coop construction ?

[bagendhens]

ok so ive decided on a 4 x 8 walk in coop for our soon to be girls...
dads decided to build after looking at shed costs *yay*
but were still trying to keep costs (therfore supplies) as limited as possible.

so tell me all you chicken folk...
is it nessicary when building a coop to have the studs 16" on center like you do when studding a wall?
i think every 16 inches would be an overkill for a simple structure that will be relitivly protected from winds...

so how far apart SHOULD i put the studs for the wall...
how about the floor? (im thinking 16" on center for the floor since were big people and will be deep littering)
and roof? (were in ct so can get some good snow, it will be a sloped roof with a 12" rise to match the existing structure.)

and for the run...how far between posts
were planning on a 5 x 10 or a 10x10 run (depending on how much leveling we can do)
planning on using 1 x 2 wire with a chickenwire backup over the bottom 36"
the run will be about 6ft high and have a wire roof too (w ehave hawks)

how far between the posts?

ive got my shape down, as well as overall dimensions, but now i need to figure out the framing and put together a cut list as well as measure up the scraps we do have.
we alreayd have a huge window thats going in, and plans to use one of the cabinates that had to be removed form the kitchen as a communal nest box...
and im scouring craiglist for free external doors

im SOOO excited!

 

[StevenMNielson]

I am converting a portion of my shed into a coop/shed hybrid. The shed is obviously built to code, but the wall I am putting in - not so much. I think the codes may be area specific... but if you wanted to skimp a little, I personally wouldn't see the trouble with it, so long as it is safe and sound for the ladies.

Consider this - If you were going to build a dog house for your pooch, would you need to build it to county codes? How about a tree fort? Then why would a small chicken coop be any different?

Just my two cents!

 

[mikecnorthwest]

The footprint on my coop is a few inches shy of 4x8 and I didn't worry about the placement of vertical studs. If you look at my BYC page you'll see how sparse the framing was. The coop is rock solid.

 

[bagendhens]

thats perfect, thank you.
it means i can cut back to about 1/2 the studs i thought id need!

 

[patandchickens]

For a small little coop like that, in an area where snowload is not a concern, 24" o.c. stud spacing is quite reasonable. It won't save you hardly any money of course, but,

Floor joists if you are going to be walking on them you really do want to go 16" o.c., not because of the joist strength per se but more because if you go with wider spacing you will have to use SIGNIFICANTLY stronger flooring, like 2x6's instead of 3/4" plywood.

I would not go more than 6-8' between run posts, meaning that on a 10' run side you ought to have a middle post at the 5' mark.

Honestly, I am all in favor of economizing and all that, but it is worth thinking about how much you save vs what the potential costs are in stability and longevity of the structure... it is awful easy to become "penny wise pound foolish", like using nails instead of screws or too few fenceposts or too weebly a support for your floor or roof, and end up wasting a LOT of extra money that way.

JMHO, good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[bagendhens]

yeah weve decided 16" oc for the floor and roof, the rest will be dependant on the door/window framing but will end up about 20" oc.

there will be a poop board going in below the roost and since weve got so much extra space were actually thinking of blocking off the area that will be under the poop board and using it for storage of an extra bag of shavings so theres no need to be lugging one in every time it needs a top up...
the roost and poop board will be removable to provide easy acess and the "wall" seperating it off will be completly removable too so if we ever decide we need some more space inside we can just take it out