Chicken Coop Size

[MissE]

Don't feel too bad, many make this tiny coop error when first starting out.

I have one. Said it held 10 hens. Got it and was like what the ...

It makes for great run clutter, jungle gym, isolation cage, look but don't touch introduction for littles, and right now, a nest box for the new pullets when the big girls act like meanie butts and push them out of the regular nest boxes.

 

[Capto Veritas]

What size is the coop part? (I mean the enclosed part that is like a house, length and width, not counting the nest boxes.)

What size is the run? (The area with wire mesh sides, length and width both.)

What climate are you in? (Country helps, and if you're in the US it helps to give the state too.)

Bantam chickens or standard size ones?

The run is 76 inch by 36 inch. The coop is 50 inch by 36 inch.

 

[Capto Veritas]

What size is the coop part? (I mean the enclosed part that is like a house, length and width, not counting the nest boxes.)

What size is the run? (The area with wire mesh sides, length and width both.)

What climate are you in? (Country helps, and if you're in the US it helps to give the state too.)

Bantam chickens or standard size ones?

They are bantam. America, Georgia.

 

[aart]

The run is 76 inch by 36 inch. The coop is 50 inch by 36 inch.

The coop size should not include the nests.
Just eyeballing it, I'd say the coop is 36 x 24 to 30".

Georgia.

Please add that too your profile.
Being in such a hot climate, ventilation is even more important.

 

[3KillerBs]

Being in such a hot climate, ventilation is even more important.

This.

I'm in the Steamy Southeast too and in our climate it's critical to have enough airflow that the coop isn't any hotter than the already blistering air outside.

If you aren't going to convert the entire thing into a coop, you should seriously consider replacing the wall of the coop section that faces into the run with wire.

 

[GardenCityChickens]

Hi that's exciting your getting chickens, I'm sure you're really looking forward to the experience! I started off with a coop and run similar to this for my 3 hens and realised it was too small, so I ended up letting the hens roam my enclosed small garden during the day, then locked them in at night.

 

[papajoesfarm]

How handy are you with tools? And have you built anything that required framing? If so, building a coop and run is pretty simple to do. Just as with a shed, stick to multiples of common dimensional lumber and you can't go wrong. A simple box 8' by 8' coop with a 3:12 lean-to style roof goes up quickly. What will cost the most these days is plywood, but it's a one-time expense. And it will last far longer than the cheap softwood in those pre-fab coops.

 

[NatJ]

The run is 76 inch by 36 inch. The coop is 50 inch by 36 inch.

For the coop, did you measure that with or without the nestboxes?

The run works out to 19 square feet.
The coop measurements you give work out to 12.5 square feet.
But if you have to subtract nestboxes, it would probably be closer to 9 square feet.

They are bantam. America, Georgia.

That coop & run would probably work for 3 bantam hens, but not 3 standard size hens. And even bantams would be happier with more space, although I think they could be OK in that.

Many people shut their chickens into the coop section at night, to keep them a little safer from predators. If you try to do that in Georgia, with that chicken coop, you might end up with roasted chickens! It looks like it would get hot in the sun, and I do not see any windows or other way to let much heat out and fresh air in.

If it is possible to remove the solid wall between the coop and run, that would provide enough ventilation to make the inside of the coop section much nicer.

I would probably add a perch in the run area, and the chickens might prefer to sleep there at night, especially in the summer.

Of course both of those modifications will only work if the run is predator proof. The roof & sides are probably secure enough, but predators might dig underneath. So you should plan on either putting it on something solid (like concrete or paving stones), or adding electric fence wire around the outside of the coop, or attaching a wire apron around the coop. (A wire apron is a piece of hardware cloth or wire fencing attached to the coop, and laying outward on the ground in all directions. Predators usually try to dig right next to the side of the coop, so this covers the areas where they would try to start their holes.)

 

[Capto Veritas]

For the coop, did you measure that with or without the nestboxes?

The run works out to 19 square feet.
The coop measurements you give work out to 12.5 square feet.
But if you have to subtract nestboxes, it would probably be closer to 9 square feet.



That coop & run would probably work for 3 bantam hens, but not 3 standard size hens. And even bantams would be happier with more space, although I think they could be OK in that.

Many people shut their chickens into the coop section at night, to keep them a little safer from predators. If you try to do that in Georgia, with that chicken coop, you might end up with roasted chickens! It looks like it would get hot in the sun, and I do not see any windows or other way to let much heat out and fresh air in.

If it is possible to remove the solid wall between the coop and run, that would provide enough ventilation to make the inside of the coop section much nicer.

I would probably add a perch in the run area, and the chickens might prefer to sleep there at night, especially in the summer.

Of course both of those modifications will only work if the run is predator proof. The roof & sides are probably secure enough, but predators might dig underneath. So you should plan on either putting it on something solid (like concrete or paving stones), or adding electric fence wire around the outside of the coop, or attaching a wire apron around the coop. (A wire apron is a piece of hardware cloth or wire fencing attached to the coop, and laying outward on the ground in all directions. Predators usually try to dig right next to the side of the coop, so this covers the areas where they would try to start their holes.)

Will do!

 

[Capto Veritas]

Hi that's exciting your getting chickens, I'm sure you're really looking forward to the experience! I started off with a coop and run similar to this for my 3 hens and realised it was too small, so I ended up letting the hens roam my enclosed small garden during the day, then locked them in at night.

That is what I do.