Buckling down and backwards building ccop

[TimonHens]

Of course I have chicks already and no place built to put them! Like you (shouldn't) do. But I am sure I will prevail with neurodiversity and a due date! Like you do.
So ignoring the pile of irregular pallets out back...

Going to aim for 8x12 feet with the shorter side facing south in 5b.
I anticipate 20 birds or less, depending on how many roos I end up with.

Ordinance says I have a right to farm and no permits are needed to erect unwired structures under 100sqft like play houses and sheds. Fencing must be 6ft or lower.
I have a murder dog who would like very much to hold the babies in her mouth and thrash them.soundly. She's not allowed to roam but her current fenced in area includes where the coop will sit, convenient to the back door and shaded by a venerable crabapple to the west. There is plenty of yard for the birds to free range but they'd have to share with foxes.

So part of playing silly fence games is figuring out how to elevate the floor sufficient to use the underside of the coop as an sheltered enclosed run during foul weather days for whichever birds are up for it. But also having enough space in the interior for necessaries plus ventilation headroom.

I am thinking concrete deck blocks with a 5 inch rise and 19 inches of 4x4 (5 per post) for about 24 inches clearance. And mulch.
3 4x8 osb should give me the floor coverage I want...but

I have no idea how to connect the layers I see in my head on paper or with tools.

So right now I'm talking out loud, since I have an entire month to figure it out...

 

[saysfaa]

A few observations.

24" of clearance is a little less than most adults need to crawl on hands and knees. So getting something out (an egg or chicken maybe) will mean army crawling through poop to get to it.

It is a little less than chickens like, also. They can theoretically fit but don't much - at least mine don't and they don't have much other space (8x10 for 5; about half is 24-36" high due to three tables (the poop board, the table the nests are on, and one more table.

Hm, how do you plan to clean under there? And keep snow out?

May I propose an alternative? I live in a similar zone, made a variation, and adore how well it works. https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/woods-style-house-in-the-winter.445004/#post-5566206

Basically, the open front allows the "sheltered enclosed run" inside the coop and the wind can't come in enough to push rain or drop snow inside because the three solid sides give it no where to go. At the same time, it has enough air circulation from the amount of open square feet and convection to easily carry the moisture and ammonia away.

 

[TimonHens]

from the kitchen sink it almost seems respectable.
Still needs plenty of interior work and a good portion of exterior.
Locked them in last night. They did not approve. Found the semi transparent roofing confusing. Most did not roost.
Still dubious this morning but bopping around. Leaving them in to be bored for a bit.
Not necessarily because the doors are screwed shut....

Dog went into power bark mode at half 5 and chased something off.

 

[saysfaa]

To gain the support of my husband, I had to build it so it did not look like a chicken coop. He thinks that would lower the property value when we sell. I don't agree with that but decided I could essentially build woods' coop (like that link) inside a shed if my variation didn't work. I had Prince T Woods' book to help, he explained the concept and had a few designs in it using the open air principal. Thankfully my version worked.

This is my build thread https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...chickens-so-feedback-is-very-welcome.1448462/

I have a few other build threads saved that have better blue prints of the half monitor style if you would like them.

 

[3KillerBs]

Welcome to BYC. If you put your general location into your profile people will be able to give you better-targeted advice when you ask questions.

Here's some general information for you:

The Usual Guidelines

For each adult, standard-sized hen you need:

• 4 square feet in the coop (.37 square meters)
• 10 square feet in the run (.93 square meters),
• 1 linear foot of roost (.3 meters),
• 1/4 of a nest box,
• And 1 square foot (.09 square meters) of permanent, 24/7/365 ventilation, preferably located over the birds' heads when they're sitting on the roost.

20 hens

• 80 square feet in the coop. 8'x10' is the most practical because 7'x12' or 6'x14' require a lot of weird cuts.
• 20 feet of roost
• 200 square feet in the run. 10'x20', 12'x16' or 8'x25' as suits the land available.
• 20 square feet of ventilation.
• 5 nest boxes.

 

[Ridgerunner]

no permits are needed to erect unwired structures under 100sqft like play houses and sheds. Fencing must be 6ft or lower.

If you cover the run 6' is really low. You'll likely have to bend to work in there, especially if it sags or you have a supporting structure. If you cover it would that create a wired structure?

I have a murder dog who would like very much to hold the babies in her mouth and thrash them.soundly. She's not allowed to roam but her current fenced in area includes where the coop will sit, convenient to the back door and shaded by a venerable crabapple to the west.

You'll need a good fence between the dog and the chickens. A big dog can tear hardware cloth. I'd suggest you use something like 2x4 welded wire to keep your dog out. But also you need a small enough mesh to keep the chickens from going through. Make sure the dog or the chickens cannot go under the fence, even if they dig.

There is plenty of yard for the birds to free range but they'd have to share with foxes.

Not sure where to go with this as I don't really understand what you are talking about.

So part of playing silly fence games is figuring out how to elevate the floor sufficient to use the underside of the coop as an sheltered enclosed run during foul weather days for whichever birds are up for it. But also having enough space in the interior for necessaries plus ventilation headroom.

I personally would not elevate the floor unless the slope was really steep. You need to be able to access everywhere the chickens can go. With an 8 x 12 building that would mean crawling in chicken poop. You might be able to pour a concrete footing with a little excavation or build a level foundation with cinder blocks. A lot depends on how steep that slope is. The problem with posts is getting them square, plumb, and level. Level is probably the hardest. If you try trimming the top of a post it can be challenging to get it square. The way I'd do it would be to use a treated 4x6 or 6x6 and get it as close as I could, then run a 2x10 or 2x12 at the top of the posts on edge, attaching them to the side of the posts. It's pretty easy to level that way.

If you feel you must have the space under the building for the chickens I'd use posts and elevate it more than 24". You will probably still be crawling under there but 24" is really low.

So right now I'm talking out loud, since I have an entire month to figure it out...

Building an 8x12 building isn't something you can do overnight unless you have help, especially if you need a special foundation. Life has a way of getting in the way of schedules. I know you are joking about it but you are already late. I wish you luck.

 

[3KillerBs]

Ya, 3kb's art skills are unique, but get the point across very well, lol.

"Unique" is a good word for it.

 

[3KillerBs]

I really hope we get to meet up someday. I'm quick to mention your lack of art skills, but to be honest, I'm looking at them and thinking, there really can't be two of us so inept at art, can there?

People can laugh at Repecka all they want -- as long as they learn to give chickens proper ventilation.

 

[TimonHens]

Played with salvaged panels last night and poked at things.
Hate the door we found so much. 3rd times the charm and might just pass on the thrift and go straight to architecture store.

Going to skip monitor windows for now and just bolt in some hardware cloth remnants that have been picked up. Everyone was hot hanging around outside yesterday.

Wondering if found coated wire is still not robust enough for scratch shed front/sides For some reason nobody has the length/width gage I want for hardware cloth in stock.

Leaning towards giving up on trying to salvage cheap used roof panels and maybe just fling money at all new matched panels for sanity. The prospect of roofing is clearly unnerving us more than spending at this point.

 

[3KillerBs]

How much of an overhang did you go with? I have a 4x8 coop and the roof is 4x8 with 2' of overhang on each side and it looks a little funny with a bunch of material hanging off. contemplating cutting down the sides to make it less overhang

Don't take off any overhang until you've lived with it long enough and in enough different weathers to really know if you can live without it.

It's a great blessing to be able to walk along the side of your coop and gather eggs, etc. without having to stand in the rain.