Condominio de Pollo ideas

[DramaBrahmaMama]

Okay y'all... Check out my chicken scratches.... See what I did there???
Be nice... I'm not an artist by any means... And I spilled coffee all over the plans!!
This is my idea for the coop we are going to start this weekend.
What am I forgetting?
What am I overthinking?
What am I going to regret?
Throw it all at me!!!!!!
I promise... I'll only cry a lil!!
Things to keep in mind...
As of right now, we have 12 chickens.
We live in a high predator area.
We also have a super busy hwy close, so no free ranging.
I am trying to design around the recycled material we have and keeping purchasing to a minimum.
And... I have absolutely no clue what I'm doing when it comes to designing a coop.
Okay... GO!

 

[Auntiejessi3]

How many nest boxes are on your plans? I can't get it to zoom enough on this computer, lol. I see 8 squares, but can't read what they are...I applaud your chicken scratch, way better than I could have done

 

[DramaBrahmaMama]

How many nest boxes are on your plans? I can't get it to zoom enough on this computer, lol. I see 8 squares, but can't read what they are...I applaud your chicken scratch, way better than I could have done

I have 8 on the plan, but intend to scale back to 6... Too many?

 

[Auntiejessi3]

I have 8 on the plan, but intend to scale back to 6... Too many?

You only need 4 max for 12 chickens, that'll give you some more space for other things

 

[DramaBrahmaMama]

You only need 4 max for 12 chickens, that'll give you some more space for other things

Should I keep them on one side since I'm putting a gutter over the access door for rain collecting?

 

[Auntiejessi3]

Should I keep them on one side since I'm putting a gutter over the access door for rain collecting?

I would, it will free up wall space for roosts and poo bards. Also IMO I would not keep water or food in the coop. It raises humidity and invites pests. That's just my 2 cents

 

[rosemarythyme]

Your chicken scratch looks fine, however the photos are super blurry so I can't read anything on it. Got a scanner?

Are those diagonal roosts which go over nest boxes? Never have roosts over nests unless there's a poop board, as you will otherwise get poop splatter inside the boxes. Diagonal roosts are also not ideal IMO as the ends will cut too close to the wall for birds to fit on, so you lose a bit of roost length.

 

[3KillerBs]

According to the usual guidelines, 12 hens should have:

• 48 square feet in the coop. 6'x8' is more practical than 4'x12' since a long, skinny coop like that would be difficult to work inside.
• 12 feet of roost
• 120 square feet in the run. 10'x12' or 8'x15' -- 8'x16' means fewer odd cuts than either of those. 6'x20' is possible, especially if your run is an open-topped, fenced area instead of fully-enclosed with a solid and/or wire roof but risks social problems because subordinate hens need to be able to pass the dominant hens at a respectful distance.
• 12 square feet of ventilation.
• 3 nest boxes.

So 8x8 is good and 2 roosts would be good -- though as noted above they shouldn't be on top of the nests and diagonal roosts suit the human sense of aesthetics better than they suit chickens' needs.

I suggest that you raise your ventilation to the very peak of the roof -- heat and ammonia both rise -- and that you extend your roof overhangs generously to shelter your vents from blowing rain and snow and to give you a protected place to stand when gathering eggs.

Good job on the front drop down for the nests -- so much less likely to leak!

I suggest a larger access door so that, if necessary, you can get into the coop. It's never wise to have any area in your chicken-keeping facility that you can't reach in far enough to touch every square inch (my 4x4 coop I have to get my 6-foot son to do that for me).

 

[saysfaa]

Your posts go 2 feet into the ground. You might consider making that a bit deeper to get below the frost line. A post hole digger like this is well worth getting or renting.

Also, filling the hole with compacted earth around the post is much better than filling it with concrete.

 

[saysfaa]

I also find it well drawn but quite blurry. I think it says it is raised two feet off the ground? I would go either higher or lower. ... actually, "I" would go lower but if you want it raised, I think you want raised higher than 2'. 2' is just enough for it to be awkward to use - hard for people to crawl under but not for animals, a bit low for the chickens to use except for laying eggs or hiding from danger.

Separately, how/why did you choose that pitch for the roof?