Can I seriously build a coop?

[Slywoody]

If you live in Vermont, you will probably want insulation. You could go out and look at sheds at any home stores and get a basic plan from them. Remember, the object of the game is NOT to keep chickens in, but to keep varmints out. With a little careful planning, a mat'l list and a "put your big girl panties on and deal with it attitude" you'll do just fine. You are not the first female on here to build a chicken coop. Lots of peeps on here more than willing to answer questions of any kind. We want you HOOKED on chickens. BTW, you always want to go big cause you will get more chickens. Good Luck,,,,,, Woody

 

[joebryant]

Trust me; if I can build a coop, ANYBODY can build a coop. I built two 4x8x8. You're already ahead of me because I can't use a hammer to nail without bending the nail. JUST DO IT.
Edit: I had to use all deck screws and my 18-volt drill to screw them in. They're stronger than nails, and they can be removed easily if you goof up. CORRECTION: I did use short roofing nails when I put the felt on the roof to be under the metal roofing.

 

[Cetawin]

Yes you can do it. The biggest thing is insulation for you and ventilation. A floor, 4 walls, a roof, a door for them that locks and a door for you that locks. Roosts are easy, flip a 2 x 4 over 4" side up and brace it.

You can do it!

 

[ging3rhoffman]

I have learned that if you screw your boards together instead of hammering it together that if you make a mistake then you can easily remove the screw and try again. The hammering thing wore me out! My wrist felt like I taken a hammer to it the next morning.
So now everytime we have a project we break out the drill and box of screws. So much easier and you can take things apart without tearing it up.

Oh, dont forget to make your roof slant to the back side so your snow has some place to go...you probably already thought of that.

 

[brandytab]

I second everyone's opinion! I'm up north, too (hubby works in Bennington, VT) and I have to get out to the garage here in a few to keep hammering away. You can do it. Just start with a floor, think about it, and keep building. Once you get rolling you'll realize that it's not that hard.

I'd ordered coop plans, then realized that they were utterly useless..... they were very detailed, but the structure wasn't as sturdy as I wanted once I started building.

What I learned: culled wood is great - but don't use the curved pieces for framing! Oh my, that was my dumbest mistake. I spent a day just unscrewing and replacing!

 

[patandchickens]

Absolutely you can seriously build a coop.

If you don't *want* to, that's fine too, you can buy a shed off craigslist or wherever and convert that to become a coop (much less work than building from scratch), but if you want to build a coop you most certainly can. It helps if you remember it is for chickens, and only needs to keep the weather and predators out, not win architectural or fit-and-finish awards

As far as size -- there is NO SUCH THING as too big a coop, not even (perhaps "especially not") in northern climates. It is real easy to knock together a drop ceiling or hover around the roost to concentrate their body heat if it should become necessary, or partition off part of the space as a 'coop within the coop', so that they have a more warmable area but still the whole large area to move around in.

Good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[The Chicken People]

My husband framed houses for over ten years so I was just the helper. You can do this but make hubby help...you will need someone to hold boards in place so you can nail them! Good luck!

 

[photo chick]

Thanks for all your support! I feel more confident now. I got my "big girl panties on"!!! (Love that one!) We (dh and I) finally agreed on a place for the coop so now I'm just going to draw up a plan and start one step at a time instead getting intimidated by the whole thing. I have a ton of questions, I'm so glad I found this place

 

[Slywoody]

Cowgirl up!! You go girl!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Btw, I'm on here alot and you are welcome to PM me if you have a question. Woody

 

[DarkWolf]

Feel free to ask any questions, eh.. And if you have access to a scanner, post up your doodling plans and we'll give them a once over, for sure.