Coop Design Help

[CathyM]

Quote:
LOL! I thought only my silly hens were like that! I hear caterwauling from the coop often - and it's one hen complaining because the nest is full -- even with the nest next to it empty. Twice I've found one big hen sitting on another in the nest, and the poor bottom hen squawking "get 'er off!!"

It sometimes looks like the line for the ladies room - snaking out the door!

 

[Wisher1000]

My suggestion is to make it 8' instead of 6' wide. One piece of plywood for the floor (4'x8') so, less cutting (plus, you get 2 extra feet - that's 2 extra chickens!) And how about 4' high on the short side so one piece of plywood would cover the back wall and 5' on the front? You could still use two 3'x4' doors on the front and the vent all the way across the top would be stationary. Also, don't forget to raise your pop door 6" to 8" off the floor of the coop so your bedding won't fall out.

This is an exciting process! It took me months to design my first coop and there were several things I would do differently. You never get the perfect coop - that's what keeps us building!

You know, one of my favorite features on my first coop was a storage area for food above the nest boxes (pic on my page.) I open the door and the nests are below and the food is above. I made the depth about 2" deeper than the lid of a five gallon bucket so they would fit. No roosting on top, no rain on top, no angles to cut, it worked well!

This is too fun!!!!!!

 

[Judy]

Quote:
LOL! I thought only my silly hens were like that! I hear caterwauling from the coop often - and it's one hen complaining because the nest is full -- even with the nest next to it empty. Twice I've found one big hen sitting on another in the nest, and the poor bottom hen squawking "get 'er off!!"

It sometimes looks like the line for the ladies room - snaking out the door!

I find two hens in one box all the time. One is often complaining. Empty nest boxes everywhere. Chickens.... I have 3 (right now, sometimes more) different kinds of nest boxes. I use scrounged stuff for nests. Some at least have a preference for open top or open front or darker or not so dark -- or a wallowed out spot in a pile of straw on the floor. At least they don't seem to argue so much when different styles are available. It also makes moving a broody with eggs into the broody pen a lot easier. They aren't fond of being moved, but usually freak out on me if I also try to change the nest box itself, even abandoning the nest once or twice.

Milezone, why not put "SW KY" or even just "KY" in your profile. You'd be surprised how often it is relevant to your post, on your own or another's thread.

Agree with Wisher about the size suggestions. You NEVER regret bigger.

 

[elmo]

I think I understand why they lay in a single nest. Last spring, I stopped collecting eggs to encourage my hens to go broody. When the first nest had accumulated a sufficient clutch (which happens fast, with all laying hens contributing), the senior ranking hen claimed that nest for her own and commenced setting. The other two hens then went to work laying eggs for the second nest. It took slightly longer for that nest to accumulate to the right number because only two hens were contributing, but when the right number was reached, the second ranking hen claimed that nest and began setting.

The lowest ranking hen was left with only her own eggs to contribute and it took her much longer to lay enough eggs working all by herself. By the time she'd produced enough eggs to set, the first laid eggs were not quite as fresh and thus were less likely to hatch. Hens No. 1 and 2 had complete success and hatched out all their chicks, while Hen No. 3 had a poorer hatch rate.

Communal nests make sense in nature to maximize reproductive success.

 

[milezone]

Thanks guys for all the help, i will change this to 8' as you are right less cutting and more room. I think i will also change the height on back to 4' as well, and move the pop door ( this means the chick door right?) to the side.

If i go 8' I tthink this means I will have to add 2 legs in the middle for more support. So let me get designing, will update in a bit.

Thanks again for all the help.

Milezone

 

[milezone]

Ok I tried to edit my account to show where we are from, but says we need 10 post to edit personal info, so...........

 

[milezone]

I will try and get to that with this message. I made our changes, thanks to all of you who have helped, the coop looks like it will be a great one, and bigger than first planned. But that is a good thing. So without further delay, I would like to present you Design #3

Milezone

 

[milezone]

Here it is.

Milezone

 

[Wisher1000]

Looks GREAT! You're going to love that coop!

Will you have an attached run? If so, I'm assuming it will be on the front since that is where you put the pop door (yes, chicken door.) Most people find that when you have the shorter side face south, then you will be in the shade when you are working in the coop. Think about your location, the sun, wind or breezes and how they will affect the conditions both summer and winter. It is nice not to have to walk in the run to either feed or collect eggs. Cleaning chores can be done from inside the run because you're going to get messy anyway! If you change the orientation and can make it work, think about the pop door on one of the ends and don't forget to raise it off the floor. The hens can step up on the edge to go in and out with no problem, and it will keep your shavings or whatever you use for bedding inside where it belongs! Speaking of bedding, when you open the doors at floor level, the bedding will spill out as well, on the other hand, if there is no obstrution, it is easier to rake out. Maybe a removeable barrier, just inside the doors to hold the bedding in when the door is opened that will slide up and lift out when necessary to clean out the bedding, would work?

There's so much to think about, right? To me, that is most of the fun, that and the actual construction. Oh wait, I mean tending the chickens and watching them thrive. Wait ... it's collecting eggs, yes, that is the best part, no, it's chicks, yeah that's it, chicks under a hen .... no, it's ....... Heck, IT'S ALL GOOD! Have Fun!

 

[elmo]

Quote:
Great point! Forgot about that. I have a removeable board that goes across the front of my coop, just in back of the front doors. Works fine, even with sand as the bedding.

You do need to allow for this when you cut your pop door (chicken door)! It needs to be cut higher, just above the level of your bedding. This was another goof of mine in the first coop I built and it was a huge pain to recut the door to fix.

One other thing I forgot to mention. For your windows and vents, you can consider adding awning style flaps hinged at the top, with chains attached to the eaves so that you can adjust the degree of ventilation. The flaps also help keep rain from blowing into the windows that are lower down. When it's cold, you can easily shut down most of the vents and leave only that nice, wide vent at the front open.