Building Coops to sell?

[TayInTX]

I’m just outside of Houston and well built coops cannot be purchased. You either get whatever TSC or Amazon will sell you or you build your own. A contractor to build one who knows what they are doing is rare and would be around $2K.

If you have the ability to build something that lasts and have a large trailer you could use to deliver it, there is definitely a market.

I’m currently trying to talk my hubby into designing a coop that would be under $300 to build, could be sold for $450-$500, could be transported, is shorter than a suburban fence height and fits 6 full size chickens. It’s so hot in Texas that multiple walls need to be hardware cloth for ventilation, which drops the cost and weight.

I’ll attach pics of a pretty functional coop that is in one of the homestead books. Did not look like a difficult build.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Maybe.
Cute, yes, but tiny dollhouse coops are not good for chickens.

Building bigger ones takes the ability to move them or building them onsite.

There's no accounting for what some people sell/buy.

I have one similar in size from another maker, that works WAY better than my prefab one and surprisingly well at that. That guy is way out of my area and will deliver for a fee. Last time I looked that was unfinished price. It was just meant as an example of what I was seeing. I have no affiliation.

guessing that if he has gone up in price $100, then he must have enough demand.

I've seen him advertising in not less than 4 CL regions, and those are the only ones I know about. Also here in California, minimum wage went to $12.50 an hour, home prices are rising. Plus price of pizza and everything else increased with it. Lumber isn't cheap, and neither is labor. But some people would be willing to pay for any simple, semi cute, but well thought out and made with better quality material type coop.

I mean I think it's good as a side gig. But I don't THINK it's a big $ maker... But give it what ya got!

 

[aart]

I’ll attach pics of a pretty functional coop that is in one of the homestead books. Did not look like a difficult build.

Tiny.
Tight head space and barely any floor up above.
Upper floor plan doesn't match iso drawing.
Sorry old design drafter here...I see things.

 

[paintedChix]

View attachment 1829784 View attachment 1829785 View attachment 1829786 I’m just outside of Houston and well built coops cannot be purchased. You either get whatever TSC or Amazon will sell you or you build your own. A contractor to build one who knows what they are doing is rare and would be around $2K.

If you have the ability to build something that lasts and have a large trailer you could use to deliver it, there is definitely a market.

I’m currently trying to talk my hubby into designing a coop that would be under $300 to build, could be sold for $450-$500, could be transported, is shorter than a suburban fence height and fits 6 full size chickens. It’s so hot in Texas that multiple walls need to be hardware cloth for ventilation, which drops the cost and weight.

I’ll attach pics of a pretty functional coop that is in one of the homestead books. Did not look like a difficult build.

You could build a type of hooped coop out of cattle panel that will fit in a trailer. Aart actually shows such a build. There are others that show different builds - you'd have to search them out here. I would think those would do well in your area w/ the heat & humidity...

Mine aren't nearly as detailed or fancy AND I also covered our first ones with chicken wire, not HC. Some of our new ones, I've used 2x4" wire and I may be regretting that, too. I think I may need to go to 1x1" or 1/2" HC... I use tarps for roofing (some have been inexpensive ones that don't always last long), but you can cover w/ a variety of materials and cover 1/2 instead of all to reduce weight. They really aren't hard to build w/o framing experience or the ability to draw/cut a straight line, I still managed to build two of the doors on the first 3. Edited to add - now that I have and am learning to use a Kregg Jig (think that's what it's called? i can't even remember), I could build a stronger door that will last longer. Also, I wouldn't build our doors w/ 2x2 lumber again - it would all be 2x4 at the least.

I know there is a local person who does build these around here - but currently can't find their ad. It would be much less expensive for me to build than to purchase BUT I also have, at times, used recycled & unconventional materials. Most of mine are currently NOT transportable - they can be taken apart and moved and resurrected. They were built to be permanent with t-posts used to hold the panels in place & pallets as the fronts and backs rather than framing them out. My doors are made from cattle panel as well... I am personally still working out details as we update some of our personal builds.

