- Dec 3, 2013
- 16
- 2
- 24
Hello folks. 
I browsed the forum and I saw several posts like this, but I feel like I should probably make my own anyway, as this shed is a little bit unique. But first, a background story!
We recently moved to my Grandma's house (she passed away several years ago), which was left empty by my cousin after she had a fight with her boyfriend and left. Her boyfriend, however, remained at the house and invited his family, and they utterly trashed the place. Beer bottles everywhere, piles of trash in the backyard, piles of junk in the backyard... you get the idea.
While the house was clean in a matter of weeks, the yard is still an ongoing process. There's a plastic shed sitting out there that's probably between 4-5 ft long on each side, it has double doors, and it's made of very sturdy plastic. I thought I could save myself about $400 and convert it to a chicken coop, but it would require several things. Here is what I would have to do, and I'm looking for feedback on whether this is a good idea or not, as it would save me quite a bit of money and allow me to get my chickens probably a year earlier.
Ventilation: We would have to cut a hole (maybe several) in the shed to allow for ventilation. My Mom suggested we use an old round grill piece we found, and while it may look trashy, I figured it would be better than letting a hawk gnaw through weak chicken wire.
Poop door: We would have to cut a tiny door out of it for chickens to go back and forth, so the double doors can remain closed when needed.
Chicken Run: We don't have a chicken run, sadly, but we do have a fenced in dog lot big enough for one dog. We will either have to move the shed into the lot (taking up most of the room) or cut a hole in the fence and somehow attach it to the shed so nothing can get in. Oh, and we'd have to put some kind of roof on it to keep predators out. I'd also like very much to range my chickens, but I will have to do it very carefully, there are loose dogs all over the neighborhood and we're out in the country, so there are probably plenty of predators! (If you have any advice on this, I'm all ears!)
Roosts: I know they need places to perch, no idea what I'm going to do there. There's a shelf in the shed, a small plastic one, I figured we could put a couple nesting boxes on that and leave the rest open for them to roost on. Good idea? Bad Idea?
Nesting Boxes: Like I said, the shelves. We were going to buy some plastic tubs and nail a little bit of wood to the front to keep bedding in, and either nail or glue them to the shelves. If we want to clean them, we can carry the entire plastic shelf out of the shed.
Protection: We would have to install some kind of bolt on the double doors so that they are safe from predators and so that the chickens can stay in at night.
I'm thinking this shed costed our cousin at least a couple hundred dollars, but probably closer to $400, though she said it was a waste of money and a pretty worthless shed. It seems pretty sturdy to me, maybe it just wasn't big enough for her? Who knows.
I will have some pictures tomorrow, but like I said, it's a square shed made of sturdy plastic with double doors. It's 4-5 feet long on each side, and my plan is to put some nesting boxes on shelves in there.
I browsed the forum and I saw several posts like this, but I feel like I should probably make my own anyway, as this shed is a little bit unique. But first, a background story!We recently moved to my Grandma's house (she passed away several years ago), which was left empty by my cousin after she had a fight with her boyfriend and left. Her boyfriend, however, remained at the house and invited his family, and they utterly trashed the place. Beer bottles everywhere, piles of trash in the backyard, piles of junk in the backyard... you get the idea.
While the house was clean in a matter of weeks, the yard is still an ongoing process. There's a plastic shed sitting out there that's probably between 4-5 ft long on each side, it has double doors, and it's made of very sturdy plastic. I thought I could save myself about $400 and convert it to a chicken coop, but it would require several things. Here is what I would have to do, and I'm looking for feedback on whether this is a good idea or not, as it would save me quite a bit of money and allow me to get my chickens probably a year earlier.
Ventilation: We would have to cut a hole (maybe several) in the shed to allow for ventilation. My Mom suggested we use an old round grill piece we found, and while it may look trashy, I figured it would be better than letting a hawk gnaw through weak chicken wire.
Poop door: We would have to cut a tiny door out of it for chickens to go back and forth, so the double doors can remain closed when needed.
Chicken Run: We don't have a chicken run, sadly, but we do have a fenced in dog lot big enough for one dog. We will either have to move the shed into the lot (taking up most of the room) or cut a hole in the fence and somehow attach it to the shed so nothing can get in. Oh, and we'd have to put some kind of roof on it to keep predators out. I'd also like very much to range my chickens, but I will have to do it very carefully, there are loose dogs all over the neighborhood and we're out in the country, so there are probably plenty of predators! (If you have any advice on this, I'm all ears!)
Roosts: I know they need places to perch, no idea what I'm going to do there. There's a shelf in the shed, a small plastic one, I figured we could put a couple nesting boxes on that and leave the rest open for them to roost on. Good idea? Bad Idea?
Nesting Boxes: Like I said, the shelves. We were going to buy some plastic tubs and nail a little bit of wood to the front to keep bedding in, and either nail or glue them to the shelves. If we want to clean them, we can carry the entire plastic shelf out of the shed.
Protection: We would have to install some kind of bolt on the double doors so that they are safe from predators and so that the chickens can stay in at night.
I'm thinking this shed costed our cousin at least a couple hundred dollars, but probably closer to $400, though she said it was a waste of money and a pretty worthless shed. It seems pretty sturdy to me, maybe it just wasn't big enough for her? Who knows.
I will have some pictures tomorrow, but like I said, it's a square shed made of sturdy plastic with double doors. It's 4-5 feet long on each side, and my plan is to put some nesting boxes on shelves in there.
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