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*~*~WARNING~*~*
This is a VERY long, PICTURE HEAVY coop build article. Brew a pot of coffee, get comfy and enjoy (I hope!)​
Less than one year into my life with chickens I became one of those people.

You know who I'm talking about. The people who swear up one wall and down another that they will never have more than 10 chickens. Ever. And just a few short months later they are stricken with a severe case of Chicken Addiction, a malady with no known cure. This is then compounded by a secondary infection of Chicken Mathitis Extremus. Oh my.

Yep. That's me. So what's a girl to do when her chicken accommodations can only comfortably house 11 birds? Why she commandeers the 8' x 16' cosmetically challenged shed stuffed to the rafters with a bunch of junk, that's what!

This lovely, albeit quite stinky, structure is destined for greater things.

This side faces the road (north) - that is some sexy paint job, no?!
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This side faces our backyard (west).
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This is the rear of the building (south facing but shaded by the woods approximately 18' away).
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And the east facing side.
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What a diamond in the rough!

A little work to clean this out.
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No problem with all these little elves to help.
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Now, what do I need to convert this shed into my new coop?
Next page: PLANNING
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About author
DobieLover
DobieLover
Animal lover and Doberman addict, health and fitness enthusiast, former runner now hiker, once equestrian and showed Western, Chemical Engineer by training and occupation, House Flipper at heart, unhappily retired from it :(. I eat a Paleo diet which led me to wanting chickens for fresh, healthy eggs. After acquiring my flock, I quickly realized that they play a huge roll in stress management.
I love taking neglected houses and renovating them into someone's home! It is the most rewarding work I've ever done and I loved every aspect of it. So, because I can no longer flip houses, I decided to flip a shed into a coop for me and the chickens!

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Blue is my chicken
I loved this article ❤️
I am looking forward to making my own coop and run (will definitely make an article about it)
We are moving at the moment with 10 ducks (8 calls, 1 silver appleyard and 1 runner) and we can't take their coop so at first they will be living in a crate in a barn :lau
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delflipz17
Very impressive! I am currently undertaking a similar project of turning an old unused shed into a coop. Im sure moving all that stuff out and finding new spots for it was a pain. I know it was tough on me and I only had 1/10 of the stuff that was in yours. You have beautiful happy healthy-looking birds! Im sure they love this Chicken Palace. Definitely provides me some motivation 💪
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DobieLover
DobieLover
I still love my coop! I think you will enjoy the conversion process. Please consider writing your own article to inspire others. Thank you for taking the time to post a review!!
-Eridanus-
I was totally engrossed with the flock tales!!! I laughed at Fabio's adventures and am currently observing my coop with a bit of a harsh eye :) Very cool coop!
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DobieLover
DobieLover
Thank you for the review. The old boy is still running the flock.
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Comments

NightingaleJen
This really is so wonderfully helpful. I keep studying it and showing it to Hubby. ;) Thank you so much for posting in such detail—it is very generous of you. I'm probably going to owe you brownies or a tea towel or something for stealing so many ideas and design elements! ;)
 
DobieLover
NightingaleJen said:
This really is so wonderfully helpful. I keep studying it and showing it to Hubby. ;) Thank you so much for posting in such detail—it is very generous of you. I'm probably going to owe you brownies or a tea towel or something for stealing so many ideas and design elements! ;)
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I wrote this article for people like you. I'm delighted that you really read the details of it.
I still absolutely love my coop. It works so well for me and the chickens and makes my chicken keeping so much easier.
Good luck with your coop build!
 
DobieLover
KnightsMist said:
Wow- I am in complete awe of your talent and finished product!!! I loved your details and pictures, and your story! Terrific article, beautiful work :) I'm sure your chickens are very happy to be yours!
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Thank you for your comments! I'm glad you enjoyed the article.
 
C
Am in the process of re-setting up a previous, not so well designed coop. Several ideas of your will be used. I never though about the poop tray, but will really use your concept. Great build and beautiful decorating. I am just learning practical and pretty. The curtains on the nest boxes cracked me up.
 
DobieLover
Citytransplant said:
Am in the process of re-setting up a previous, not so well designed coop. Several ideas of your will be used. I never though about the poop tray, but will really use your concept. Great build and beautiful decorating. I am just learning practical and pretty. The curtains on the nest boxes cracked me up.
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Hey! I like those curtains! 🤣
 
LavinmyBasket
Wow, you are talented! I love it! I am also turning an existing building into a coop. I’m glad we have brought these buildings a back to life & they will be more useful than storing our junk...I couldn’t walk through mine either! I love how you designed your brooder with a run! You thought of many things that hadn’t crossed my mind! Thanks for the tour!
 
DobieLover
LavinmyBasket said:
Wow, you are talented! I love it! I am also turning an existing building into a coop. I’m glad we have brought these buildings a back to life & they will be more useful than storing our junk...I couldn’t walk through mine either! I love how you designed your brooder with a run! You thought of many things that hadn’t crossed my mind! Thanks for the tour!
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Thank you for taking the time to leave a comment. I'm glad this article gave you some ideas.
The brooder with a run is now the maternity ward and chicks are hatching RIGHT NOW!! :love
 
LavinmyBasket
DobieLover said:
Thank you for taking the time to leave a comment. I'm glad this article gave you some ideas.
The brooder with a run is now the maternity ward and chicks are hatching RIGHT NOW!! :love
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Perfect! I have my first hatching eggs on lockdown in the bator now! The anticipation is giving me butterflies! Best wishes to you!
 
T
Wow I love it! We are working on our first coop/run. We’ve never built anything big before. Love all the detailed info and pics. We are still trying to decide what to use for the run area on the ground. Thinking about sand 🤔 but I see you are using wood chips. Why did you choose this material? Where did you get your chips from?
 
DobieLover
Thewoolyworks said:
Wow I love it! We are working on our first coop/run. We’ve never built anything big before. Love all the detailed info and pics. We are still trying to decide what to use for the run area on the ground. Thinking about sand 🤔 but I see you are using wood chips. Why did you choose this material? Where did you get your chips from?
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I chose wood chips because it drains well, will compost the chicken poop, the chickens love to scratch around in it and dust bathe in it and it's all free. The municipalities around me collect curbside branches and chip or shred them and leave them in huge piles for the residents to take for free. Check with your local Highway department.
There are also companies that you can sign up with for a delivery of wood chips that come from arborists. But you never know how much you are going to get that way.
 

Table of contents

Overview PLANNING DESIGN DEMO AND CONSTRUCTION RUN CONSTRUCTION MOVE IN AND MODIFICATIONS POP DOOR DETAILS WINDOW DETAILS The Cameras!! RECOVERY View full article

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Author
DobieLover
Article read time
42 min read
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