I used to come on to this web site and read all of the stories of people who said that once you get chickens you really get in to it and you end up getting more and more chickens and more and more advanced on your coop.
That is me dead on.
I started out with an Ebay coop
I attached the coop to a dog run that I had and put hardware cloth on the bottom of the dog run and chicken wire on the top.
I also buried hard ware cloth all around the coop so that nothing could get in. On the box they said 4-6 chickens.
NO WAY was this accurate. I had 6 and it was very tight for them, they had no where to move and it seemed like cruelty to keep them in there.
I ended up having a cat get them and I then purchased 5 chickens.
I re did the run and made the coop within a structure.
In here you can see the fence that was the dog run.
But eventually something got through the Chicken Wire and got my chickens. The craziest thing is that in the end when I had 3 chickens left. Something killed my chickens in the coop. I once saw a Fox trying to attack the coop with the dead chickens inside. I didn't get it. But it did make me determined to find a new design and to start from scratch. So I tore down the entire coop and run and started from scratch all the while re-purposing the wood from before.
Slanted roof design and elevated off of the ground.
That is my uncle helping me with the roof design. In the back you see that we are using the existing wood from the old coop as we go along.
Some of the wood still has chicken wire from before, but it's ok we are going to be putting on the ply wood on top of it.
After 2 days of 3 hours we got it up and had the floor in place with the right support.
So now we have taken down the entire old coop, and have moved this coop to it's new location. We put it up on bricks as well. The back is in there.
Using the old corrugated roof we used that again. The chicken coop is in the shade and we have a window on one side and the entire mesh sides with hardware cloth. But I think that this way when the Chickens are in teh coop it still gives them more light.
Created the nest boxes that hang on the outside, as you can see we have one window put in.
Getting ready to put in the vinyl flooring. Does it matter that I don't have the wood all the way to the top of the cover? Will the chickens prefer one nest box over another? We will find out.
To create these 5 nest boxes took some time but it was worth it. It came out great. I will eventually put some corrugated roof panels that I have left on this so that the water runs off. .
Finally got the old corrugated roof panels back on. We had to silicone the area where we had put in the screws from the last time we used it. So we wouldn't get any water in the coop falling on the hens.
Along the top we used the cement hardware cloth to protect the windows from anyone getting in. Have to use a washer with the nail to hold it in to place.
The window and the top area will allow some good ventilation to the chickens and on top of that we have put in the cement mesh cloth that will hold up to the elements.
Testing the door to make sure that it closes properly and it does. Will put in a lock on this so that no raccoon's can get in from here.
Slowly taking shape
Let the corrugated roof hang long so that the rain can fall away from the coop and away from the wood.
Using the old wood we are creating a run for the chickens to be out in.
This will be covered with new clear corrugated roofing that I purchased from home depot. The sides will be the concrete cloth and is very strong. We will also be burying that same cloth along the sides after it is screwed in to the bottom Then planning on putting pavers over the side and throw dirt and put in some beneficial plants that can deter racoons and cats like Mint, so that it grows every year and keeps away the critters. Can anyone confirm if that does work?
Ran out of that cloth and just put in a left over piece of plywood on the top opening. Will end up hanging something off of that or putting up some decoration on it.
From a distance you can see it taking shape. The one piece of plywood is up and the second will be up soon, From there we have to work on the drawbridge like door.
Thinking of using the old coop on the edge of the run for a sick or injured bird or if it I ever have to introduce a new bird in to the population. Any thoughts? The ebay coop is a little flimsy and I would have to strengthen it up.
Finished the roosts by putting in 2 - 2*4's across. I think that should be enough to hold around 10-12 chickens which is my plan. The kids joined in the fun and wanted to make this in to a tree house. When they found out that this was a chicken coop only, they wanted me to cut it in half as they were willing to share with the chickens.
Both sides plywood is on.
The plan is that we are using this entrance like a draw bridge. At night the door is closed and the door is all the way to the top. In the morning the rope is taken off and the draw bridge opens.
Problem with that is that I have found that the door is very heavy to lft up, because we have put in a lot of support. But not heavy enough that the door will open up on it's own. Not sure if I have to put it up on a pitch?
side view of the door as it is all the way to the bottom. I think that may be a bit steep for the Chickens to climb up. When that is on the ground it a pain in the neck to lift back up. So we have to set up a winch or a crank.
Put in the third piece of plywood that will house the hens.
Was researching some options.My plan is to add a winch to the door along with a car battery. This way the door can open and close automatically. Anyone ever do that before?
This comes with a radio control remote, so that I can point the remove towards the coop - open and close the chicken door. This is where I have left the coop so far.
In addition I am connecting the Winch to a car battery for power and a solar powered drip charger to the car battery so that the car battery stays charged.
Now the only thing that I need to figure out is how to extend the range of my winch remote so that I can open and close the coop from inside my house.
