Cheap little chicken coop/pen finished

[ChickenOfSpades]

Finished the little chicken pen I've been working on. I'm happy with how it turned out and learned a lot for when I build the big permanent coop in coming months.

Little chicken pen

• ChickenOfSpades
• Jul 17, 2022
• 10

The little pen I build to hold the chickens while I built a big, awesome coop

The cost was pretty minimal. Here's the list of supplies:

• Simple frame made from 7 2x4x8 boards (three are pressure treated for ground contact. I did use some old 4x4s I had to reinforce the corners, but if I did it again, I'd just use a couple more 2x4s instead.
• Three 2x3x8 boards for the roof supports and door.
• One PVC roof panel (I intentionally left a gap in the roof for ventilation and because there's some overhang from the roof of the house).
• About 25 6-foot cedar fence pickets used to trim the thing and enclose the "coop" section (they cost $2.50 each at Home Depot).
• One 25-foot roll of 48" wide hardware cloth was just enough to enclose it and put a dig apron on the two exposed sides.
• Some screws to put it all together.
• Hinges, a latch, a door handle, a couple hooks to hang up the waterer and feeder
• Plain ol' Arrow staples to attach the hardware cloth. I covered the edges with the cedar trim, so just used the staples to hold it in place.

I did play with the Kreg XL pocket jig that's intended for 2x4s and 4x4s. It's cool but not necessary for this build. I'll probably use it for the big one though.

The flat roof works because of added cover being next to the house. It would be easy to give the roof a little slant.

 

[InterestingChickens]

Nice job! Thanks for sharing.

 

[ChickenOfSpades]

Nice job! Thanks for sharing.

Thanks, I'm happy with how it turned out. Learned a lot for the bigger one I'm doing next.

 

[DatCampG]

Finished the little chicken pen I've been working on. I'm happy with how it turned out and learned a lot for when I build the big permanent coop in coming months.

Little chicken pen

• ChickenOfSpades
• Jul 17, 2022
• 10

The little pen I build to hold the chickens while I built a big, awesome coop

The cost was pretty minimal. Here's the list of supplies:

• Simple frame made from 7 2x4x8 boards (three are pressure treated for ground contact. I did use some old 4x4s I had to reinforce the corners, but if I did it again, I'd just use a couple more 2x4s instead.
• Three 2x3x8 boards for the roof supports and door.
• One PVC roof panel (I intentionally left a gap in the roof for ventilation and because there's some overhang from the roof of the house).
• About 25 6-foot cedar fence pickets used to trim the thing and enclose the "coop" section (they cost $2.50 each at Home Depot).
• One 25-foot roll of 48" wide hardware cloth was just enough to enclose it and put a dig apron on the two exposed sides.
• Some screws to put it all together.
• Hinges, a latch, a door handle, a couple hooks to hang up the waterer and feeder
• Plain ol' Arrow staples to attach the hardware cloth. I covered the edges with the cedar trim, so just used the staples to hold it in place.

I did play with the Kreg XL pocket jig that's intended for 2x4s and 4x4s. It's cool but not necessary for this build. I'll probably use it for the big one though.

The flat roof works because of added cover being next to the house. It would be easy to give the roof a little slant.

I think it is perfect and it will last a long time. I enjoyed looking at your pictures.

 

[3KillerBs]

You'll find it useful for various purposes after you've made the big coop too.

 

[Dakar2009]

Great little set up!! And totally agree on carrying the lessons forward to the next build.

Are you going to sneak a roosting bar in there somehow so they can get off the ground while sleeping?