Advice for first timer

[cmath]

Honestly, I'm feeling a little overwhelmed with this whole process. We have city ordinances that obviously need to be followed, and as I live in Wisconsin, I know I'll have to insulate the coop, but otherwise, I'm really open to any suggestions anyone may have.

Background:
Live in southern WI (gets cold, snow levels vary) on 1/4 acre
Have 2 kiddos: 4, 2
City ordinances:
- coop no more than 24 sq ft
- run no more than 40 sq ft or 1% of sq ft of rear yard (based off our estimate that would be about 52 sq ft)
- max of 4 hens

Husband would like to build his own but has minimal building experience, so looking for something beginner friendly.

We don't plan on getting chicks until next spring, but were looking at Buff Orpingtons or Black Australops (again, open to suggestions). They would be allowed to free range some of the time, but we have a very friendly pit mix and want to have an enclosed run for safety. Our backyard is overall fenced in with an 8' fence.

I was looking at plans for The Garden Coop, but there are so many other plans out there! My husband had purchased a plan from easycoops.com (screenshot attached) but it had poor reviews and directions appeared a bit confusing.

So, essentially, I'm looking for anything must haves, tips/tricks, or ideas for plans that would meet the requirements above. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

 

[DobieLover]

I would avoid any pre-fab. They are not worth the money.

What is your ordinance limit on shed size? Do you have to submit to an inspection? I would purchase a small shed, maybe 8x8 or 8x10, then build solid walls to form the coop in one corner of the shed. The rest of the shed would be for storage of your lawn equipment with an area for chicken supply storage. That part could not be considered a coop as it is not housing the chickens.

I would then install large, high windows on the exterior walls of the coop section and back them with 1/2" hardware cloth. I just got old windows that were going to be tossed and repurposed them. You can frame out the openings 1/4" wider than your window all the way around and install 2 hinges on the top and hang them in the opening. Install a hook screw centered the bottom of the windows and install another hook screw on a rafter tail above the windows and use a chains to suspend it open.

If you have enough ventilation, you shouldn't need insulation. You may want to install radiant panels at roost height for when it gets very cold during the winter but they generally do well in a very well ventilated and dry coop.

I would also have a solid roof over the walk-in run so the food and water can be kept outside. I would install the maximum run size you can.

 

[BlueDawnRising]

I am new to this too so I don’t have much to offer. There are amazing people here that will help you though!

We purchased 6 Buff Orpingtons in December and they started laying almost 3 weeks ago now. They are sweet birds and pretty easy going compared to some of the other breeds I have.

I am a kindergarten teacher turned instructional coach, single mom of two college age kiddos. I tell you that because we tackled construction without experience too. We had to redo some things but eventually figured out something that works. When something didn’t go perfectly, I reminded myself that I was building this for chickens and they didn’t care if it was perfect, just safe and livable. I have all the faith in the world that if we can do it, anyone can!

Being new to this, I don’t have a lot of historical background to go from but I am so glad we covered our run with a solid roof. The rain we have gotten here (southeast central Illinois) has been enough for me to know that I don’t like doing chicken chores in the mud and although the walls of my run are hardware cloth and the rain blows in, it is much better than having an open top. The majority of the run stays dry.

Also…poop boards are high on my list of things I’m glad I did. Mine have a thin layer of PDZ that I rake clean daily and throw out. It is simple and takes minutes but my coop is so much cleaner than it was when I didn’t have poop boards. I have 19 girls though so I’m not sure if that is something you would need with a smaller amount. There will be others that come along with better, more experienced and educated advice than mine!

Welcome to this community. You will learn a lot here!

 

[cmath]

I would avoid any pre-fab. They are not worth the money.

What is your ordinance limit on shed size? Do you have to submit to an inspection? I would purchase a small shed, maybe 8x8 or 8x10, then build solid walls to form the coop in one corner of the shed. The rest of the shed would be for storage of your lawn equipment with an area for chicken supply storage. That part could not be considered a coop as it is not housing the chickens.

I would then install large, high windows on the exterior walls of the coop section and back them with 1/2" hardware cloth. I just got old windows that were going to be tossed and repurposed them. You can frame out the openings 1/4" wider than your window all the way around and install 2 hinges on the top and hang them in the opening. Install a hook screw centered the bottom of the windows and install another hook screw on a rafter tail above the windows and use a chains to suspend it open.

If you have enough ventilation, you shouldn't need insulation. You may want to install radiant panels at roost height for when it gets very cold during the winter but they generally do well in a very well ventilated and dry coop.

I would also have a solid roof over the walk-in run so the food and water can be kept outside. I would install the maximum run size you can.

We need a permit for any type of shed and are subject to inspection. It seems like they're rather strict about things, so we were planning on just building something basic from scratch.

 

[DobieLover]

We need a permit for any type of shed and are subject to inspection. It seems like they're rather strict about things, so we were planning on just building something basic from scratch.

I would ask about the above option. It is basically having 2 separate structures sharing a common wall. Usually, shed permit requirements are size dependent. Here, anything less than 128 sq feet does not require a permit.