Coop design input!

[OHchickens87]

If you are concerned about them nesting under the poop board you could place the food and water under them instead. It would also increase the space they have for jumping off the roost onto the floor.

Good idea! I may just increase the overall height of the coop to allow for that and fix the vent issue too.

 

[OHchickens87]

Great tips and feedback everyone! Thanks so much. I'll go back to the drawing board a bit and adjust some thing.

 

[ZooAtHome]

I am currently finishing up my first coop & run and have a few comments for your consideration. I'm am also brand new to chickens, to factor that into what I have to say.

1) Based on your drawing, it looks like your roost is only about 6 inches from the wall. I worry that might be too close for the chickens to roost comfortably once they are full-grown. I suggest at least 10 inches from the roost to the wall, 12 would be even better.

2) I can't tell from the drawing if the big, clean-out door goes all the way to the floor of the coop or not. I would definitely recommend that, if it doesn't. That way, you can just sweep out all the debris instead of having to shovel it over the edge. I used a couple of removable boards to keep the bedding in place. I just pull up the boards when I want to remove the litter and replace when I'm done. Pic below, showing what I mean:

3) Regarding size, I'm going to go against what 90% of the folks here will probably say. I have 12 chickens in an 8x4 foot coop and they seem perfectly comfortable with lots of extra space. That comes out to less than 3 sq ft per chicken. Of course, I have yet to go through a winter and our winters are much milder than yours. We have had some very rainy days since I put them outside, when they all just hung out in the 4x8 area under the coop and they didn't seem to quarrel at all. So, imho, I think your COOP could easily house 6 chickens, but that is assuming they can go out into the run during the day.

HOWEVER, I have also found the 10 sq ft per chicken in the RUN recommendation to be inadequate. I started with 120 sq ft run and it was great ... when my chickens were 8 weeks old. By 10 weeks, it felt crowded to me and now, at 14 weeks, it would definitely be cramped. Luckily, my plans included a split run and the 120 sq ft section was only the first part. I added a second ~200 sq ft section and now it feels great. My entire run comes out to ~26 sq ft per chicken and I would not want it any smaller.

I realize not everyone has the space for this, I just wanted to throw out my observations while you were still in the planning phase. If you have the ability to expand your run, I would strongly encourage you to do so. Or do as I did, start with a small, grow-out run and add on a second, larger run for when they are older. In the end, you will have to build what you have the space and resources for, but this might be something to keep in mind when deciding upon the size of your flock. I personally feel that run size is far more important than coop size, but my chickens only use their coop to sleep at night. Chickens that are confined to the coop for long periods will probably need more space inside as well.

Again, I am very new to chickens and can only speak from a few short months of observation. Take my input for what it is worth. Good luck and enjoy this experience!

 

[Alaskan]

Since you live where it gets cold with snow.... if you want to stay with the little coop... I would highly and strongly recommend a roofed run.

 

[gtaus]

... Regarding size, I'm going to go against what 90% of the folks here will probably say. I have 12 chickens in an 8x4 foot coop and they seem perfectly comfortable with lots of extra space. That comes out to less than 3 sq ft per chicken. … I personally feel that run size is far more important than coop size, but my chickens only use their coop to sleep at night. Chickens that are confined to the coop for long periods will probably need more space inside as well.

Where I live in northern Minnesota, I was basically told to take the 4 sq ft per bird minimum and double that because our winters can be long and harsh. You don't want too many birds in a small coop building up the humidity which could lead to frostbite. Also, since the chickens spend most of the winter in their coop, you need to give them more room so that they don't drive themselves crazy. Also, everyone says double your expected coop size because of chicken math, which I gather for OP is a hard limit and does not apply.

I do agree that the more chicken run you can provide helps. I have 10 chicks in a 13X13 run, but hope to double that next year.

 

[Alaskan]

Where I live in northern Minnesota, I was basically told to take the 4 sq ft per bird minimum and double that because our winters can be long and harsh. You don't want too many birds in a small coop building up the humidity which could lead to frostbite. Also, since the chickens spend most of the winter in their coop, you need to give them more room so that they don't drive themselves crazy. Also, everyone says double your expected coop size because of chicken math, which I gather for OP is a hard limit and does not apply.

I do agree that the more chicken run you can provide helps. I have 10 chicks in a 13X13 run, but hope to double that next year.

All true. X2

 

[gtaus]

Since you live where it gets cold with snow.... if you want to stay with the little coop... I would highly and strongly recommend a roofed run.

I agree. However, a solid snow weight bearing roof gets very expensive very fast. A small roof would be easy to build, but anything large quickly escalates the price and complexity of building something strong enough to carry the load.

I am thinking of building a covered winter run. Are there some designs proven to be both cost effective and strong enough to carry a snow load? I had about 3 feet of snow on my house roof last winter (it was a heavy snow year), but the house roof is built to carry that load. Anyway, a covered run that was affordable and safe for the snow load would be nice. Currently I am considering just a couple 4x8 sheets of plywood/OSB in an A frame design, giving me about a 6X8 covered run. Any better suggestions?

 

[aart]

Currently I am considering just a couple 4x8 sheets of plywood/OSB in an A frame design, giving me about a 6X8 covered run. Any better suggestions?

Looks like 'new thread' material

 

[Alaskan]

I agree. However, a solid snow weight bearing roof gets very expensive very fast. A small roof would be easy to build, but anything large quickly escalates the price and complexity of building something strong enough to carry the load.

The roof doesn't need to be strong, if it is steep.

Just make the roof steep enough to shed the snow.

 

[mdquilts]

A snow rake is an easy option too. A quick clearing when you go out for eggs