We decided that 30" ceiling would be perfect to start the second floor of the coop. The second floor would only extend another 2' outside of the nesting area. The center of the coop would have ramps that led to the second floor on each side of the coop.

We also ended up ordering a pair of 12"x18" windows from Amazon. These windows provided the perfect amount of light and ventilation for the center portions of the coop. We also cut small 4"x12" windows out along the top of the nesting area walls, and then covered them with hardware clloth and framed them in as well.

We then started building the ramps that would connect the floors. Simple plywood with 1x2's for the rails and steps made for sturdy entries to the second floor. You can see the Popeye has already discovered how to get up to the second floor.

Once the second floor was put in, we decided it was time to started fastening the hardware cloth around the run area, and hang the door. The hardware cloth is 1/4" galvanized mesh. This is a finer mesh square than most hardware cloth setups on coops, but this mesh was also a heavier gauge, which made it mush stronger than the average hardware cloth. The mesh was stapled down the vertical runs on the studs, and then eventually covered by a 1x4 "fascia" piece that was painted the same color. This added additional reinforcement of the mesh.

We decided that 30" ceiling would be perfect to start the second floor of the coop. The second floor would only extend another 2' outside of the nesting area. The center of the coop would have ramps that led to the second floor on each side of the coop.

Once the initial roof was on, we started cutting and laying the floors and back wall. Note that the plywood for the floors was cut around the studs, so that it would slide in and fit fairly snug. Any crevices were subsequently filled in with spray foam, then sanded and painted over. The floor was then coated in a rubberizing product called Blackjack #57. Also note that on the back wall, we cut out a window to view the inside of the coop from the shed. This window would be covered in hardware cloth and then framed in.

After framing in the bottom floor, we continued to reinforce the studs with cross braces and paint all the wood going in. At this point we had also painted and cut the plywood for the initial roof base.

Once framed in and painted, we then started building the joists for the bottom floor. We settled on 36" high from the ground level for the bottom floor. This would leave plenty of room to build a second floor to house and roost more chickens. Note that the nesting areas extend an additional 2 feet on each side of the coop, while the middle of the coop was recessed to run around the back side of the tree.

We decided that 30" ceiling would be perfect to start the second floor of the coop. The second floor would only extend another 2' outside of the nesting area. The center of the coop would have ramps that led to the second floor on each side of the coop.

tbonius
Feb 24, 2016

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