Average (yeah…I know!) cost of coop and run?

[calboy147]

You could check with a shed builder to order a pre-built. Should be a few thousand less.

Or have your builder build the frame but leave off any wire, then add the hardware cloth yourselves. Shop around for the best price of big rolls of it (we were getting 100' x 4' of 19-guage 1/2" for $130 last year) Buy a bunch of screws and washers, good shears to cut the wire, an impact drill, and go to town!

E. TN has all the predators. Chicken wire might not let you sleep well at night.

Edited to add: echoing what others said to get more quotes. Always a good idea to get 3 quotes! Things are expensive, but that's an awfully high price.

And you're right that it'll take forever to make the math work You're not just housing them; you're feeding them, taking them to the occasional vet visit, upgrading fencing and predator proofing...but the real rewards aren't financial. Same with pretty much everything to do with homesteading. The costs of establishing a homestead are stunning and were even pre-pandemic.

It was a good move to start with 7! Seems like a lot of first-timers dive in with 25+ chicks before realizing how big they get and how much room chickens truly need to stay healthy. Healthy chickens = happy you.

My sister needed a new coop, got tired of waiting for hubby, and ordered a really nice shed with windows and a front porch. 8'x12' i think $79 a month for four years. She said it was a couple hundred down and would not give hubby a heart attach. And she ha enough left over from her monthly retirement check to build a good 12 x 24 run.

 

[Flockincrazy]

That is crazy expensive I also only paid for my hardware cloth the rest I built from free pallets

 

[3KillerBs]

Hardware cloth is monster to deal with,

Not if you have the right tools.

First, electric metal shears -- this kind, not the more egonomic-looking one that takes a kerf because that would salt your chicken area with tiny bits of metal: https://www.harborfreight.com/power...hears/18-gauge-35-amp-metal-shears-61737.html

Second, depending on your preference, either a fence stapler:

(I admit that this is too big and heavy for me and my arthritic wrists, but my sister, who is my size but has larger hands and better joints used it).

Or one of these wonderful, 20v Dewalt cordless impact drivers so you can use screws and fender washers (a drill works for regular screws into wood, but if you want to use self-tapping metal screws and metal roofing you need the impact driver to be effective): https://www.amazon.com/DEWALT-DCF88...d=1645708137&sprefix=dewa,aps,688&sr=8-3&th=1 (I'm recommending the kit with the bits because you have to have the ones made for an impact driver, not the regular ones).

 

[3KillerBs]

P.S. If you compare the cost of buying the tools to the cost of hiring the handyman it's not at all unreasonable.

 

[Silexian]

Temporary housing or not. I would not use chicken wire on any part of a coop. The cost savings, which really isn’t that much. If just comparing material cost. The labor should be about dead even. I am not sure what formula your handyman uses to calculate his prices. To come up with the price difference he did. Is not worth putting your flock at a greater risk of becoming a meal for a predator. As others have stated, a raccoon or a stray dog will rip right through chicken wire. Like a tornado through a trailer park. Also leaving a trail of death and destruction as they go.

 

[perkolator]

How old is your son? I'd consider buying the homestead a bunch of tools and let them have at it DIY style

 

[MagistraTn]

Thank you everyone, i had misunderstood the quote and it was only $300 extra for hardware cloth. ($1900 for mobile chicken wire, $2100 for fixed hw) We just have so many things happening right now, and not a lot of space for tools and such…plus, I am happy to support God fearing, hard workers today. He is also building us some raised beds around our patio.

 

[Arelwood]

I am just getting into the chicken game myself. I bought a coop from TSC as well, $599 + 75 shipping. Only to discover it was way too small for my planned flock of 6 silkies and polish! So I am extending it. I CANNOT believe how expensive lumber is right now (early 2022)! I keep a running total of chicken-associated costs, and I am almost up to 3k! I also want to build a tractor sans coop portion, because there are hawks in my area. Guessing that will run me $200+.

Getting into chickens has been terrible for my wallet.

