Coop Design - Need some feedback!

[hooplehead]

hello all!

I am a newbie here and am getting back into chickens. I had chickens when I was a young girl and loved them. It is very thrilling to be able to have them once again.

Anyway, I have worked out a rough design for my coop/run and wanted some feedback on improvements to the design before we start building it. I figure that I will have 15-17 chickens. My run will probably not be as big as I have shown and I have already decided to make the building 6 foot tall in the front and 4 foot tall in the back to save money on lumber. I am considering eliminating the windows and replacing them with large (2'x4') openings (with wire over them) that have flaps to cover them in cold weather. I would put them on the east and west sides of the coop for cross ventilation.

I live in Northeast Georgia, climate zone 7b. The front of the coop will be facing north.

Anyway, I look forward to hearing what you guys think!

 

[kinnip]

I wish I had a door I could just walk through. Ours is off the ground, so I have to climb a step stool to get in. If you do leave it open on the sides, use hardware cloth to cover the openings. Honestly, I wouldn't give up on the windows so soon. Freecycle is pretty hoppin' in this part of GA. You may want to add another water/food station on the opposite side somewhere, just in case someone gets territorial.

 

[DawnSuiter]

Hiya Hoople,
I'm just going to throw in a couple of cents here for ya, take them or leave them.

and I have already decided to make the building 6 foot tall in the front and 4 foot tall in the back to save money on lumber

If your a builder type person, no problem
If you NOT, I would suggest to you, to NOT go so drastic from from to back. See.. I tried 7' to 6' and the cut on my lumber to make it all fit was too much, I had to buy hangers.
I would suggest you only drop a few inches from front to back, to make your roof installation that much easier. A few inches, even 2 should be sufficient for rain & what little snow you might ever get.

I also don't use real windows.. just 2X4 framed "holes" in the walls with hardware cloth covering them. In summer on the windy/rainy side I have a shower curtain to cover them up and the rest in the winter I will use heavy plastic.

My coop also faces south so that they will get lots of winter light... course the back of yours will also.. just something to think about.

Welcome BACK to owning chickens... this is my first time! Hope it's all your hoping for!​

 

[hooplehead]

Hmm, I might see if I could put a regular window in the south side for some natural light. I will be putting wire or hardware cloth over the openings. I am having a hard time breaking the mentality of the lightless ventless broiler houses.

The building part is no problem since my FIL is taking the leaad and he is a general contractor *thank goodness*

You are right, I should no make the slope as drastic on the roof, I will see what the slope is on the pole barn that is next to the coop site and see if I can do the coop roof at the same pitch so it looks nice.

 

[C & A s Dad]

You are headed in the right direction.

I am certainly no expert but just completed my coop and you may pick up some ideas from my post "A Labor of Love" Take a look and see if that will help you some as I posted a link in that thread of the website where I found my base plans.

Also, notice the trap door I installed for "wash day". It may not be as handy as I think it will be but we will see.

 

[willkatdawson]

I am so glad to see your post! I am also from Ga (acworth) and just now am waiting for my order of chicks to arrive. When I was young my sister raised RRs for a 4H project and I just loved them. The plan you have drawn is almost exactly like the one we have just built. The only differance is ours has a play house above. I will try and take a pic and post it. Also I have ordered 16 dayold chicks to be here 8-1-08. Do you have any interest in having any of these? The min order was 15 and I only want around 8. The breeds are buff orpington, speckled sussex, and barred rock. One of the is supposed to be a buff orpington Rooster so I would need to let them grow a bit to tell which one he is. I chose these breeds because I have two children and these breeds are supposed to be good with people, calm, curious, and sweet is what everything I read about them said.

 

[hooplehead]

WKD, I can't wait to see pics of your coop, it sounds interesting. I also LOVE The Labor of Love coop. I am planning to blog the chicken coop construction. I blogged my home addition/remodel last year and it was great fun.

I have a handfull of game crosses that I are still in the brooder, I plan to keep some of the girls from that group. I will be giving the rest away. My plan is to order a group of "dream chickens" from the backyard chicken site. I want Dominiques, RIRs, Easter Eggers and Silver and Gold laced Wynadottes. I am going to order 3 of each and then find homes for the extras if they all make it.

I want to have a rooster but am having a hard time figuring out what type would be really pretty and not too aggressive.

 

[willkatdawson]

Hope this pic come thru ok. As you can see we are still working but almost done.

 

[s6bee]

Looks great! To save money, I would see if you had any friends in the construction business that may have scraps left over from a job ( just give him a list of items needed ) and sometimes you can find stuff on craigslist. As long as the coop get some light and air, and being in Georgia, I think the plan is good. You may want a window somewhere though just for the cold days so sunlight can get in. Windows can be found on craiglist all the time.

Good luck and show us the finished project.

 

[clarkestep]

Quote:
Hey Neighbor! I'm in Cartersville! I just saw the pic of your playhouse/coop! Cute! I also have 2 boys about the age of your son. They are just now 11 and 12 and we homeschool. We, too, have just gotten into chickens. Ours are mutts, though! We got the eggs from our neighbor so they were free. Can't complain! Anyway! Hello from Cartersville!

PS I may be interested in some of your excess chicks depending on how many of mine are actually boys. DH says I can only have about 10 total. So far we've got 4-13 week old gals, and 10- 4.5 wk old mixed chicks.