A cozy home for your best friends can be built from 3/4-inch plywood.
Two dogs with limited kennel space calls for a creative solution to provide both with sheltered sleeping space. A single slope shed roof and sides built from 3/4-inch thick plywood will make your doghouse quick to build and long lasting. Add a floor-mat wind break over the door, a single light bulb on each side for warmth and fill the two bedding areas with clean straw for a cozy canine retreat that your best friend is sure to appreciate.
Instructions
1. Cut your pieces from 3/4-inch thick plywood. Cut one base 44 1/2-by-22 1/2-inches, one back 46-by-18 inches, two sides 22 1/2-by-22-inches, one center divider 22 1/2-by-21 1/4-inches and one front 46-by-22-inches. Use a table saw with a fine-tooth blade to make the cuts.
2. Mark the side pieces 18 inches up from one 22 1/2-inch edge along one 22-inch side. Draw a diagonal line from the top corner of the opposite 22-inch side to the mark. Cut along this line to create the angle for the roof pitch. Mark and cut the center divider in the same way 17 1/4-inches up along one 21 ¼ inch side. Make the cut to the opposite top corner.
3. Stand the back on one 46-inch edge. Glue and nail the two sides to the 18-inch edges, with the back overlapping and the outsides of the side panels flush with the ends of the back. Nail through the back into the edges of the side panels every 4-to-6-inches with a pin nail gun.
4. Glue and nail the bottom to the back and side panels, with its bottom flush with the bottom edge of the sides and back. Nail through the sides and back into the edges of the bottom. Glue and nail the front to the front edges of the bottom and sides in the same way.
5. Draw lines with a square across the inside of the back and front panels from top-to-bottom, centered from side-to-side. Draw lines 3/8-inch on either side of each of these lines to mark the outsides of the center divider. Glue and nail the center divider aligned between these nails with the tall edge to the front.
6. Draw two rectangles on the outside of the front panel 14-inches wide and 18-inches high, with the bottom edge being the bottom edge of the front panel, one 4-inches in from each outside edge. Cut these out with a circular saw, set to a depth of 7/8-inches. Cut up to the corner lines and finish the corners with a jig saw. Remove the cut pieces.
7. Cut two pieces of heavy duty floor mat 2-inches wider and and 1 inch taller than the inside dimensions of the doors with tin snips. Use 3/4-inch self-tapping, sheet-metal screws to fasten them inside the front panel above the doors, so that they hang to the floor. Use four screws in each mat.
8. Screw a plugin, single bulb wall light to the front panel above each door. Drill a 1 1/2-inch hole through the center divider, 2-inches from the top and two-inches from the front panel and feed the cord of the left unit light through. Plug both cords into a two-fer, or cord splitting, extension cord. Drill a second hole 2-inches to the left of the center divider and 2-inches from the top edge in the back panel. Feed the cord through this hole.
9. Cut a top 48-by-28-inches, glue and nail it to the tops of the side, front, back and center divider panels. Staple a layer of roofing felt over the roof. Nail down a layer of roll roofing, cut to fit with a utility knife. Use 1-inch roofing nails.
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