- Feb 25, 2014
- 5
- 0
- 7
Hello All,
I am attending Purdue University in New Albany Indiana, and for my senior design class we have been instructed to build a self contained chicken coop.
The end product will cost less than 300 USD, and include an incubator (automatic turning, temperature control), brooder, chicken coop, four nesting boxes, feeder, water, and an automatic door. It will all fit inside a 55 gallon drum for easy world wide shipping. This project will use a battery to run the micro controller, and our plan is to use thermal energy for the incubator and brooder.
I am hoping you all will critique our nesting box design thus far. We are city engineers and know nothing about chickens!
Because of 55 gallon drum management, we are designing our box to come in flat sheets and then slide together. Thus far, everything locks together without any fasteners.
Here is our design. The boxes are sloped on the top to prevent the chickens from roosting there.
The nesting box floors are 12"x12" with a 7.5 inch entrance height.
Below is our design for the roll out egg box.The floors are sloped at 5 deg. We tested this and the eggs shot out of the box, so we are going to place some AstroTurf on the floor to lower the speed that the eggs exit. The arrows simulate how the eggs will roll down, and then they will stop on the right hand side of the box. Any where the egg travels, it is downhill. There will also be a roll out for the lower nesting boxes.
I removed the back panel on the upper right side so you could see into the box.
Below is the dimensions on the entrance. Pay no attention to the 5.99, it will actually be 7.5" height entrance.
Below is an example of our lock together design. It's just a simple slide and lock together system.
Ill be sure to keep updating this with more specs and ideas on the nesting boxes and other aspects of the project.
Thanks in advance for your replies
-Evan
I am attending Purdue University in New Albany Indiana, and for my senior design class we have been instructed to build a self contained chicken coop.
The end product will cost less than 300 USD, and include an incubator (automatic turning, temperature control), brooder, chicken coop, four nesting boxes, feeder, water, and an automatic door. It will all fit inside a 55 gallon drum for easy world wide shipping. This project will use a battery to run the micro controller, and our plan is to use thermal energy for the incubator and brooder.
I am hoping you all will critique our nesting box design thus far. We are city engineers and know nothing about chickens!
Because of 55 gallon drum management, we are designing our box to come in flat sheets and then slide together. Thus far, everything locks together without any fasteners.
Here is our design. The boxes are sloped on the top to prevent the chickens from roosting there.
The nesting box floors are 12"x12" with a 7.5 inch entrance height.
Below is our design for the roll out egg box.The floors are sloped at 5 deg. We tested this and the eggs shot out of the box, so we are going to place some AstroTurf on the floor to lower the speed that the eggs exit. The arrows simulate how the eggs will roll down, and then they will stop on the right hand side of the box. Any where the egg travels, it is downhill. There will also be a roll out for the lower nesting boxes.
I removed the back panel on the upper right side so you could see into the box.
Below is the dimensions on the entrance. Pay no attention to the 5.99, it will actually be 7.5" height entrance.
Below is an example of our lock together design. It's just a simple slide and lock together system.
Ill be sure to keep updating this with more specs and ideas on the nesting boxes and other aspects of the project.
Thanks in advance for your replies
-Evan