Well, I decided I wanted to try and raise a flock of chickens. I needed to get a coop. I spent a lot of time looking around at the prefabricated coops and decided I could build one better and for less money. Well I have bumbled a little along the way building this thing. I have learned quite a bit from looking at other peoples builds. I will point out things that I have changed along the way. I hope that someone will learn some things from my mistakes and maybe spark some ideas in others.
I decided that I was going to go big and house about 18 birds. I started with a 4'x6' base. I found out this is not the ideal size for that number of birds however 6 of them (Cornish X) will be going into the freezer before size becomes an issue in the coop. I needed a hand with construction so I enlisted the help of my 8yr old daughter.
So we got the base put together, and decided we should go about 2 1/2' high. Our platform is 2' off the ground to keep small predators out. This is pretty much where we finished on the 1st day.
So construction day 2 and my 8 yr. old quit after day one! So I got a buddy to help. We got the front and back framed up. Nesting boxes in place and roosts that turned out to be inadequately spaced. I had them 10" apart and after doing some research found out that a minimum of 18" apart is optimum for roosts.
Day 3 of work. After spending a night thinking about how to fix the roost issue I decided to shift the nesting boxes to the center and place the 2nd roost on the opposite side of the coop. I also got help from another buddy so there are 3 of us now. We got the second set of windows cut out.
Day 4, we got poultry wire in the windows and trim around the windows covering up the edges of the poultry wire. We got wire placed across the roof to keep the chickens from trying to fly into the roof. We also got the rafters in place. After some thought I may pull the wire and trim from the window and place them on the outside of the coop so when I place the window coverings in place I can have that nice touch of trim on the outside. I may revisit this idea sometime in the near future.
Day 5, today was a very busy day. The roof was completed and covered with a plastic corrugated covering. The inside was painted barn white. The nesting box was covered, the front and back received their paneling. I got back my little 8 yr. old helper, and I also acquired another helper (my wife). So what's left? Hanging the front doors, trim around the doors and windows, decorative hinges, pop door, ramp, poultry fencing around the horse pen/run, and barn red paint on the outside.
Any feed back will be welcome and seriously considered. Thank you for taking time to read my story. Joe.
I decided that I was going to go big and house about 18 birds. I started with a 4'x6' base. I found out this is not the ideal size for that number of birds however 6 of them (Cornish X) will be going into the freezer before size becomes an issue in the coop. I needed a hand with construction so I enlisted the help of my 8yr old daughter.
So we got the base put together, and decided we should go about 2 1/2' high. Our platform is 2' off the ground to keep small predators out. This is pretty much where we finished on the 1st day.
So construction day 2 and my 8 yr. old quit after day one! So I got a buddy to help. We got the front and back framed up. Nesting boxes in place and roosts that turned out to be inadequately spaced. I had them 10" apart and after doing some research found out that a minimum of 18" apart is optimum for roosts.
Day 3 of work. After spending a night thinking about how to fix the roost issue I decided to shift the nesting boxes to the center and place the 2nd roost on the opposite side of the coop. I also got help from another buddy so there are 3 of us now. We got the second set of windows cut out.
Day 4, we got poultry wire in the windows and trim around the windows covering up the edges of the poultry wire. We got wire placed across the roof to keep the chickens from trying to fly into the roof. We also got the rafters in place. After some thought I may pull the wire and trim from the window and place them on the outside of the coop so when I place the window coverings in place I can have that nice touch of trim on the outside. I may revisit this idea sometime in the near future.
Day 5, today was a very busy day. The roof was completed and covered with a plastic corrugated covering. The inside was painted barn white. The nesting box was covered, the front and back received their paneling. I got back my little 8 yr. old helper, and I also acquired another helper (my wife). So what's left? Hanging the front doors, trim around the doors and windows, decorative hinges, pop door, ramp, poultry fencing around the horse pen/run, and barn red paint on the outside.
Any feed back will be welcome and seriously considered. Thank you for taking time to read my story. Joe.
