Jenski's Suburban Coops - Coop One
Our first coop was built to house four standard (large fowl) laying hens. It was built next to our patio in what was once an herb garden.
The run is roughly 9' x 7.5', and the elevated coop is 5' x 4'.
The coop was painted to match the house and other outbuildings. It has a pop door, vents with installed fans (not pictured) near the ceilings, and a rear door with nest box access.
The run roof is tinted polycarbonate. We used 1/2" hardware cloth and 2 x 4s for the run, and we treated the wood with Thompson's Water Seal.
For those interested, here are a few more pics showing some of the coop details.
Coop and run framing before roof was installed
Front of coop from inside the run. The coop is hinged on the top, allowing the whole front to be opened for cleaning. There is sealing and weather stripping around the edges to keep out the wind.
There is a vent near the ceiling. On later coops we installed vents that could be opened and closed, as in winter we had to partially cover this one with cardboard.
In order to increase ceiling ventilation we tried installing a small computer fan on the side wall, where there was already a small opening for electrical cords. What you see is also an electrical box cover propped open to keep the fan from getting wet. The fan was installed to suck air OUT of the coop, generating air movement through the vent on the front side without blowing air on the birds.
Here is an old pic of the inside of the coop. You can see the perches, and on the far right is the edge of one of the next boxes. The computer fan is at the top left, and the small white box near the bottom is a remote thermometer. The sliding summer screen door may be seen as well. . . and Dame Edna is partially visible too, wondering why I am waking her up to take pictures.
This was a pretty good first run, but there was lots of room for improvement. Things we changed on later coops include:
* Adding insulation to walls and ceilings
* Increasing ventilation
* Using quality wood for exteriors
* Completely caulking/sealing all cracks and joints before birds move in
