I had ducks a few years ago and loved them, being young without a lot of money I made a duck coop out of pallets and scrap wood. My wife told me I was approved to get chickens but the coop had to look nice.
After hours and hours....and hours of researching coops I came up with a design.
I got my house resided last year and felt like I needed to keep a bunch of scrap siding. Little did I know it was going to come in handy a year later.
I am still building the run but so far everyone loves it (especially the boss a.k.a. my beautiful wife).
The house it 4x4ft and 8ft to the peak of the roof. I have ventilation added in the eaves as well as the "window" more ventilation is to come.
The base is treated 4x4s, with 2x6s crossing diagonally. The whole thing is covered by OSB and then wrapped with the siding. I am no expert at siding so that was an adventure. I went with a metal roof, put flashing around and made makeshift gutters to drain into a rain barrel for a water source.
I added an automatic coop door that is set to close based on a timer but can also close based on light. The door is made by omelet, I couldn't stand the green color so it is mounted on the inside rather than the outside. I chose this door due to it being an all in one package as well as it locks when it is closed. The others I looked at could easily be pulled up by a raccoon or other animal.
The run is just over 6ft tall. I am 6ft 1in and learned from the ducks that a run that's only 4ft tall got old really quick. I initially was only going to go 6ft tall, 5ft wide and 8ft long. After talking to a neighbor that has chickens I came to the conclusion that it would be too small. I have a bunch of wasted space in the back corner so I went big and filled it in. The run is now 6ft 2in tall, 24ft long and 8ft wide at the widest spot, it tapers to 6ft wide at the end. I wanted to keep the trees and have them enter and exit the run for a more natural look.
As far as bedding I am considering adding a few yards of sand or leaving the rock that is there. My neighbor believes the rock will work great but from what I've read with sand I may still go that route. The ground is not level at all and about 8in of rock before it hits a weed barrier and finally clay dirt. Leveling it was out of the question, using a post hole digger to set the vertical posts 18in down was a challenge enough. The posts are pressure treated 2x4s and are concreted in so they are not moving.
The nest box was tricky trying to get the trim and siding to look okay while hinging and opening easily. It is 3ft wide and 1ft tall on the inside and has 3 separate nesting areas. It all bolts on to the side of the coop.
The run is about 90% done. Wire is in and now a portion just needs to be buried. The run is safe enough now for the chicks to be out during the day. Thankfully they go in at night behind multiple locked doors so no nighttime predators can get them. One of two perches are in the house and all my tools are cleared out. The chicks went in 2 days ago before I left from work. I have their heat lamp in the coop for another few weeks just in case they need it at night. Word from my wife and son are that they are doing great and my son now spends most of the day in the chicken run. My food and water system should hopefully be starting and completed this week. Once the chicks are a bit older and nights get warmer I have a plan for more ventilation.
Here is the progress
After hours and hours....and hours of researching coops I came up with a design.
I got my house resided last year and felt like I needed to keep a bunch of scrap siding. Little did I know it was going to come in handy a year later.
I am still building the run but so far everyone loves it (especially the boss a.k.a. my beautiful wife).
The house it 4x4ft and 8ft to the peak of the roof. I have ventilation added in the eaves as well as the "window" more ventilation is to come.
The base is treated 4x4s, with 2x6s crossing diagonally. The whole thing is covered by OSB and then wrapped with the siding. I am no expert at siding so that was an adventure. I went with a metal roof, put flashing around and made makeshift gutters to drain into a rain barrel for a water source.
I added an automatic coop door that is set to close based on a timer but can also close based on light. The door is made by omelet, I couldn't stand the green color so it is mounted on the inside rather than the outside. I chose this door due to it being an all in one package as well as it locks when it is closed. The others I looked at could easily be pulled up by a raccoon or other animal.
The run is just over 6ft tall. I am 6ft 1in and learned from the ducks that a run that's only 4ft tall got old really quick. I initially was only going to go 6ft tall, 5ft wide and 8ft long. After talking to a neighbor that has chickens I came to the conclusion that it would be too small. I have a bunch of wasted space in the back corner so I went big and filled it in. The run is now 6ft 2in tall, 24ft long and 8ft wide at the widest spot, it tapers to 6ft wide at the end. I wanted to keep the trees and have them enter and exit the run for a more natural look.
As far as bedding I am considering adding a few yards of sand or leaving the rock that is there. My neighbor believes the rock will work great but from what I've read with sand I may still go that route. The ground is not level at all and about 8in of rock before it hits a weed barrier and finally clay dirt. Leveling it was out of the question, using a post hole digger to set the vertical posts 18in down was a challenge enough. The posts are pressure treated 2x4s and are concreted in so they are not moving.
The nest box was tricky trying to get the trim and siding to look okay while hinging and opening easily. It is 3ft wide and 1ft tall on the inside and has 3 separate nesting areas. It all bolts on to the side of the coop.
The run is about 90% done. Wire is in and now a portion just needs to be buried. The run is safe enough now for the chicks to be out during the day. Thankfully they go in at night behind multiple locked doors so no nighttime predators can get them. One of two perches are in the house and all my tools are cleared out. The chicks went in 2 days ago before I left from work. I have their heat lamp in the coop for another few weeks just in case they need it at night. Word from my wife and son are that they are doing great and my son now spends most of the day in the chicken run. My food and water system should hopefully be starting and completed this week. Once the chicks are a bit older and nights get warmer I have a plan for more ventilation.
Here is the progress