Not sure which TSC coop you got, but mine needed a bunch of work straight out of the box.
-It was unfinished, so it needed paint.
-Raccoons in my area, so the dinky slide bolts had to be replace with something trickier
-The poop drawer and nesting box floor could both be easily pushed aside by anything that got into the run
-The roosts were laughably short and small. Basically sitting on the floor. So had to install higher/longer ones.
-Needs some sort of predator apron. (Hardware cloth is $$$)
-No place to hang a suspended waterer or feeder. The wood is too small to suffice. So added bracing.
-Needed more ventilation, so I added some holes + covered with hardware cloth
-Finally, the roof had a big gap all the way around. Easily big enough for snakes, rats, small birds to get through. Had to cover with more Hardware cloth. Have I mentioned that HWC is really expensive!!!

All this to say, I think building my own would have been a little cheaper. Maybe closer to $400 for the base coop. But the kit was easy to assemble, already planned out, and didn't involve construction math (is it measure twice, cut 4x?). With the aggravation of constructing the extension to the coop, I wish I would have found a bigger pre-fab and would pay $1500 for the convenience, if it had everything I needed.

 

[MagistraTn]

I am just getting into the chicken game myself. I bought a coop from TSC as well, $599 + 75 shipping. Only to discover it was way too small for my planned flock of 6 silkies and polish! So I am extending it. I CANNOT believe how expensive lumber is right now (early 2022)! I keep a running total of chicken-associated costs, and I am almost up to 3k! I also want to build a tractor sans coop portion, because there are hawks in my area. Guessing that will run me $200+.

Getting into chickens has been terrible for my wallet.

Not sure which TSC coop you got, but mine needed a bunch of work straight out of the box.
-It was unfinished, so it needed paint.
-Raccoons in my area, so the dinky slide bolts had to be replace with something trickier
-The poop drawer and nesting box floor could both be easily pushed aside by anything that got into the run
-The roosts were laughably short and small. Basically sitting on the floor. So had to install higher/longer ones.
-Needs some sort of predator apron. (Hardware cloth is $$$)
-No place to hang a suspended waterer or feeder. The wood is too small to suffice. So added bracing.
-Needed more ventilation, so I added some holes + covered with hardware cloth
-Finally, the roof had a big gap all the way around. Easily big enough for snakes, rats, small birds to get through. Had to cover with more Hardware cloth. Have I mentioned that HWC is really expensive!!!

All this to say, I think building my own would have been a little cheaper. Maybe closer to $400 for the base coop. But the kit was easy to assemble, already planned out, and didn't involve construction math (is it measure twice, cut 4x?). With the aggravation of constructing the extension to the coop, I wish I would have found a bigger pre-fab and would pay $1500 for the convenience, if it had everything I needed.

I think we got the same coop! My 12 yo son loves assembling stuff and it was like an extra big end homeschooling with a bang project. I wish I’d just bought the Amish or Carolina coop for $5k!

I just posted a new thread about modifying, if you want to take a look https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/help-me-modify-my-prefab-coop.1513304/

 

[MagistraTn]

I am just getting into the chicken game myself. I bought a coop from TSC as well, $599 + 75 shipping. Only to discover it was way too small for my planned flock of 6 silkies and polish! So I am extending it. I CANNOT believe how expensive lumber is right now (early 2022)! I keep a running total of chicken-associated costs, and I am almost up to 3k! I also want to build a tractor sans coop portion, because there are hawks in my area. Guessing that will run me $200+.

Getting into chickens has been terrible for my wallet.

Not sure which TSC coop you got, but mine needed a bunch of work straight out of the box.
-It was unfinished, so it needed paint.
-Raccoons in my area, so the dinky slide bolts had to be replace with something trickier
-The poop drawer and nesting box floor could both be easily pushed aside by anything that got into the run
-The roosts were laughably short and small. Basically sitting on the floor. So had to install higher/longer ones.
-Needs some sort of predator apron. (Hardware cloth is $$$)
-No place to hang a suspended waterer or feeder. The wood is too small to suffice. So added bracing.
-Needed more ventilation, so I added some holes + covered with hardware cloth
-Finally, the roof had a big gap all the way around. Easily big enough for snakes, rats, small birds to get through. Had to cover with more Hardware cloth. Have I mentioned that HWC is really expensive!!!

All this to say, I think building my own would have been a little cheaper. Maybe closer to $400 for the base coop. But the kit was easy to assemble, already planned out, and didn't involve construction math (is it measure twice, cut 4x?). With the aggravation of constructing the extension to the coop, I wish I would have found a bigger pre-fab and would pay $1500 for the convenience, if it had everything I needed.

By the way, I’d love to see pics of what you added!