Easy to build small coop ideas

[SpotTheCat]

On original question remaking a plastic playhouse is “cute” idea but always think about ease of cleaning out poop, collecting eggs etc. food and water situations. One thing I constantly push is bucket nipple waterers. I get mine at premier 1 supplies. They have easy to remove lids and fit snugly to keep out debris. Water stays fresh and algae free for considerable time. I refill every few days and clean with soap and water 1x a month. I can not stand to be constantly cleaning the open water containers. Always filthy. I have several to avoid them ever being without in the event of unexpected accident. Never had one but prepared. On heatwave days I do put out a huge watered of he kind I hate just to be sure they hydrate easily and often. So glad when fall hits and I put it away til summer. TMI sorry

Don’t worry I am thinking of easy to clean and build way before “cute“, I am not looking for “cute”.
I didn’t ask about waterers at all.
What does TMI mean?
Thank you for the info anyway.

 

[aart]

What does TMI mean?

Too Much Information.

 

[SpotTheCat]

Too Much Information.

Thank you

 

[Jeddice]

I am looking for ideas for a small easy to build preferable cheap coop for 3-6 bantams, The space I have is 4ft by 4ft at maximum It can only be 3ft by 4ft if it is not walk in.

I am thinking of turning a plastic play house in to a coop what are the pros and cons of doing that?

We are using this child’s playhouse for our 5 silkies

 

[Nova Scotia Homestead]

Have you figured out a coop yet? I have a great idea for you... affordable....almost free to build . As long as you have tools.

 

[SpotTheCat]

Have you figured out a coop yet? I have a great idea for you... affordable....almost free to build . As long as you have tools.

I have not figured out the coop yet.

 

[RhondaWW]

I am looking for ideas for a small easy to build preferable cheap coop for 3-6 bantams, The space I have is 4ft by 4ft at maximum It can only be 3ft by 4ft if it is not walk in.

I am thinking of turning a plastic play house in to a coop what are the pros and cons of doing that?

My husband and I converted our daughter's old swing set with clubhouse into a coop and run. The clubhouse is now a 4 x 4 coop and where the swings were is an enclosed run. We have 4 cochin bantams and they fit perfectly there.

 

[BDutch]

@SpotTheCat No time to read the the whole thread. But 2 important things:

No isolation in the mild climates in Europe : if you get a red mite infestation you have to burn the coop to get rid of the mites. And red mites are a huge problem in many countries in Europe (check for the UK). For this reason it’s not a good idea to buy second hand coops.

Don’t buy a plastic coop/playhouse. Its impossible to adjust and most plastic coops/playhouses deteriorate fast outside. Adjusting a wooden playhouse (the right size for you I guess) is a easy to do thing and better/cheaper then lots of prefab coops. Especially if you can buy one second hand.

 

[RebeccaRN]

By easy I mean none fancy box or converting something else in to a coop like a shed or play house, prefabs are ridiculously expensive for what they are.
most coops I can find are too complicated or have other problems like not enough ventilation, nesting boxes same hight as roosts and too small or too big.
Also I have no building or chicken experience, I am not sure what is a bad idea and what isn’t, I am hoping people who have built and used different coops can help me, so I hopefully don’t need to do the same mistakes they have.

I have no building experience so I bought an Over ez chicken coop, made in the Amish tradition and I love it so far

 

[AmeliaBedelia]

A couple tips/thoughts I had reading through this thread:

1. If you main predators are rats and foxes, you'll want to cover any holes 1" or wider to keep rats out. And if your coop/run doesn't have a solid floor, dig a trench around at the base of the walls and bury an attached hardware cloth apron underground. That helps prevent foxes digging under.

2. If you use zip ties to attach hardware cloth, make sure they are the ones made for outdoors so they don't deteriorate quickly in UV light.

What I did was build a small aviary-style run of hardware cloth and put a refurbished plastic dog house inside it. I elevated the dog house so the chickens can use the floor space below it.

The run has 2 solid wood walls (fence panels) and the other 2 and roof are just hardware cloth. If you have lots of dreary weather you may want a solid roof, but I wanted it open for ventilation and so sunlight could help keep things a bit more sanitary in the run (UV kills many germs).

We lock up the run at night, but not the doghouse door, so the chickens let themselves out into the run in the morning. They also get to free range with the guard dog part of each day. They sometimes choose to sleep in the aviary in mild weather, but always have access to the coop if needed.

I plan to upgrade from the dog house in the future, but it has worked for our 2 standard sized hens. I think it would be okay for 3 standard, since they also have the run area, but it would be...cozy. The main downside is that I have to enter the run and lift the whole roof off the dog house to gather eggs. But not bad considering the house was free!