Will post more pictures of the coop as I work on it over the 4th of July weekend.
That is me dead on.
I started out with an Ebay coop
I attached the coop to a dog run that I had and put hardware cloth on the bottom of the dog run and chicken wire on the top.
I also buried hard ware cloth all around the coop so that nothing could get in. On the box they said 4-6 chickens.
NO WAY was this accurate. I had 6 and it was very tight for them, they had no where to move and it seemed like cruelty to keep them in there.
I ended up having a cat get them and I then purchased 5 chickens.
I re did the run and made the coop within a structure.
In here you can see the fence that was the dog run.
But eventually something got through the Chicken Wire and got my chickens. The craziest thing is that in the end when I had 3 chickens left. Something killed my chickens in the coop. I once saw a Fox trying to attack the coop with the dead chickens inside. I didn't get it. But it did make me determined to find a new design and to start from scratch. So I tore down the entire coop and run and started from scratch all the while re-purposing the wood from before.
Slanted roof design and elevated off of the ground.
That is my uncle helping me with the roof design. In the back you see that we are using the existing wood from the old coop as we go along.
Some of the wood still has chicken wire from before, but it's ok we are going to be putting on the ply wood on top of it.
After 2 days of 3 hours we got it up and had the floor in place with the right support.
So now we have taken down the entire old coop, and have moved this coop to it's new location. We put it up on bricks as well. The back is in there.
Using the old corrugated roof we used that again. The chicken coop is in the shade and we have a window on one side and the entire mesh sides with hardware cloth. But I think that this way when the Chickens are in teh coop it still gives them more light.
Created the nest boxes that hang on the outside, as you can see we have one window put in.
Getting ready to put in the vinyl flooring. Does it matter that I don't have the wood all the way to the top of the cover? Will the chickens prefer one nest box over another? We will find out.
To create these 5 nest boxes took some time but it was worth it. It came out great. I will eventually put some corrugated roof panels that I have left on this so that the water runs off. .
Finally got the old corrugated roof panels back on. We had to silicone the area where we had put in the screws from the last time we used it. So we wouldn't get any water in the coop falling on the hens.
Along the top we used the cement hardware cloth to protect the windows from anyone getting in. Have to use a washer with the nail to hold it in to place.
The window and the top area will allow some good ventilation to the chickens and on top of that we have put in the cement mesh cloth that will hold up to the elements.
Testing the door to make sure that it closes properly and it does. Will put in a lock on this so that no raccoon's can get in from here.
Slowly taking shape
Let the corrugated roof hang long so that the rain can fall away from the coop and away from the wood.
Using the old wood we are creating a run for the chickens to be out in.
This will be covered with new clear corrugated roofing that I purchased from home depot. The sides will be the concrete cloth and is very strong. We will also be burying that same cloth along the sides after it is screwed in to the bottom Then planning on putting pavers over the side and throw dirt and put in some beneficial plants that can deter racoons and cats like Mint, so that it grows every year and keeps away the critters. Can anyone confirm if that does work?
Ran out of that cloth and just put in a left over piece of plywood on the top opening. Will end up hanging something off of that or putting up some decoration on it.
From a distance you can see it taking shape. The one piece of plywood is up and the second will be up soon, From there we have to work on the drawbridge like door.
Thinking of using the old coop on the edge of the run for a sick or injured bird or if it I ever have to introduce a new bird in to the population. Any thoughts? The ebay coop is a little flimsy and I would have to strengthen it up.
Finished the roosts by putting in 2 - 2*4's across. I think that should be enough to hold around 10-12 chickens which is my plan. The kids joined in the fun and wanted to make this in to a tree house. When they found out that this was a chicken coop only, they wanted me to cut it in half as they were willing to share with the chickens.
Both sides plywood is on.
The plan is that we are using this entrance like a draw bridge. At night the door is closed and the door is all the way to the top. In the morning the rope is taken off and the draw bridge opens.
Problem with that is that I have found that the door is very heavy to lft up, because we have put in a lot of support. But not heavy enough that the door will open up on it's own. Not sure if I have to put it up on a pitch?
side view of the door as it is all the way to the bottom. I think that may be a bit steep for the Chickens to climb up. When that is on the ground it a pain in the neck to lift back up. So we have to set up a winch or a crank.
Put in the third piece of plywood that will house the hens.
Was researching some options.My plan is to add a winch to the door along with a car battery. This way the door can open and close automatically. Anyone ever do that before?
This comes with a radio control remote, so that I can point the remove towards the coop - open and close the chicken door. This is where I have left the coop so far.
In addition I am connecting the Winch to a car battery for power and a solar powered drip charger to the car battery so that the car battery stays charged.
Now the only thing that I need to figure out is how to extend the range of my winch remote so that I can open and close the coop from inside my house.
Will post more pictures of the coop as I work on it over the 4th of July weekend.
