Chicken Coop Modification

[Charata]

Hello! We have an 80 SF chicken coop with 8' walls. I have 6 laying boxes and 18 chickens. With egg pricing I have a lot of neighbors looking for cheaper options. We use most of our eggs to make pastas and build our food storage, but we love to give them away as well. Does anybody have examples of adding 3' deep second levels to add coop space and allow for more birds? Or other modifications? Thanks!

 

[nuthatched]

I'm sorry, it's just me but what do you mean second levels?

 

[Charata]

I'm sorry, it's just me but what do you mean second levels?

A second floor. Maybe 36" off the floor. Thanks!

 

[rosemarythyme]

Chickens don't really stack - unless you forcibly keep them in their own "floor" they'll all want to congregate up higher. Any photos of what you're currently working with? You're also looking at needing to increase ventilation as well, assuming you're currently meeting the recommended minimums.

 

[3KillerBs]

Unless you're talking a caged layer setup, chickens don't really stack for storage.

Better to expand your coop or build another one.

 

[McChooky]

Based on the square footage of your coop you're already maxed out (4 sq ft per bird) Getting rid of any extra nest boxes will give you more room. (1 nest box for every 4-5 birds is sufficient) Ventilation should be near the roof to allow toxic gases(ammonia) & moisture to escape & keep feathers dry.The highest roost should be no closer that 2 ft from the top to allow 1 foot clearance above their heads while they stand on the roost .A ladder roost on hinges that can be raised for cleaning the coop floor might make life a little easier.

 

[Poppy Putentake]

If you want to build for more chickens, instead of adding to your current coop, I would suggest a second coop. That way, you can segregate some birds if it is desirable to, such as the baby/juvenile ones you will have when your flock expands. That would also solve the problem not wanting to disturb your current flock during construction (now and maybe also at some future time if you want to make modifications). It would probablly also be a bit less work.

I guess you could get away with fewer nesting boxes, but the amount of extra space you would gain is not much and an extra nest or two is not a problem (and better than too few).

(BTW, a very small mini-coop in addition to housing for your main flock comes in handy also -- for rasiing a small batch of chicks or to house a sick, injured, quarantined, or broody bird.)