Our first coop.. er, tractor. maybe more of a chicken bulldozer.
I'll start out here in the middle and plunge headlong into the beginning. I'll be including lots of pictures for the do it yourselfers out there who want to build something similar. I know there are a lot of ideas from everyone here at BYC incorporated into this, and I'd like to thank you all for your ideas and criticisms.
Was designed for 4 birds, but Steph's "aww they're just too cute" meant we ended up with six. they'll be ranging quite often, so it shouldn't be any problem. Coop dimensions overall are ten feet long, five feet wide, with five feet tall walls. All of my plywood is 1/2", with exception of one piece of 1/2" osb on the roof, and the nesting box which is 3/4".
The coop is 3x5x3 + the 'attic'. I have a 14" deep by 26" wide nest box hanging out one side of the coop as well. there is a 3x5x2 foot storage underneath the coop which opens to the rear.
The run is 7x5x5 + attic. I'm finishing the tin roof this weekend I hope, and when Steph gets time she'll be finishing up the painting.
I've used 1/2 mesh for all of my openings except for the floor. it is currently open, but will be covered using 4" concrete wire. I dont have to worry about anything smaller than that digging under.
Above you see the base framework. 2x6 pressure treated. overall dim's are 5'x10'. My crossbar is 3' and back from the end.
One wall and the earliest framework.
Some of the various framing shots along the way. Next the trusses start to be built.
Below are some of the more final shots. at this point the ladies have moved in, so finishing the enclosure was pushing me for time. the nesting box and other cool toys would have to wait. I used 1/2 mesh all around. most of the framing is 2x4, with 1x4 for the trim pieces which sandwich the screen. I have overlap, and make sure the screws are going through the screen as well. Where i tucked to the inside, i've used 2x2's to sandwich the screen to the 2x4. Nothing getting in here.
My door between the coop and the run. i've got a bracket screwed to the door with a weight near the end of it, which acts as a heavy cantilever when the door is down, making it hard to open. it can easily be opened from the outside with a small rope which i have attached via a system of pulleys to a cleat. I purposefully leave the door at that angle when open, it's just sloped enough that the chickens cant stand on it, which means the ladies dont get to decorate the front door! huzzah!
Did I mention the girls? We got them at 4 days old. We've got 2 Buff Orphingtons (Sandy and Sally), 2 Americaunas (Val and Petra), and 2 Barred Plymouth Rock (Sonny and Cher).
c'mon out, dont be shy!
Here are all 6 ladies retiring in an early interior version of the coop.
Okay, i'll close this post and finish up in a little while once i get some more pictures uploaded. comments welcomed, please keep in mind that these are older pictures and i'll be updating with the latest pictures and changes in the next day or so. Thanks for reading about my tractor!
and yes, it will be a tractor, i just haven't had time to install the wheels portion yet. i've already moved it three times. It is heavy, but not as heavy as you may think. i'll be making permanent wheels for it in further updates as well.
Was designed for 4 birds, but Steph's "aww they're just too cute" meant we ended up with six. they'll be ranging quite often, so it shouldn't be any problem. Coop dimensions overall are ten feet long, five feet wide, with five feet tall walls. All of my plywood is 1/2", with exception of one piece of 1/2" osb on the roof, and the nesting box which is 3/4".
The coop is 3x5x3 + the 'attic'. I have a 14" deep by 26" wide nest box hanging out one side of the coop as well. there is a 3x5x2 foot storage underneath the coop which opens to the rear.
The run is 7x5x5 + attic. I'm finishing the tin roof this weekend I hope, and when Steph gets time she'll be finishing up the painting.
I've used 1/2 mesh for all of my openings except for the floor. it is currently open, but will be covered using 4" concrete wire. I dont have to worry about anything smaller than that digging under.
Above you see the base framework. 2x6 pressure treated. overall dim's are 5'x10'. My crossbar is 3' and back from the end.
One wall and the earliest framework.
Some of the various framing shots along the way. Next the trusses start to be built.
Below are some of the more final shots. at this point the ladies have moved in, so finishing the enclosure was pushing me for time. the nesting box and other cool toys would have to wait. I used 1/2 mesh all around. most of the framing is 2x4, with 1x4 for the trim pieces which sandwich the screen. I have overlap, and make sure the screws are going through the screen as well. Where i tucked to the inside, i've used 2x2's to sandwich the screen to the 2x4. Nothing getting in here.
My door between the coop and the run. i've got a bracket screwed to the door with a weight near the end of it, which acts as a heavy cantilever when the door is down, making it hard to open. it can easily be opened from the outside with a small rope which i have attached via a system of pulleys to a cleat. I purposefully leave the door at that angle when open, it's just sloped enough that the chickens cant stand on it, which means the ladies dont get to decorate the front door! huzzah!
Did I mention the girls? We got them at 4 days old. We've got 2 Buff Orphingtons (Sandy and Sally), 2 Americaunas (Val and Petra), and 2 Barred Plymouth Rock (Sonny and Cher).
c'mon out, dont be shy!
Here are all 6 ladies retiring in an early interior version of the coop.
Okay, i'll close this post and finish up in a little while once i get some more pictures uploaded. comments welcomed, please keep in mind that these are older pictures and i'll be updating with the latest pictures and changes in the next day or so. Thanks for reading about my tractor!
and yes, it will be a tractor, i just haven't had time to install the wheels portion yet. i've already moved it three times. It is heavy, but not as heavy as you may think. i'll be making permanent wheels for it in further updates as well.
