Opinion on nesting boxes

aart said:

Fronts of my nest boxes are covered with plywood with a hole for entry.....makes it a little darker, holds in the bedding and looks cool IMO.
A perch in front of nests can surely help, a necessity if they're off the floor very far.
I used golf balls in nest when I got my adult flock, tho the rooster actually got into a double nest to show them where to lay.
My new layers wouldn't use the nest until I took the golf balls out.

This is a solid model of my main coop nests with back access(dividers aren't shown).
Dimensions for each division is 14" wide, 16" tall and 14" deep, hole is 10" diameter centered 7" from top.



This is the nest I just cobbled together yesterday for my junior coop...have 2 just starting to lay.
I was using a 5 gallon bucket here but felt it was just a little small for comfortable maneuvering.
Dimensions are 14" wide, 16" tall and 16" deep, hole is 10" diameter centered 7" from top.

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16 paws said:

Hello,
I know this post was a while back but I just wanted to know what kind of wood you used for your nest box?
Thanks
Marie

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16 paws said:

Quote: Specifically the plywood used is called Luan, it's cheap and about 3/16" thick, used for floor underlayment.
I detailed out this build in a thread somewhere but I'll be darned if I can remember where...don't think it's in the My Coop page but maybe I'll add it when I can some time.

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aart said:

Specifically the plywood used is called Luan, it's cheap and about 3/16" thick, used for floor underlayment.
I detailed out this build in a thread somewhere but I'll be darned if I can remember where...don't think it's in the My Coop page but maybe I'll add it when I can some time.

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16 paws said:

Quote: There's 2x2's inside along where the top and bottom meets the sides to hold the screws....couple of 2x2's on the bottom also to raise nest of floor.

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silkwormlady said:

AhHa! Here is where my question needs to be about the nesting boxes in the coop not having a roof over them. They don't ;we had a design glitch so boxes a good size, partitioned off from one another, BUT roofless and the front "wall" is a 6" board.
1. Fake something for a roof over them that they can't perch on? I'm good with cloth and or thought about vinyl type tablecloths. Suggestions?
2. Put the "landing board" about 2" below the top of the front wall so they can look in better, get in more easily?

I've got more than several weeks to worry about laying since they're only 2 weeks old! But by the time its closer to them laying, maybe hubby will have forgotten how "fun" the build project was?

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silkwormlady said:

So here's the pic that shows my "roofless" nesting boxes. I think I can use shelf brackets about 2 inches below the top of the front board and place a board across them so hens can peep in. Until I have chickens ready to lay, I'm going to cover the boxes so that chickens don't think they are a place to hang out in, poop in etc.
In the upper right hand corner of the pic you can barely see a 2x8 that we nailed the vertical boards to. I'm thinking the 2x8 would be a good place to start a very sloping roof of some kind, but one that still provides enough space for a hen to easily get in the box and to be happy inside the box. The poop board is on the opposite side from the nesting boxes. You can see the 2x8 there. Gonna figure out how to set the ramp up a little better. RIght now it's just .... there.

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