Chicken coop

[Suzy05]

How do I build a chicken coop?

 

[sourland]

Study the threads in this forum for a multitude of ideas.

 

[hysop]

Apart from searching forums the simple basics are:

Set a budget
Make a blueprint
Take measurements
Start building
Move in your chickens overnight

A lot of threads tell you what to add for easy cleaning and stuff like that.

 

[lj74cw95]

How do I build a chicken coop?

I HAVE FOUND THERE IS NOT RIGHT OR WRONG ANSWER. I THINK THE MAIN THING IS TO HAVE A PLACE TO GET OUT OF THE WIND AND UP OFF THE GROUND

 

[Bogtown Chick]

Study what style you like. Study your budget. Recycled boards and such are nice, but stuff from the lumber yard is a lot easier to work with.

Consider designs/ features that make it easy on your back for cleaning, and egg retrieval. Spacious enough for the #birds you are thinking --4 sq feet per bird. The Run should be 10 square feet per bird.

Considerations also for Roosts giving space to avoid picking, ventilation, manure removal, Feed and Water set ups.

Personally I put in about 2-3 months on BYC's coop pages often up burning the midnight oil. Studying how to frame a coop. At the build I got a bit overwhelmed so then broke it down to 3 parts.
Foundation, Floor joists, floor covering:
Then 2 x 4 construction framing.
Nest Box access area (that was a day in itself)
Siding the framework.
Windows and Door
Figuring out Pitch and Run for the roof.
Trimming soffits and fascia
Then the bells and whistles: Hardware cloth and screen on the windows, pulley and ropes for the pop door. Roost building. Flower hangers and plant boxes under the windows.

It's all amazing fun.

Edited to add that I lost 16 lbs. also. Lol.

 

[aart]

Personally I put in about 2-3 months on BYC's coop pages

Yeppers!
I spent 5-6 months during fall and winter reading, taking copious notes, saving links, planning, and sketching out all the details.
Then another 4 months over the summer building and revising.

 

[K0k0shka]

It's also important to keep reading even after you start your build. Before you begin, it's all theory. But once you start and you run into issues, it starts to make more sense and then you can look up specific things within a topic (like, roofing materials and how to attach each to the wood, etc.) You may find yourself completely revising parts of the build once you begin and realize your initial plan isn't feasible. Or maybe you find something better somebody else did, and opt for that instead. So, keep reading.

 

[Bogtown Chick]

Things to know.
I was super afraid of the skill saw working on the floor base. DH had to help me cut a couple boards. At the end of the build I was taking off the blade and turning it backwards to cut currogated steel for my roof. What a turn around. You get very proficient with tools.

Also I used torque screws on my build. IDK how many back outs and retries I had. I quit counting. The expense is more but for a coop I guess I found it manageable.

If you don't know how to do something. Go to Youtube. Seriously. There is a video for every construction thing you are doing on there.