- Mar 20, 2009
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I keep 4 hens in a partitioned section of a small 12x8 shed. Depending on the type of chickens you keep, each will need about 1-1/12 to 2 1/2 square feet minimum of floor space. The more you can give them the better. Mine have about 5 square feet each. It has worked out well and I like being able to walk into the "coop" because it makes collecting eggs and cleaning easier.
The shed is similar to those prefab mini barn storage sheds you can buy anywhere. I don't have pics but will try to explain what we did to adapt it. it was adapted with scrap materials we had laying around.
Our shed has both a front and back door. We partitioned across the back about 5 feet or so into the shed and installed a small recycled window for light and ventilation in the "coop" area. Then we further partitioned that section perpendicular to the first section to create an area of about 5x4. We made an interior door out of scrap 1x2 wood and chicken wire and enclosed the rest of this section with more chicken wire.
The coop area is a little wider than the largest disposable plastic cement mixing pan we could find at a large home improvement store. I think it is about 3/12 x 2 1/2 ft and about 10 inches high and cost less than $15. From this we created a dropping pit covered with 1x1 wire in a frame that's removable, as is the pan. The roosting and feeding areas are over this pit.
There is additional floor space to the front of the pit that we keep filled with straw so the hens have some scratch area. The nest boxes are about 2 feet up the partition at the back of this coop and project into the larger front shed section. If I were to redo this I would make the top of the nest boxes hinged for access to egg collection and cleaning from the other section of our storage shed.
A drop pit has advantages both for cleaning and warmth in winter if you live in a colder area. Fill the pit with about 6 inches of loose straw and place the fitted wired frame over it. You can let the droppings build up in the pit toward the end of summer and just fill the pit with more straw as needed. I usually add the old floor straw to the pit weekly and replace that with fresh straw for scratching.
Most of the droppings will end up over the roost area. Remove any large wet spots in the pan if it starts getting stinky but let the rest start to compost in that pan. It will give off some heat to keep the hens more comfortable in cold weather.
Good luck and happy clucking
The shed is similar to those prefab mini barn storage sheds you can buy anywhere. I don't have pics but will try to explain what we did to adapt it. it was adapted with scrap materials we had laying around.
Our shed has both a front and back door. We partitioned across the back about 5 feet or so into the shed and installed a small recycled window for light and ventilation in the "coop" area. Then we further partitioned that section perpendicular to the first section to create an area of about 5x4. We made an interior door out of scrap 1x2 wood and chicken wire and enclosed the rest of this section with more chicken wire.
The coop area is a little wider than the largest disposable plastic cement mixing pan we could find at a large home improvement store. I think it is about 3/12 x 2 1/2 ft and about 10 inches high and cost less than $15. From this we created a dropping pit covered with 1x1 wire in a frame that's removable, as is the pan. The roosting and feeding areas are over this pit.
There is additional floor space to the front of the pit that we keep filled with straw so the hens have some scratch area. The nest boxes are about 2 feet up the partition at the back of this coop and project into the larger front shed section. If I were to redo this I would make the top of the nest boxes hinged for access to egg collection and cleaning from the other section of our storage shed.
A drop pit has advantages both for cleaning and warmth in winter if you live in a colder area. Fill the pit with about 6 inches of loose straw and place the fitted wired frame over it. You can let the droppings build up in the pit toward the end of summer and just fill the pit with more straw as needed. I usually add the old floor straw to the pit weekly and replace that with fresh straw for scratching.
Most of the droppings will end up over the roost area. Remove any large wet spots in the pan if it starts getting stinky but let the rest start to compost in that pan. It will give off some heat to keep the hens more comfortable in cold weather.
Good luck and happy clucking
