouse (Fig. 3). These pieces will give your roof a slope. Use another scrap of wood to add a front piece. If your dog can read, this is the piece you would paint his name on.

Now lay your sheet of corrugated fiberglass on top of the doghouse, lining it up so that two or six inches hang off the front, resting on the two supports you just added. The sheet should fit nicely between the two sides. Mark the fiberglass about three inches from the back of the doghouse and cut off the extra length. Nail in place to the back top brace and front supports with nails with heads or fence staples.

If you live in a climate with cold winters, there are several steps you can take to insulate your doghouse:

1) Cut another scrap of wood to fit the door and attach it with the hinge to the top brace.

2) Use interior and exterior walls and fill with styrofoam peanuts (best) or hay. Put in interior walls first, then turn each face to the top to add the fill and nail the exterior wall in place.

3) Cut triangular eaves to close up spaces between walls and roof.

4) Caulk visible cracks with silicone.

Now offer it to your dog with pride. Go ahead, explain that you just saved at least $50. All he'll know is he has a nice place to call home.

Web resources

A gallery of home-built doghouses