It took the neighbors dog busting through our store bought coop and eliminating our flock to realize I wanted a beefer coop for our new batch of chickens. The neighbor has a machine shop in his garage and he has what could easily be the worlds biggest pallets!! It took some effort to disassemble them, but well worth it.
I wasn't exactly sure of the floor plan. My dad and I sat down and did some crude sketches, but no real floor plan, which means most of it was made on the fly!! We buried the 4x4" posts 2 feet into the ground for stability in Colorado weather. My dad helped with the framing of the coop and run. My son and I put in the individual slates that make up the floor, walls, nesting boxes and using an old stair hand rail for the roosting bars! We put on a recycled metal roof from the neighbors donkey shed. I used hardware cloth for the open air ventilation for the enclosed run, and put in "Rip bars" in honor of the neighbors bird dog! I laid down chicken wire before putting down the "floor" of the run to keep out any predators and to keep the chickens from digging down too far.
There is also a 30' x 10' run they go into every day- unless theres snow, for some reason, my girls won't go outside if theres more than 2" on snow- not that I blame them.I hang their food under the floor of the roosting area. I'm so excited, I just installed a heated rain barrel water bar for the girls since my heated waterer's heater died this winter. In Colorado winter, I have found its no fun carrying back and forth water every morning and night.
I wasn't exactly sure of the floor plan. My dad and I sat down and did some crude sketches, but no real floor plan, which means most of it was made on the fly!! We buried the 4x4" posts 2 feet into the ground for stability in Colorado weather. My dad helped with the framing of the coop and run. My son and I put in the individual slates that make up the floor, walls, nesting boxes and using an old stair hand rail for the roosting bars! We put on a recycled metal roof from the neighbors donkey shed. I used hardware cloth for the open air ventilation for the enclosed run, and put in "Rip bars" in honor of the neighbors bird dog! I laid down chicken wire before putting down the "floor" of the run to keep out any predators and to keep the chickens from digging down too far.
There is also a 30' x 10' run they go into every day- unless theres snow, for some reason, my girls won't go outside if theres more than 2" on snow- not that I blame them.I hang their food under the floor of the roosting area. I'm so excited, I just installed a heated rain barrel water bar for the girls since my heated waterer's heater died this winter. In Colorado winter, I have found its no fun carrying back and forth water every morning and night.