I am also building several different types of smaller tractors - the 8x8 hooped coop didn't work well for me as a tractor - way too heavy and didn't do well here on our sand and grass/weed tufts.

Here is one that is somewhat local to me - http://www.ncbackyardcoops.com/ I've learned the hard way that some of what they have wouldn't work for me on this property now. Many new chicky owners aren't going to really know or understand predator loads and how they affect their builds. We moved 20 miles and have property in the same county as we leased in previously. But the predators are completely different and so is the situation(s). It's been both eye opening and heart breaking!! And then with a bunch of construction going on, new predators were shifted around and we suddenly had an influx of them this winter again but not sure what exactly. I have a lot of hawks and free ranging appears to be completely out of the picture now... It isn't much fun or easy to build/plan for everything/every where the chickens will be allowed to be to have a cover of some type...

 

[paintedChix]

Here is a company that I think is based in TX. I've liked some of their coops, their builds are beautiful and I LOVE their fencing posts. https://fayetteville.craigslist.org/grq/d/cumberland-well-made-storm-proof/6920677931.html

But after building my hooped coops in several different sizes, I find that a 4x8 coop doesn't work with the number of chickens most say it does UNLESS you can do a lot of free ranging and they are truly only in the coop for laying and roosting. I certainly don't feel it would work in any kind of bad weather where they aren't able to get out of the coop... I did a LOT of combined cooping last fall during two hurricanes, so I know that it doesn't work well to have them all crammed together in an already stressful situation. Though they were safer than they would have been had we left them in the tractors and paddocks they were originally all in.

I have a 4x8' hooped coop (1 CP) and it currently houses 3 lavender Orpingtons. It was empty for a long time after I lost my quad of Bielefelders that were free ranging out of it... It's also had 2x4" wire applied to the open pallets and may have to have smaller HC attached as well. We'll see. For these birds, I honestly don't think more than a trio will work in this size coop. Our covered run isn't done yet, but right now the "Cluck" family seems to be quite content w/o free ranging & both Mrs & Ms Cluck are producing eggs daily... I'm hoping to incubate some eggs from them both soon.

I'm currently doing an A frame style tractor that is 8' long by 5' wide. Haven't measured how tall it is - using the CP and 2x4" wire to build it (aart could probably tell us w/o me measuring and I know that it is a simple algebraic math problem, but ... um no, I don't know). It will not hold 6-8 large fowl birds once they are mature - even moving it daily on good grass (& I'm planning on tractoring them in sand/bad grass so their scratching and manuring can help to improve the sand/soil makeup). I have 6 immature Rhodebars in one right now (5 pullets and 1 cockerel - maybe 3; possibly 4 months?) and 4 younger Rhodebar pullets that are about 2 months old now (not positive on their age as breeder kinda left me hanging on that one) and 3 Ameraucana pullets that were hatched Feb 20-22nd (4 months). I can take pics tomorrow...

I may try, again, to do limited free ranging in a fence, but don't see it working as we've had both our chickens go up/over a 4' fence and hawks drop down into a circular or square hot fence paddock, snap them up and take back to the air. Currently appear to have 4 mated pairs hanging out in our neighborhood and we've seen as many as 10 flying the currents above us... The crows aren't as plentiful this year either, so the hawk population is larger? I'm very, very tired of losing birds that way...

 

[sharondoright]

I agree on the quality, and over populating prefab coops. I firmly believe that one big reason I have had such good luck with my chickens is they have MORE than ample room. WAY OVERKILL too much room. I wouldn't want to build anything crappy, but materials aren't terribly priced, and we have a habitat for humanity shop in town that sells siding and trim for half of big box prices.

