Lookin like a coop!

[BanditMan]

Well to be my first coop ever coming along quite nice....just looking for some ideas for the roost, laying box and flooring? Any ideas would be gratefully wanted! The open side of the hen house is going to be on hinges for easy cleaning.

 

[21hens-incharge]

I really like windows.
I made mine pretty easily.


Awning style let's air in and keeps rain out.

If you do add hardware cloth there is no need to remove the chicken wire. Just go over it.

Six hens means 6' of roost space needed.

oh and I would put the pop door away from your human door so you are not tripping on the ramp.

 

[TheGoldenGirlz]

Looks great! Only thing is that unless you have no predators at all I’d suggest something other than chicken wire(hardware cloth, hog wire, etc) because it is sooo easy to get through. Sand floors are my favorite!

 

[rosemarythyme]

x2 on something other than chicken wire, or at the very least supplement it with hardware cloth on the bottom few feet.

EDIT: NEVERMIND... I just read your other post. Though I will say if you have a rodent issue, the chain link and chicken wire will not keep out mice and likely rats.

I assume you're going with an external nest box to maximize coop space? Roost could sit directly across from the hinged access door or across the back perpendicular, depends on where you're putting the pop door and such.

What plans do you have for ventilation inside the coop? I see 2 solid walls but there's plenty of opportunity to put some in the other 2 walls.

 

[21hens-incharge]

How many birds are you planning on?
That will help in figuring out the roosts.

I made my roots so I can lift them out to clean both them and the coop more easily.

Linoleum on the floor will greatly extend the life of the floor.
To expensive for my big coop so I painted that with porch and floor paint. So far (4 or 5 years) so good.

I agree the coop needs vents.

 

[bajabirdbrain]

Your wood work looks pretty darn good. It appears to me that an external access to nest boxes would be better as the coop isn't "man size". X2 on sand for the floor, we started off with pine shavings but didn't like them at all. Put down sand in our 6x10 coop and with poop boards under the 2 roosts AND daily cleaning with a Folger's coffee container and a plastic kitty litter shovel, the sand has been great. Put the sand in last summer and it is still in good shape. If it were me, I would just put a row of 1/2" hardware cloth over the chicken wire, at least 2 ft up or 4ft even better. Chainlink fencing will only keep out dogs and coyotes. Racoons can climb over easily SO, do you have any protection from predators digging under your perimeter walls? We put a chicken wire apron under the walls and outwards a couple of feet to discourage digging, so far, so good.

Still looks like a nice set up. One last suggestion, PLEASE put your location in your avatar so that advice can be geographically accurate(snow? snakes? bears?)

Here you can see the 4ft high hardware cloth/wire at the bottom. Added these shower curtains as wind/snow/rain protection during nasty storms. Easily removed for spring/summer. I had to add grommets for strength and would use a heavier plastic if/when I replace the curtains.

 

[bajabirdbrain]

Chad: I had read several articles on what kind of sand to use and I ended up going to our local nursery and had a small loader bucket of their sand dumped into my 3/4 ton truck. The sand came from some rock and gravel pit and was clean and free of chemicals etc. Cost was about $35 and I have been using the left over for our dust bath in a kiddie plastic pool. 1/2 wood ash, 1/2 peat moss and a couple of shovels full of sand. When we get a low spot/hole in the run I add some more sand to keep it sort of level. Seems everybody is happy. The sand in the coop never gets wet and with the curtains very little water gets into the run. Good luck.

 

[BanditMan]

No actually the whole reason I went with the CW was bc the coop will actually be inside a chain linked fence and the size (w) was exactly what I needed ...couldn't find the actual (w) size I needed in Hardware....Question tho what's pros and cons with sand floors? Inside hen house or run?

 

[Chad Oftedal]

Your wood work looks pretty darn good. It appears to me that an external access to nest boxes would be better as the coop isn't "man size". X2 on sand for the floor, we started off with pine shavings but didn't like them at all. Put down sand in our 6x10 coop and with poop boards under the 2 roosts AND daily cleaning with a Folger's coffee container and a plastic kitty litter shovel, the sand has been great. Put the sand in last summer and it is still in good shape. If it were me, I would just put a row of 1/2" hardware cloth over the chicken wire, at least 2 ft up or 4ft even better. Chainlink fencing will only keep out dogs and coyotes. Racoons can climb over easily SO, do you have any protection from predators digging under your perimeter walls? We put a chicken wire apron under the walls and outwards a couple of feet to discourage digging, so far, so good.

Still looks like a nice set up. One last suggestion, PLEASE put your location in your avatar so that advice can be geographically accurate(snow? snakes? bears?)

Here you can see the 4ft high hardware cloth/wire at the bottom. Added these shower curtains as wind/snow/rain protection during nasty storms. Easily removed for spring/summer. I had to add grommets for strength and would use a heavier plastic if/when I replace the curtains.
View attachment 1357333

Thanks for this info! I'd heard that for areas that are wet (like PNW), sand can work well on the inside of a coop. I just put pine shavings in mine last week, but have been considering sand. I'm also building the poop boards this weekend to get them in there - I just had to go with a temporary roost for now because the birds were getting big and needed to go in to the coop.

We have similar sized coops - mine is 8x8, so a little bit smaller. How much sand did you go with, and did you haul it in bulk, or one of the big box stores?

 

[cwelte]

Hi - I'm totally new to raising my hens (still only a week old) but it's that time of year when I start to clean out the fireplaces (burning mostly oak). Am I understanding you correctly that I should be saving this ask to mix with peat and sand to make their dust bath? That's awesome!

1/2 wood ash, 1/2 peat moss and a couple of shovels full of sand.