2 Chicken Coops in 1 Weekend

[marktoo]

Always interested in new coop builds! That said, why 15 sq ft? That would give minimum spacing for 3.75 standard birds in each. Why is the cost being given in CAD but measurements in Feet instead of cm? I'm cornfused!

Anxiously, awaiting start of such an ambitious project. Best of luck!

 

[CalgaryFarmer]

I cannot recall what grade I was in when I went through metric conversion. We are not fully converted. Grocery stores provide the price of produce and meat in both pounds and kilograms. We still think of houses in square feet. That is the default on the MLS. A sheet of plywood is 4 feet by 8 feet. A 2x4, is, well it actually isn't 2 inches by 4 inches, but it is close.

Now you got me scared by calling it ambitious!

 

[CalgaryFarmer]

I did not answer your question regarding 3.75 square feet.

I could make it 16 square feet in total. The reason for the lower number is there is going to be some roof overhang. If I remove the roof overhang, it will be 16 square feet. But the coop will not last as long.

If I make it 16 square feet with some roof overhang then the design will be more complex. The intent of the coop is to be fairly easy to build. That is one of the tradeoffs. That said, I will provide some guidance on the larger size with no roof overhang. Remind me if I forget.

 

[marktoo]

Gotta couple of cousins in Ottawa. They're always giving temps in C which I have to convert, when I give temps in F they don't care, since they switch back & forth between the two rather easily.

Despite all the talk about considering plywood size when building a coop to prevent waste & make fewer cuts, there's always something that doesn't work out evenly. There's always another project that the scrap can be used on though.

I need to be thinking about building another coop before spring, it will be 4' x 4', shed roof. I try not to put much money in this stuff cause they're stealth chickens but I gotta bring a couple of chicks up to POL if I want eggs next year so I need a bit more room. Right now I have 4 wyandottes in a 10 sq ft coop, lots of run & roost space so it works out Ok.

Nice Job on the first coop by the way. My girls are slumming it by comparison!

 

[CalgaryFarmer]

Calgary, Sept. 6 9:20 am.


I will try to post plans today.

 

[Chipper Chicken]

You all having white stuff (snow) already? Nice job on your existing coop, great ventilation. Will watch for your plans.

 

[CalgaryFarmer]

Here is the site preparation.



6 support legs. Each will 2 cinder blocks on top of a patio stone, as shown in the far one. The patio stones are 8x8. The cinder blocks are 8x8x8.




For each one, I dug about 8 to 12 inches down and filled with gravel.

Length - 7 feet from outer edge to outer edge of the cinder blocks (middle support half way.)
Width - 42 inches from outer edge to outer of the cinder blocks

It is a fair bit of work to level everything.

 

[CalgaryFarmer]

Here is the general design, not showing the roof.



The red numbers are the plywood panels. Panels 1, 2 and 3 are 4 feet wide by 2 feet tall at the sides and 4 feet tall in the middle. Panels 4 and 5 are 2 feet tall by 7 1/2 feet long. Panel 6, the bottom, is 4 feet wide and 7 1/2 feet long.

The black letters are the "features".

Features A and B are the doors to each of the coops.

Features C, D and E are cross members. The actual cross members are not shown, just the holes they run through are shown. They will be nailed to panels 1 and 3, running through panel 2.

C will be a 2x3 (wrong size listed earlier) running the length, going through the hole shown at C. It is a step to the roosting bar.

D is a roosting bar, going through the hole shown at D. It will be a 2x4.

E will be a 2x4 from which food and water can be hung.

Feature F are the holes for ventilation.

Feature G is door between the two coops, which can be closed.

 

[MeepBeep]

Here is the general design, not showing the roof.

Is the roof going to be hinged or removable? If not how do you plan to get inside and clean, my back hurts already if you plan to lean and clean it through those 16x24 or so end openings...

 

[CalgaryFarmer]

The roof will consist of 2 panels. 1 will be fixed and the other will be hinged, for access for cleaning, changing food and collecting eggs.