 

[sharondoright]

View attachment 1829784 View attachment 1829785 View attachment 1829786 I’m just outside of Houston and well built coops cannot be purchased. You either get whatever TSC or Amazon will sell you or you build your own. A contractor to build one who knows what they are doing is rare and would be around $2K.

If you have the ability to build something that lasts and have a large trailer you could use to deliver it, there is definitely a market.

I’m currently trying to talk my hubby into designing a coop that would be under $300 to build, could be sold for $450-$500, could be transported, is shorter than a suburban fence height and fits 6 full size chickens. It’s so hot in Texas that multiple walls need to be hardware cloth for ventilation, which drops the cost and weight.

I’ll attach pics of a pretty functional coop that is in one of the homestead books. Did not look like a difficult build.

We are in SW Idaho - so we definitely get winter for a good 4 months. my new walk in coop has 15x15 roof, built in a corner of a 5' privacy fence. I walled in one additional side completely, and did a 4x15 roost on that edge. The final side has half siding, half hardware cloth. I left upper space between fence and roof - just secured with HC. Also roost has upper section almost all HC windows with flap down panels for severe weather. Obviously, that design is way beyond a marketable idea - too big for most *city* folks, and took long time to complete. I love the little coops for a backyard urban situation, provided folks know it is for a couple of chickens only.

 

[Maugwa]

I have considered building coops to sell also. I agree that all those prefabs are too cheaply built and too small for the claimed number of birds they should hold, and that I couldn't compete in the small/cheap market. I still could in the quality dept. though. I think if I were to start selling coops, I'd begin by building myself a few that I could use even if I sell none, and keeping a journal of what each thing cost, all cuts made, and how much time was spent. Then photo that and put it on CL or something without the price. When people called, there is your opportunity to explain what prefabs are, why they are cheap, how many birds fit, why usually cheap turns out to be the most expensive when it gets thrown away, etc. And that they can buy the one in the photos in the ad, or I can make one to the size they need in a couple weeks for a different price, or asap. You should be able to calculate what that would cost from what materials you've used on the original, and what additional materials you need. I'm sure you would get more calls than you would sell coops, but I also think you'd get calls from people who already had bad experiences with prefabs, and/or who don't want to waste money on junk. You could even in the ad, say it's a quality coop not a prefab. Save where you can, but don't skimp. If you don't sell some, at least you wouldn't have a lot of money and time wasted. A friend of mine sells tool sheds like this, and has a waiting list that he seems to never get caught up with. I figure that even if I didn't end up with a waiting list like he has, I could just stay one coop ahead of orders, one I'd like for my own use, and be out nothing. Also, I have an 8' x 16' car hauler trailer (I could go up to 9'11" wide by getting above the fenders - 10' is a wide load, by law, here at least, I could also haul components to assemble on site, if say the run were too large). I'd haul for them if it were in a certain range, as long as I came out ahead on that too. I've found as a masonry contractor through the years, to sell quality, and avoid those looking for the biggest bargain. It may not hurt to be fairly modest figuring your time on the first few, that would help them sell, and I'm pretty certain that each one built after would go a little quicker, and have slight changes that made it easier or better. For example, making all your cuts in advance, and just needing to assemble it after, or painting all the trim at once before it was assembled, or knowing this piece of falloff works for a place somewhere else, etc., whatever works for your build that you'll find through experience with it. If you ever get to a waiting list, you can give yourself a raise. You could also buy larger rolls of hardware cloth, and possibly get a contractor discount from your lumber yard if you are buying enough materials.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

put it on CL or something without the price. When people called, there is your opportunity to explain

I won't call, text, or email any add that doesn't list a price for what they are offering. If they have something to hide or need to "wrangle" me in then I'm not interested.

I would suggest listing your current price and stating that you can customize options, with a little spew about quality materials and proper sizing for intended flock.

 

[Mybackyardpeepers]

Some guy along my route to work builds and sells tiny ones for like 350.00. I see them (coops) come and go from his front yard.