Coop building update!

[cp2894_]

I posted a thread asking about this built in box in my shed wondering if it would work for a coop. After getting some feedback, the last couple days we've been working hard on renovations and getting it ready for my five 4 week old chicks! I took some new pictures and wanted to get some more feedback. I also added the before pictures for reference. As you can see from the pictures, one side has been raised to make enough room for their roost. It's going to be surrounded with hardware cloth. Does the roost look ok? Size wise? Width, height, length, angle, amount of bars, etc. Each roosting bar is 21 inches long and there's 5 of them. Another vent was also added to the shed. It has hardware cloth one one side of it to keep things like snakes or large bugs from getting in. We have another vent exactly like that which can be added if needed. Besides that, there's another vent at the top of the shed wall. Does this seem like enough ventilation? I figured since the ventilation needs to be higher than the roost, our best bet with this particular set up was to put more ventilation in the shed itself and just put hardware cloth all around the taller part of the coop. I also added a picture of what the other side of the coop looks like. There will be two nesting boxes there. It needs to be cleaned out but that won't be hard. If anyone has questions, comments, or concerns, I'd love to hear them! We're still building and can make changes as needed. The smaller part is about 3 ft tall, the taller part is around 6 ft (I think. I need to check again), and the whole coop is around 6 ft by 3 ft. I hope that makes sense lol. I'm not great with explaining measurements.

 

[DobieLover]

I'm confused...
You are just converting that tiny box into a coop? Do you have bantams? Full size? Right off the bat, no, there is not enough ventilation.

That very steep ladder will not serve as a roost. It is too steep, they won't be able to fly up or down from it and all the "rungs" are too close together horizontally. If any birds were able to get up on the higher rungs they would poop all over the birds on the lower rungs.

Are you keeping the rest of the shed as a shed? It is going to get full of dust. Why aren't you converting the whole thing into a coop? I didn't see the first thread you made.

 

[DobieLover]

No you don't have the correct square footage. It should be closer to 4 sq ft at a minimum unless you have a completely predator proof run attached and that means something with a solid roof, well secured hardware cloth walls and a predator apron. Then you could get away with a little less square footage per hen.

Instead of messing around with that tiny little box, I would erect a full size wall the full length of the shed approximately 4 ft away from the exterior wall. That way they'll have four foot by the length of the shed for their coop. Then I would build a human entrance door so you can get into the coop for cleaning, etc.

On the sidewalls of the coop I would install as much ventilation as possible trying to get a total of 4 sq ft. If you put a solid roof on the run then the wall common to the coop could have a strip of ventilation along the top (secured with hardware cloth) to provide additional ventilation.

I wouldn't mess around with a ladder roost. I would install 2 roosts about 12"-14" from the wall and each other set over a poop board on either the left or right side and put the human door on the other end. This would provide 8 linear ft of roosting space.

You could build the nest boxes right up under the poop board with an access door inside the shed. This will keep the floor space under the nest boxes open.

 

[cp2894_]

I had 4 chickens in a 15 sqft coop. It wasn't big enough. It was a lot of work to maintain. It didn't give me any wiggle room. They HAD to get to the run every day which meant opening the door every day at dawn. They had to be secure at night which meant closing the door (even when it's 20 degrees). Bigger is better. 4sqft per bird isn't hard and fast, but I think it's a really GOOD guideline because I've broken it and it doesn't work long term.

My next coop will be built closer along those recommended guidelines. (Maybe bigger!)

Thank you! That's really helpful to know. Right now we're planning a way to make it bigger and maximize the space! Definitely want it big enough to maintain well and keep the chickens from feeling cramped.

 

[3KillerBs]

To reiterate,

5 adult birds need:

• 20 square feet in the coop
• 50 square feet in the run
• 5 linear feet of roost
• 2 nests
• 5 SQUARE FEET of permanent, 24/7/365 ventilation

 

[3KillerBs]

Remember that the goal of the ventilation is get the moisture and ammonia away from the chickens and fresh air to them

And also to keep heat from building up.

Achieving this:

Rather than this:

 

[cp2894_]

No you don't have the correct square footage. It should be closer to 4 sq ft at a minimum unless you have a completely predator proof run attached and that means something with a solid roof, well secured hardware cloth walls and a predator apron. Then you could get away with a little less square footage per hen.

Instead of messing around with that tiny little box, I would erect a full size wall the full length of the shed approximately 4 ft away from the exterior wall. That way they'll have four foot by the length of the shed for their coop. Then I would build a human entrance door so you can get into the coop for cleaning, etc.

On the sidewalls of the coop I would install as much ventilation as possible trying to get a total of 4 sq ft. If you put a solid roof on the run then the wall common to the coop could have a strip of ventilation along the top (secured with hardware cloth) to provide additional ventilation.

I wouldn't mess around with a ladder roost. I would install 2 roosts about 12"-14" from the wall and each other set over a poop board on either the left or right side and put the human door on the other end. This would provide 8 linear ft of roosting space.

You could build the nest boxes right up under the poop board with an access door inside the shed. This will keep the floor space under the nest boxes open.

Thank you so much! That's a great idea to do a full sized wall. I also like the nesting box idea. This is why I needed feedback. It's my family's first time raising chickens so I need all the advice I can get. Thank you!

 

[cp2894_]

And also to keep heat from building up.

Achieving this:

Rather than this:

Thank you so much for all the help! To be honest, these chicks were a gift for my mother who's been wanting chickens for a long time. Unfortunately I've been the one to do most of the research. I'm also pretty young and not able to build the coop or buy materials myself so trying to explain things to my family about what needs to be done has been difficult. They insist there's going to be enough coop size and ventilation so trying to explain something that I'm still trying understand hasn't been easy. You and the rest of the BYC community have been making it a little simpler.

 

[Sally PB]

Thank you so much for all the help!

Thank you for asking questions, and listening to the answers!

Really, the knowledge pool here on BYC is wide and deep. If you have any questions, just ask.

 

[enrgizerbunny]

I had 4 chickens in a 15 sqft coop. It wasn't big enough. It was a lot of work to maintain. It didn't give me any wiggle room. They HAD to get to the run every day which meant opening the door every day at dawn. They had to be secure at night which meant closing the door (even when it's 20 degrees). Bigger is better. 4sqft per bird isn't hard and fast, but I think it's a really GOOD guideline because I've broken it and it doesn't work long term.

My next coop will be built closer along those recommended guidelines. (Maybe bigger!)