Modular · Plan No. M-09

System Nine

A fence-integrated colony format for clients unwilling to commit to a single elevation.

$560

Plan set for base unit × 6 · fence hardware kit included

System Nine abandons the single-structure premise entirely and distributes the program across an existing fence line — six individually scaled units, no two identical, mounted at negotiated intervals we have taken to calling, in internal documents, "the diplomacy phase."

The system was developed after a client asked whether she could simply have "a few different ones" rather than choose, and this studio, rather than treating that as an evasion of the design process, treated it as the design process. Nine units were drafted. Six survived review.

Request the Plan Set

A row of colorful painted birdhouses mounted along a bright blue wooden fence.

Specification Sheet

UNITS INCLUDED6, individually scaled, 4"–9" footprint range

MOUNTINGFence-integrated, 14–22" stagger interval

ENTRY DIAMETER1"–1.5" range, species-matched per unit

PRIMARY MATERIALReclaimed cedar fence board, client-supplied or sourced

FINISHSix independent colorways, non-matching by design

DIFFICULTYIntermediate · six distinct units, one weekend

SHEETS INCLUDED6 unit drawings, fence-mount detail, layout guide, cut list

On Non-Matching, as a Formal Position

System Nine's six units share no dimension, no roofline, and no finish in common, a decision the studio defends on the grounds that a fence line is not a facade and does not need to behave like one. Clients who request that we "make them match a little" are gently informed that a plan set has already been drafted for that impulse. It is called the Modulus Cluster. It is a fine plan. It is not this one.

Materials Note

We specify reclaimed cedar fence board specifically, on the theory that a colony mounted to a fence should share some material memory with the fence itself, and also because it is considerably cheaper than the alternative and we did not feel obligated to disclose which reason came first.

Assembly Notes

Stagger interval is a suggestion, not a tolerance. The plan includes a recommended layout guide; clients have, without exception, ignored it in ways we have come to respect.
Each unit's entry diameter is matched to a different target species. Installing all six with the same entry diameter defeats roughly half the design brief.
Fence hardware kit assumes a standard 1x6 dog-eared fence board. Other fence profiles will require field modification, and a certain amount of quiet resentment.