Considerations for building a coop under the deck.

[zinnia5117]

Hi! I need your expertise!
I still haven’t settled on a coop plan, but this is pretty much the place in our property that meets setback requirements and is totally fenced in. I read in the Free Range Chicken Gardens book (by Jessi Bloom) that she likes building on patio pavers. Well, we already have a patio we had put in last year with proper drainage underneath and I am pretty sure it is as level as it gets.

Pros: pavers already down, shade in the summer, protected from wind, in a fully fenced backyard, located close to hose and electrical outlet

Cons: the rain drips down through the deck, maybe the fence will block the cooling breeze that comes down the hillside in the summer, the adjacent sand can get pretty wet (although you can’t avoid some dampness on our lot)

I was thinking of doing a rainwater collection system but am concerned that the water might not be clean enough since it will have dripped down through the deck first and there is some mold/fungus on some parts of the underside of the boards, and of course there are always leaves from the trees and dirt around.

Separately, I thought of doing a greenhouse/coop combo but that might be pointless given that it is mostly shady under the deck.

My third thought was to have the coop and run here but have a chicken tractor too to let them get some fresh air too.

I also am wondering if it is okay to put hardware cloth on the floor of the coop, attached to the sides underneath to keep predators out and what implications that has for cleaning.

Any thoughts at all, or ideas for coops that might work? I live in the Portland, Oregon Metro area and this would be designed for the max of five chickens.

Thanks so much in advance for your help!

 

[Helloworld]

I would not do that.

The biggest for me would be the smell
And sunlight. The rain definitely matters because this is where most birds pick up diseases. From the pics it looks really shady. If you are wanting eggs thats a requirement. They really do need a dry, draft-free area for the best chicken environment. But then there are lights and maybe some linoleum up top? Another problem is chickens draw predators. I would not want to see snakes or other things near my door.

 

[crazy4ChickensNducks]

X2

 

[sylviethecochin]

Air circulation is good. If poop's on dirt, it can degrade quickly. If it's on rock, it sits. Light, as pointed out, is necessary for eggs.

If I was to put a coop there, I'd knock out part of the back wall (a large part. I want a breeze going through that area to dry things out), put a run out behind it, and leave the coop and part of the run under the deck (It would be a very well-ventilated coop, probably not even having four solid walls, since there're already walls there.)

 

[sylviethecochin]

I also am wondering if it is okay to put hardware cloth on the floor of the coop, attached to the sides underneath to keep predators out and what implications that has for cleaning.

You couldn't shovel, and their toenails might get snagged. Maybe use solid boards and flip it so that the hardware cloth is under the boards?

 

[paneubert]

My coop under the deck. Maybe you can improve on what I did (since there are many things that could have been done better).

Original build for quail: https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/paneuberts-quail-aviary-adventure.1094484/

Conversion for Chickens:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...n-aviary-to-a-good-for-chickens-coop.1241025/

 

[zinnia5117]

My coop under the deck. Maybe you can improve on what I did (since there are many things that could have been done better).

Original build for quail: https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/paneuberts-quail-aviary-adventure.1094484/

Conversion for Chickens:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...n-aviary-to-a-good-for-chickens-coop.1241025/

Thank you for actually giving some ideas. I do feel like on here there are a lot of naysayers but not lots of alternative ideas generated. I’m starting to feel frustrated because I have thought about where to place this for over a year, and have observed the yard for longer than that. Maybe not a great place to make decisions from... but I am really glad to get ideas from someone with a similar climate.

If it would be helpful for actually getting some ideas, I could try to take a picture of our whole backyard tomorrow so someone could suggest where a better spot might be to build. Our neighbors to the south are gardeners so might be more amenable to chickens closer to them at the south end of the yard (although there would be no natural protection from the elements there and lots of winter shade from the mature trees.)


To back up, I took this picture at dusk yesterday. I am a busy mom who works outside the home full time and this is the best I could do right now. I took the picture from the west, so the open part of the deck faces west. The fence is to the north and the stairs are to the south.

This is actually the driest place I am aware of on the property where I would consider building (the drier place is under the eaves in front of the house by the main door but clearly I can’t build a coop there.) The floor is well drained, unlike the entire yard, the area is protected from snow in winter and gets shade in the hot summer. I live on a road called Hidden Springs and there is a permanent runoff stream that goes down to the storm drain even several months into our rainless summer in Oregon. Usually it never dries up. It is Oregon. We have rain 8 to 9 months out of the year. I can’t change that and wouldn’t want to. Everywhere on the lot gets rained on, just on the wooden deck some of it soaks into the deck first and some of it falls between the boards, which means it just falls in straight lines.

I had a friend in Eugene (two hours south) whose chickens lived under bushes and trees in a permanently shady area of their yard and they still got eggs, so I am not 100% convinced that the shade will make a difference. The area I took the picture from is the first part of the backyard to get sun in the summer. And as I mentioned, we don’t always see the sun directly in the fall/winter/spring here.

The coop would definitely be at least five feet away from the house. We don’t want water up against the foundation, and I want plenty of airflow.

The ventilation could be an issue, but at the same time, it should be protected from chilly drafts. In mid fall and early spring it is so pleasant on that patio because the drafts are blocked. I am not going to remove the fence because we just put it in two years ago and because it will keep dogs out. (Our neighbor has a dog.)

Finally, the coop has to be 20 feet away from neighboring residences, which is very difficult to achieve because we have a narrow, long backyard.
Here are the rules I have to work with:

So really, let me know if it would be useful for me to take another picture of Tuesday backyard for more ideas or if I’m just doomed to a chickenless existence because I live in Oregon where it rains.

 

[rosemarythyme]

The rain and the shade wouldn't be a huge issue to me (if rain was an issue no one in the Pac NW would have animals). Not sure about the pavers though, mostly because poop will eventually wash down between the crevices and then that'll start to stink. A thick layer of bedding may or may not help alleviate that. Not sure what was in the book you read about pavers and how they managed waste and clean up - what was suggested?

I personally would not ever have wire underfoot... for pests/predators protection, it's better to apron the wire outward rather than have it under where the chickens will be walking and scratching.

 

[sylviethecochin]

The rain and the shade wouldn't be a huge issue to me (if rain was an issue no one in the Pac NW would have animals).

I'm not so doubtful about water. (I'm middle PA. Nearest city I can locate got 50-some inches of rain last year, and 45.6 -inches on average.) What worries me is stagnant water. With poop in it. I'd want that water moving out and getting processed, not serving as a breeding ground for various nasties.

 

[Hokum Coco]

Any thoughts at all, or ideas for coops that might work?

There is a large array of mid size coops and tractors on this site that may suit your needs. I would give them a view to see if there is anything there that might prove favourable.
If I were to build a coop in that location I would constructed so that it could be easily moved in case the location proved unfavourable.