Here is how I plan to modify my pre-fab coop when I put it together

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jimmywalt

jimmywalt

Crowing
11 Years
Mar 24, 2013
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I'm writing this to show another BYC person who purchased the same coop what mods I plan to make to it before I put it together. Maybe this will give him/her some ideas -

I purchased the pre-fab coop below. It says on the box that it's good for 4 chickens. We only have 4 so that will work fine.

Here are some pictures from what it looks like out of the box. The first picture is a stock from Google, the others are what the display at Tractor Supply looks like.
















As you can see there isn't a door that can be closed to keep the hens in the house at night. I plan to make a sliding one that I can secure at night. I'll just have to open the door to the run and slide the coop door closed.

Also there aren't any vent holes in the coop. I live in Michigan so I need to modify it so that in the winter time that can be closed as well. I'll make a sliding "door" to cover over the vent windows. The vents will have 1/2" hardware cloth installed from the inside to keep anything that might want to harm the hens outside of the coop.

We live in a small subdivision and have a fenced in back yard (6' privacy fence all around). I don't believe there are any animals wild or domestic that will get the hens, but I want to enclose them just to make sure.

Here are the mods I plan to make on the pre-fab coop (below) You'll have to click on the pictures to see the notes that I wrote on the coop.





I "hope" my door and vent windows look like these pictures I found via Google on other coops.





Finally, I'm going to add this run I made last weekend to the end of my pre-fab coop to give the girls 8' more of room to run. I have a 2' wide door 2' from the right end of the run. Where you see the board at an angle is where it will connect to the pre-fab coop.

 
Wow! That coop is in NO WAY large enough to house 4 hens. 2 hens tops! The general rule of thumb is 4 sq. ft. per bird for the interior of the coop, and 10 sq. ft. per bird in the run. If chickens are put in a situation where there is not enough space, they become stressed, their immune systems become compromised, they can become aggressive toward one another, and their laying ability can be affected. ALL of the pre fab coops state that you can keep way more hens than is acceptable. Please be careful.
 
You will not want to keep four chickens in that through a Mich. winter. If you were to close up four birds in there overnight with below freezing temps, you would find a frozen frosted mess in the morning. Especially with the near non-existent ventilation that "coop" has. You either have to bump it out, and make it bigger, or just build another coop. This may sound a bit harsh, but that coop WILL not work with four full sized chickens through the winter.
Jack
 
Would you find the "frozen, frosted mess" because of the moisture four birds would create in a small space? Just curious. We are building a coop that is 4' x 8', and 4-51/2' tall. With only six birds, we should have plenty of space, more than the recommended 4 sq ft each. But we are still in the learning stages and want to know all we can.

However, I LOVE the sliding doors! So cute! We would need a latch of some sort, for ours, but what a cute idea.
 
Hmmm. We have a huge coop and you really do want it bigger than you need it. Always. I don't see why 4 chickens couldn't make it in there though...they would be a little cramped in, but that would keep them warmer right? Here is my thought. Since you are in Michigan and there will be quite a few days the hens can go outside an will have to stay cooped it really should be much larger. Perhaps you could just enclose the part of the run that comes with the coop and then have your add on as the run...? They will be bored to tears and pecking at each other after a few days cooped up in such a space I would think. Not to mention there are so many problems that can arise with a smaller coop. So so so much less maintenance and stress to have a big coop. Our coop is the top half of a building that was already on the property we bought. It's 18x20 ft so lots of room up there. I have 10 chickens now in the coop and will be adding 16 more, and then 12 more after that. We don't have a run. I just open the coop and they wander around the woods and yard and such and that makes a difference too. I really think 4 hens in that coop would be a headache.
 
Yes I plan to enclose the run that is the pre-fab part in the winter.

I'm not sure if I'll use heavy clear plastic so that light still can get in or if I'll cut some plywood and fix it to each area where the hardware cloth is at.

I'll leave the 8' run that I built uncovered (except for possibly adding a plywood roof with a foot (or so) overhang to try to keep some of the snow out.
 
I have one hen and this would only be just adequate for her. My 3 pullets would be fine in it, frustrated, but fine. (I say this because they're stuck in a dog crate for now.) Full sized chickens? That's going to be a nightmare. Your modifications are great, no doubt. However, with all of the modifying and money you're going to be putting into it, you can list on CL, check your local groups, and see if you can get a carpenter to make you a larger, better coop to meet your needs. Good luck!
 
Chick farm said:
Would you find the "frozen, frosted mess" because of the moisture four birds would create in a small space? Just curious. We are building a coop that is 4' x 8', and 4-51/2' tall. With only six birds, we should have plenty of space, more than the recommended 4 sq ft each. But we are still in the learning stages and want to know all we can.

However, I LOVE the sliding doors! So cute! We would need a latch of some sort, for ours, but what a cute idea.
Click to expand...
Yes, exactly, chickens have a very high respiration rate. In a small space, like that coop, with poor ventilation, their breath would, on a cold night, freeze on all surfaces in the coop. And that would include the chickens. They would get frostbite, and eventually they would get sick with respiratory problems. It is not a good idea generally, to pack the chickens in some kind of sardine can with the vents shut, to "Keep them warm" in the winter. They need room, and proper ventilation is very important in the winter months. And we haven't even begun to talk about four birds shut in the coop that size, for days or even weeks at a time when bad weather and snow is covering the ground. In a small space like that, they would tear each other up.
Jack
 
JackE said:
Yes, exactly, chickens have a very high respiration rate. In a small space, like that coop, with poor ventilation, their breath would, on a cold night, freeze on all surfaces in the coop. And that would include the chickens. They would get frostbite, and eventually they would get sick with respiratory problems. It is not a good idea generally, to pack the chickens in some kind of sardine can with the vents shut, to "Keep them warm" in the winter. They need room, and proper ventilation is very important in the winter months. And we haven't even begun to talk about four birds shut in the coop that size, for days or even weeks at a time when bad weather and snow is covering the ground. In a small space like that, they would tear each other up.
Jack
Click to expand...
Thank you for the info, but it's the best I can do.

I've purchased the coop and it's the largest pre-fab one that I can afford, and that we have room for. I'm not a carpenter so it's out of the question for me to build one. We live on a 1/2 acre lot in a subdivision, so I'm trying to fly under the radar and be able to have these 4 chickens (3 will be full size, one will be 1/2 size - ISA Brown & Bantam).

I will create ventilation in the coop, and I'm sure there will also be cracks that allow air in/out. In the past 5 to 10 yrs weather isn't really an issue during the winter. I plan to let them out of the coop and into the pre-fab part of the run each day so they would only be in there at night (regardless of the weather). If I cover the sides with heavy clear plastic that should keep out 99% of the snow (except around any little cracks) and allow air to get in and out. The hens I got are said to be very hardy for living in the winter with absolutely no heat. I will decide this fall/winter if I somehow want to add a small heat source (i.e. maybe a 25 watt light bulb) in the coop or run.

It's still a TBD as to if they will be able to go out in the 8' additional run that I built. Guess it just depends on the weather/snowfall and how big the hens really get.

I do appreciate your input. Any other suggestions with what I have would be appreciated - but this is the coop and these are the 4 hens. :)
 
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