Backyard Handbook is for practical backyard life in Australia
Backyard Handbook is an Australia-first site for practical backyard how-to guides and criteria-led buying guides. The goal is simple: help you build a backyard that works—safer, easier to run, and less prone to expensive mistakes.
We focus on clear steps, realistic trade-offs, and advice that fits Australian conditions.
What you’ll find here
How-to guides
Step-by-step articles with checklists, materials lists, and common mistakes to avoid.
Buying guides (without the hype)
Criteria-led guides that explain what matters, why it matters, and who each option suits—especially for coop security and reliable automation.
Our current focus (the “chickens & coops” wedge)
Why we’re starting here
Backyard chickens are popular, but coops can fail in predictable ways: weak mesh, simple latches, digging predators, and unreliable door setups. Fixing those basics has a big impact quickly.
What we cover right now
- Predator-proofing your coop and run (mesh, latches, edges, floor barriers)
- Automatic chicken coop doors (power options, reliability, installation, troubleshooting)
- Practical coop hardware upgrades that improve safety and reduce daily workload
How we make recommendations
Our principles
- Practical first: advice you can actually apply in a weekend
- Criteria-led: we explain decision points, not just “best” picks
- Trade-offs included: cost, reliability, install difficulty, and failure modes
- Updates matter: we refresh content when products/models change
Affiliate links and commissions
Some links on Backyard Handbook are affiliate links. If you buy through them, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Read our Affiliate Disclosure.
About the publisher
Backyard Handbook is operated by Julian Phillip O’Sullivan (ABN 20 835 104 968) in Victoria, Australia.
Get in touch
If you’ve got a question, spotted something that needs updating, or want to suggest a topic, reach out here: