I built my coop more expensive then most. I wanted it large, easy to work in, handle 30 ducks and be able to reuse it as a shed down the road if I grow tired of raising ducks. It is a 16 x 16 coop 7.5 ft high, 250 sq ft. Here is my builder list:
9 - 4x4s Ten feet long. For the main poles. Spreed out in 3 rows of 3, 8 ft apart.
6 - 2x6s Sixteen feet long. Used for rafters, 2 per each row.
9 - 2x4s Sixteen feet long. Used as perlins. 2 ft on center.
250 sq ft of Tin Roof.
60 - 1x6 deck planks sixteen feet long, used as walls.
Misc lumber and wire mesh for door
Barn styled track for door
100ft of electrical wire, lights, switch, outlet and timer. (I didn't count this in my $1000 budget)
Scrap lumber for duck boxes
1 - 55 gal drum cut into fours for ground boxes. They seem to like these better then the raised boxes.
The barn style door is the way to go for deep snow and ease of use. The unintentional opening in the front allows my coop to be a safe haven for barn swallows, they are now building two nests in there as well. I've been cultivating a family of barn swallows for a couple years and they are getting quite used to us and keep coming back as a larger and larger flock.
It only looks slanted, it is on a hillside that naturally sloops both the roof and floor to the back. I put in a french drain in front of the coop and let it run into a little containment pond. I also catch the rain in a barrel and use it for the duck water.
The lights in the coop allow for egg production to start early spring. The natural slats in the plank allow for good ventilation without the wind. I use straw as the bedding and just pile it on as it decomposes, I scrape it out once a year to use as mulch or soil amendments.
9 - 4x4s Ten feet long. For the main poles. Spreed out in 3 rows of 3, 8 ft apart.
6 - 2x6s Sixteen feet long. Used for rafters, 2 per each row.
9 - 2x4s Sixteen feet long. Used as perlins. 2 ft on center.
250 sq ft of Tin Roof.
60 - 1x6 deck planks sixteen feet long, used as walls.
Misc lumber and wire mesh for door
Barn styled track for door
100ft of electrical wire, lights, switch, outlet and timer. (I didn't count this in my $1000 budget)
Scrap lumber for duck boxes
1 - 55 gal drum cut into fours for ground boxes. They seem to like these better then the raised boxes.
The barn style door is the way to go for deep snow and ease of use. The unintentional opening in the front allows my coop to be a safe haven for barn swallows, they are now building two nests in there as well. I've been cultivating a family of barn swallows for a couple years and they are getting quite used to us and keep coming back as a larger and larger flock.
It only looks slanted, it is on a hillside that naturally sloops both the roof and floor to the back. I put in a french drain in front of the coop and let it run into a little containment pond. I also catch the rain in a barrel and use it for the duck water.
The lights in the coop allow for egg production to start early spring. The natural slats in the plank allow for good ventilation without the wind. I use straw as the bedding and just pile it on as it decomposes, I scrape it out once a year to use as mulch or soil amendments.
