Coop design help?

[Rosebud75]

I have a play train table - the kind you use to set up a wood thomas the train set on - it's an octagon about 4' in diameter, and about 1-2 ft high. It's got storage space underneath and everything... and I just KNOW there is a way to get a coop out of it!!! I just can't seem to find out how. I also have an old bureau, but not a lot of 'lumber'. Just misc. pieces of junk here and there...

I want to get a space big enough to house a good 8 chickens or so - since that's the minimum order amount from Mypetchicken.

Any ideas?

Sorry no pics - camera is broken.

Edited to add this will be going into a very big dog run, so it's not the only space for the chickens.

 

[Rosebud75]

OR WAIT!! I happen to have on hand 3 or 4 old doors...there must be a way to do something with them.

 

[Pumpkinpup]

What sort of chickens did you have in mind? Space will depend on the breed you choose. Are we talking about a temporany coop for young chickens or a coop for adults? Do you plan to turn them out durring the day to free range and then put them back at nite or what?

 

[patandchickens]

A 4' octagon is not going to do it for 8 chickens - even if it were a 4' *square* (i.e. with the corners not chopped off), that would only be 2 sq ft per chicken. It's just not enough, at least not in VT where they will want (and need) to be inside a good bit during the less pleasant part of the year.

I'd say, see if you can sell the table for like $25 or whatever to some family with a young Thomas fan, and use the money for a sheet of plywood or something like that

Combined with your doors (assuming they are *old*, solid wood doors, rather than modern steel doors or hollow-core interior doors) and with additional scrounging, you should be able to build something minimally-adequate. Aim for at least 30 square feet for the indoors part of the coop.

Good luck,

Pat

 

[Rosebud75]

Well I was hoping to have some Barred rocks and Orps. Yes, i was planning to turn them out during the day into the dog run (it's a huge run about 15 X 20).

Is it possible to make some kind of A frame with these old doors? They're just your standard bathroom-type doors. (don't ask. Hubby had trouble replacing a door.) I thought, like, one door for the floor, 2 for the A frame part. I don't know.. I'm no good at this stuff.

 

[patandchickens]

Quote:
Unfortunately, it won't be too awful long (year or two?) before hollowcore doors disintegrate - they are not meant for getting rained on. You could use them for a very temporary coop I guess but it seems a shame to put all that effort into something that won't last. Also it will require some skill and trickery to get them connected securely together.

Can you find a local business that gets machinery or mdse. in very large solid packing crates. They can require relatively little work to convert for a coop (mainly, cutting door holes, repairing where the crate was opened, and putting a slightly sloped tin roof over top, although you could fake it with a tarp for a little while). Drive around and stop EVERYwhere and ask. You may get lucky.

Good luck,

Pat

 

[Rosebud75]

the table isn't in sell-able condition. But I was thinking of trying to do some sort of a 2 story thing. (the top pieces are removable). Sort of a condo kind of thing. There are some rectangles cut out on 2 sides where storage bins were supposed to go... I could see putting nests there or feeders/waterers somehow.

 

[digitS']

Maybe this can give you some ideas. It is 4 doors, attached one to the other, under a roof:

http://au.lifestyle.yahoo.com/b/better-homes-gardens/5447/four-door-shedinstruction-sheets/

A "skillion roof" is what we are inclined to call a shed roof - a roof with a single incline. Perhaps the table could serve as a roof.

Steve

 

[Rosebud75]

OH!! that is perfect! I could practically do that by myself! Obviously, I'll skip the cement part. I think we have a pallet somewhere I could put it on.

 

[Rosebud75]

OK.... let's pretend I build that thing. It's probably about 2.5' X 2.5' square, and about 6 ft tall. How do you set up the inside to make maximum use of space? Where do you put the nesting boxes, roosting poles, and everything without it getting all crowded? How far off the floor can the chickens go? lol sorry about all the questions...