Sealing Cracks, Placement of Feeders/Waterers & Sliding Door

Hi all! I have a few questions and concerns I am hoping you all could help me out with. I will include some pictures to help explain what I am talking about.

First- I have a premade coop, I know building your own is probably better but I am a first timer and figured I would buy my first coop then I can iron out my "likes & dislikes" then next spring I could build my own to suit my needs! So, my boys put together my coop and I've noticed some spaces. Are they left intentionally for airways? Or should I go ahead and fill them in? Will 100% silicone be okay to use inside the coop? Because where would we be in life without silicone & duct tape!? hehe The first photo is of the right hand side from the inside view. See how there is a slight overhang? I worry about something sliding it's way in...




Second- Before I got my coop and it was assembled, I had visions of hanging buckets of their feed & water INSIDE the coop...but now looking at it, it won't leave them much space. No good. So my question is, is it okay to just leave their food and water inside the RUN? I mean inside the coop is for sleeping right? I can't image they will be sleep walking for food/drink!
Do these critters wake up with the sun? Is that how early you need to be outside?




Third- The little sliding door. I'm a little confused about how I can rig something up to help slide it open/closed. I have RA and climbing inside the coop run to grab the door doesn't seem ideal nor fun for me. So being as the door slides sideways, how the heck should I tie a rope on it? If I just have one rope and pull one way, how would I get the rope to slide the other!?




Lastly, I plan on painting the red on this coop. I'm assuming regular latex exterior paint will be fine, but I also thought about adding a coat of weatherproof sealant. Any thoughts on what would be good and wouldn't be harmful to the chickens?

Don't bother or waste time sealing the cracks, the wood will twist, expand and contract and new ones will just appear... Also if you insist on sealing I would advise against silicone, polyurethane caulk is better suited for this purpose and you can easily paint it...

You can put the food outside in the run but rodents and birds might eat most of it...

And yes chickens wake up about an hour or two before sunrise and should be let out as soon as possible after the sun rises...

As for the sliding door you could attache a metal rod to push/pull but it could be a predator risk as a raccoon is likely to figure it out unless you lock it somehow...

Exterior house paint should be sufficient...

Well, I was worried about the elements...but I did forget to mention that the coop will be totally enclosed by the run. Which will have a wooden roof with shingles, so should be protected enough by the run. Plus on one side in the back of the run I am having him add just one panel of wood (for a 4' x 6' section of the wall) so I can hang my tools on. So that should help keep weather off the coop as well.

MeepBeep said:

As for the sliding door you could attache a metal rod to push/pull but it could be a predator risk as a raccoon is likely to figure it out unless you lock it somehow...

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Ooh, yes I could drill a small hole in the handle of the slide then make a metal rod to grab it...most definitely I will be adding a lock on the door. Thanks!!

9281022 said:

As for the sliding door you could attache a metal rod to push/pull but it could be a predator risk as a raccoon is likely to figure it out unless you lock it somehow...


 

Click to expand...

Ooh, yes I could drill a small hole in the handle of the slide then make a metal rod to grab it...most definitely I will be adding a lock on the door. Thanks!! 

Click to expand...

It could be as simple as a metal rod with a small hoop at the end, attached to the door and when closed, the hoop aligns with an eyelet in the side of the coop that allows you slap a lock trough both hoops and secure the door shut...

I like this too! Now I'm on the right track, didn't even think of a rod before my original post. Now I should be set to go with ideas! Plus, the bonus is I get to make something! I just love making things, even if it is a simple rod system. My brain just needs projects or I can not function in life!

Thanks guys! You've been a big help!

Do I *really* need a lock on the sliding door? I know it is ideal...but here's the problem I just discovered after last post. I went out there to try and figure out how I would be putting a latch (of any kind) on the sliding door. First the wood is so thin I am pretty sure anything would splinter it, I would most likely have to put a piece of wood on the back side of it to catch the screw. Then I would run into the problem of the screws wouldn't let me slide the door totally closed/open. Ack!

The pop door is inside of the premade coop run, there are two doors on that and I will be adding another kind of latch to them. PLUS, the whole unit will be inside what I am hoping will end up being a Fort Knox run. We are going to bury & apron 1/4" hardware cloth, plus the bottom of our run will have wooden panels 2' high and 4' across. Then the main walls will also be the 1/4" hardware cloth. My human door will also have 2-3 different types of latches on it, one will be placed by the kickplate and two will be higher. So I am thinking maybe I don't even need a latch on the sliding door to the coop??

As I stated before climbing & bending isn't a option for me. I am trying to predator proof AND RA proof this thing, lol.

Do you need a latch if it's inside a secure run, no in fact a lot of people don't even use doors when the coop is secured in a run, but beware raccoons are clever, and resourceful, multiple lines of defense increase your odds the chickens will be safe...

9281022 said:

Do I *really* need a lock on the sliding door? I know it is ideal...but here's the problem I just discovered after last post. I went out there to try and figure out how I would be putting a latch (of any kind) on the sliding door. First the wood is so thin I am pretty sure anything would splinter it, I would most likely have to put a piece of wood on the back side of it to catch the screw. Then I would run into the problem of the screws wouldn't let me slide the door totally closed/open. Ack!

The pop door is inside of the premade coop run, there are two doors on that and I will be adding another kind of latch to them. PLUS, the whole unit will be inside what I am hoping will end up being a Fort Knox run.

We are going to bury & apron 1/4" hardware cloth, plus the bottom of our run will have wooden panels 2' high and 4' across. Then the main walls will also be the 1/4" hardware cloth. My human door will also have 2-3 different types of latches on it, one will be placed by the kickplate and two will be higher. So I am thinking maybe I don't even need a latch on the sliding door to the coop??

As I stated before climbing & bending isn't a option for me. I am trying to predator proof AND RA proof this thing, lol.

Click to expand...

afix a 1x4 on the outside of the sliding door screwed from the inside .. then mount the push/pull onto that wood (the 1x4)

Do you need a latch if it's inside a secure run, no in fact a lot of people don't even use doors when the coop is secured in a run, but beware raccoons are clever, and resourceful, multiple lines of defense increase your odds the chickens will be safe...[/quote]

Raccoons are my biggest fear. We have them by the handfuls!