Building a coop

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Don't be to intimidated to build it yourself. I had zero construction skills when I joined BYC. You can look at the coops section here on BYC to get lot's of great DIY Ideas. Just be creative and you do not have spend a ton of money. Or if you do, buy a small one to use the parts but make it bigger yourself. You can add to it easily and inexpensively by shopping the 75% off lumber section at home depot. Or use Pallet wood; look for things you can upcycle like dressers, armoir's, pretty much any wooden furniture, from places like habitat for humanity. There are many coops made from Pallets on here which is super economical. I built my first coop from an old wooden shipping container. Then I build my 2nd from an old wooden dog house. I shopped the 75% off wood section at home depot to expand it years later and then again recently. It's now huge, accomodates me and 11 Chickens with a brooder, roost area, nest boxes and storage. I've seen amazing creativity in the coops section. People build them out of everything imaginable. Hope you have fun! Good luck.
 
You can do this! I am also building a chicken coop for the first time, but just for three hens :) For 13 chickens you'll need the henhouse to be at least 52square feet (not including nest box) and you'd want 130 sf or more for their run. Hope that helps!
 
Here's some helpful general information:

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.
12 hens
  • 48 square feet in the coop. 6'x8' is more practical than 4'x12' since a long, skinny coop like that would be difficult to work inside.
  • 12 feet of roost
  • 120 square feet in the run. 10'x12' or 8'x15' -- 8'x16' means fewer odd cuts than either of those. 6'x20' is possible, especially if your run is an open-topped, fenced area instead of fully-enclosed with a solid and/or wire roof but risks social problems because subordinate hens need to be able to pass the dominant hens at a respectful distance.
  • 12 square feet of ventilation.
  • 3 nest boxes.
Have you considered a cattle panel hoop coop? They're one of the easiest builds for people with limited DIY skills.

Hoop Coops

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/hoop-tractor.69336/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/hoop-coop-brooder-with-roll-up-sides.75720/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/the-biddie-bordello-a-hoop-coop-run-combo.72189/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/permanent-hoop-coop-guide.47818/

Alternately, a shed conversion is relatively easy.

Shed Conversions

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/the-mulligan.74743/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/aarts-coop-page.65912/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/the-scoop-on-a-rubbermaid-big-max-coop.76444/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/toy-shed-conversion.64879/

And if you want to build it completely, here's some more inspiration for you:

Medium Coops

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/my-barn-red-and-white-coop-complete-build-photos.75458/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/my-coop.74322/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/egg-song-music-factory.74019/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/perkolators-modern-chicken-estate-2019.75345/
 

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