Converting a shed into a coop, anything I need to know about?

[megnchicks]

We have a very large garden shed that doesn't get used. We are going to convert this into a nice size chicken coop. Any suggestions, advice, or whatever I should know about doing this? I've been reading coop plans, chicken books and magazines, reading the forum, but nothing beats having real life input from you all.

TIA
Megan

 

[Folly's place]

Great start! A dig-proof foundation, no openings larger than 1/2" (hardware cloth everywhere!), and lots of ventilation. Pictures will help here too. Large south facing windows, which can be hardware cloth covered openings, not actual windows. Upper ventilation, so openings in the wall at the roof peaks. Electricity, safely installed. A hydrant or close water source. How large a building, and how many chickens? A safe run for outside space. Where are you? Climate information too. Mary

 

[snow5164]

That looks great , enough room for the hens . Lots of storage room for ALL their supplies,

Good luck and have fun ,
we've changed our coops about 100 times so I'd advise you build everything with screws so you can remove them easier

 

[Pork Pie]

I'd say Folly's place has it covered. I converted a shed and don't have anything to add.

 

[Ridgerunner]

You can check my post in this thread for some ideas. I think in Virginia my comments still apply as far as weather goes.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...f-coop-please-share-must-do-and-dont-do-ideas

What you need are roosts, nests, a pop door, predator protection, ventilation, and to keep it dry. Those are the basics, if you can manage those you should be OK. But there are a few things that can make your life easier.

 

[snow5164]

We to divided up a large shed into a coop. My advice would be to not make the coop too large . We made two 10x 10 foot coops side by side with a hallway Inside, it's nice because I have a shelf with all the food stuff on it and I can open their inside doors on bad weather days to get a little air flowing threw.Also with two smaller coops I added chicks without having to mix the two ages.

We have since added a third coop but that's another story

 

[aart]

How large is 'very large' in feet by feet?

Separate area for storage of feed and supplies and another separate area for introductions/isolations have served me well.

See My Coop.

 

[megnchicks]

I don't have the exact measurements just yet. I got it cleaned out and ready to go then it started to rain. Here are a few pictures I took. The last one is what I plan to do to the inside.

I will get measurements as soon as the lightening passes.

Megan

 

[aart]

That pinterest pic look very similar in layout to what I have.

I'd suggest you put a hardware cloth 'ceiling' on the underside of your rafters,
you can still store stuff up there and it will keep them from roosting on the rafters.

You might think about moving the door over and using more of the shed for a coop,
maybe even splitting part of coop area for growout/introductions pen.

Lots of potential there...looks to be about 10x10?
too bad there's not more roof overhang for ventilation, if it needs re-roofing you could extend them.

Just some thoughts.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Those photos help. It looks like it will be in the shade in summer which is great. I’d still think hard about more ventilation up high. Maybe gable vents or if you can cut out under the overhang and cover the opening with hardware cloth for predator protection.

I like that interior layout. The main thing is to make it convenient for you. The chickens will have a nice area in there, just don’t make it inconvenient for you.

I also suggest some additional pens. You may need a broody buster, a place to isolate a chicken, a grow-out pen, if you have electricity out there you can put a brooder in there. Some place to isolate chickens gives you a lot of flexibility in how you manage them. That can reduce your stress levels tremendously if something happens.