Arizona Chickens

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I needed a hook and found this guy at Hobby Lobby last week. He looked like he needed a home. :D
IMG_20211113_093849.jpg
 
BlueBaby said:
Well, at least you don't have to worry about that boy trying to compete with Ben for the girl's.
Click to expand...
Yeah, he had a jealous moment when that little plastic rooster crowed in his territory, and he's finally defeated Mari for rulership of the coop. He could use a break from potential rivals. :D
 
EmmaDonovan said:
We are ready to buy one of these to start our coop but before we do I'm looking for some feedback from my fellow Arizonans:

81GQo63pyAL._AC_SL1200_.jpg


We decided on this because it's metal and lumber is prohibitively expensive around here. Also, we can disassemble it and take it with us when we move. Metal will also last longer than wood in our desert environment.

As you can see this design needs some alterations to become predator proof. The entire thing will be completely enclosed in 1/4" hardware cloth, including the floor as we have a huge ground squirrel population. We're also adding our own door.

The coop is 6'3" (important to me; I'm 6'1") in the walk-in area. With the extension it'll be a total of 172 sq. ft. for 10-12 chickens. The door faces south, nest boxes are on the north side.

Here are some examples of how we plan to modify it. Please excuse my lousy Sketchup skills; Sketchup and I are mortal enemies.

View attachment 2896946

View attachment 2896947

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Here are more detailed illustrations of the hen house. I'm posting this here instead of in the coop design section because I think it's difficult to understand our crazy climate and needs if you don't live here. I don't mean to insult anyone by that. It's just tough to grasp the combination of 20F - 115F temperature swings, sideways monsoon rains when it's 100F, microbursts, snow, 1% humidity, etc. unless you've lived through it all.

The proportions of the hen house are somewhat constrained by the geometry of the run. It's 6' wide by 4' high and 4' deep. The legs are 1'6". We tried positioning it outside the coop but decided we wanted the weather protection and security of it being inside. Only the nest boxes are outside, for easy egg retrieval.

The silly white rectangles on the sides are my version of soffit vents, the green part in the inside is vinyl flooring for a deep litter system. The ramp is removable.

View attachment 2896967
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We tried to design a hen house that can be opened or closed up in increments, to match the weather and the hens' needs. The bottom door in the front only drops down for deep cleaning. The top/ceiling of the hen house can be removed entirely.

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You probably already know most of what I will comment. I think it's good to have a reminder of what we all experience.

We have a lot more ventilation even in the enclosed roosting boxes that are inside our covered runs and inside our pole barn. Like on 2 opposite sides there are open areas with hardware cloth or chicken wire (depending on perceived predator risk) for cross ventilation - kept open continually even in winter. Vents are above chicken head height when they roost.

I agree also with the wind comments - it's necessary to tie it all into the ground somehow on such a lightweight structure (even the roost boxes made of wood). I've made do with straps and concrete blocks on a temporary chicken tractor setup for my current grow pen, but I wouldn't want to rely on that if winter/monsoon storms are on the way.

Tarps may be trashed in the first big storm or microburst especially if they are not UV resistant material. If tarps stay mostly intact they act as a big sail to help the wind uplift a structure. Actually any roof may do that especially on an open air structure supporting the roof. One of my chicken tractors moved during a storm and trapped my favorite hens leg for hours before I went out to check everything (she survived and healed, miraculously).
 
EmmaDonovan said:
We are ready to buy one of these to start our coop but before we do I'm looking for some feedback from my fellow Arizonans:

81GQo63pyAL._AC_SL1200_.jpg


We decided on this because it's metal and lumber is prohibitively expensive around here. Also, we can disassemble it and take it with us when we move. Metal will also last longer than wood in our desert environment.

As you can see this design needs some alterations to become predator proof. The entire thing will be completely enclosed in 1/4" hardware cloth, including the floor as we have a huge ground squirrel population. We're also adding our own door.

The coop is 6'3" (important to me; I'm 6'1") in the walk-in area. With the extension it'll be a total of 172 sq. ft. for 10-12 chickens. The door faces south, nest boxes are on the north side.

Here are some examples of how we plan to modify it. Please excuse my lousy Sketchup skills; Sketchup and I are mortal enemies.

View attachment 2896946

View attachment 2896947

View attachment 2896951
View attachment 2896953

Here are more detailed illustrations of the hen house. I'm posting this here instead of in the coop design section because I think it's difficult to understand our crazy climate and needs if you don't live here. I don't mean to insult anyone by that. It's just tough to grasp the combination of 20F - 115F temperature swings, sideways monsoon rains when it's 100F, microbursts, snow, 1% humidity, etc. unless you've lived through it all.

The proportions of the hen house are somewhat constrained by the geometry of the run. It's 6' wide by 4' high and 4' deep. The legs are 1'6". We tried positioning it outside the coop but decided we wanted the weather protection and security of it being inside. Only the nest boxes are outside, for easy egg retrieval.

The silly white rectangles on the sides are my version of soffit vents, the green part in the inside is vinyl flooring for a deep litter system. The ramp is removable.

View attachment 2896967
View attachment 2896968

View attachment 2896969

View attachment 2896972
We tried to design a hen house that can be opened or closed up in increments, to match the weather and the hens' needs. The bottom door in the front only drops down for deep cleaning. The top/ceiling of the hen house can be removed entirely.

View attachment 2896971

View attachment 2896973
View attachment 2896974
Click to expand...
In addition to the many useful comments so far, here's my two cents:

I'd opt for the peaked roof version of this type of run because the flat top will hold rain and snow, which could cause it to cave in if the tarp doesn't give way first:

https://www.wayfair.com/pet/pdp/tuc...ith-wire-mesh-w004206153.html?piid=1308254432

I'd also opt for more ventilation (or for some ventilation) if I used the wood/enclosed coop within the run.

If you used the link that @wolfwalker provided, those fittings are exponentially stronger than any I've seen elsewhere, I'd bet the tarps are also superior. If you priced out something from that link, I'd bet you wouldn't need the extra enclosed wood structure--the tarps could be positioned to provide plenty of shelter from the wind and rain. You might need a tarp down 2 sides to accomplish this. I think @Parront has a great example of this.

Or, why not the cattle panel hoop coop/run? That could also provide complete security and shelter in a single structure.

For anchoring, I've had good luck with the trampoline stakes. My current coop/run uses about 10 stakes, but mine have pointed tips unlike the following link, to help pound them into the hard ground:

https://www.walmart.com/ip/4-Piece-...1205&wl14=trampoline stakes&veh=sem&gclsrc=ds
 

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