Coop in progress...bad planning?

[Hobbits Mommie]

So, mine is built with "leg supports", and yes, rotting is a concern. I live literally in the Florida swamps which means the water table is only about 2 ft down. I'm just now figuring out that I could have used concrete support blocks, even then though, I'm not sure it would have lasted forever. I have learned though that if you want to keep your flock alive, you HAVE to use hardware cloth, no bigger than 1/4" diameter to keep rodents, snakes, or anything else out. I lost 3 birds before I perfected this.

 

[jthornton]

One thing to keep in the back of your head about compost/deep litter/deep bedding and slopes, the chickens will feel obligated to move everything to the bottom of the slope. In fact it's a game we play, I pitchfork everything to the top of the slope they scratch it all down... over and over because it's so much fun.

JT

 

[Compost King]

I clean out coops once a year... (the coop I showed in pictures is a work in progress so this doesn't apply to that until I build a containment lip) My coop cleaning schedule is designed around my Nursery/Composting Schedule. I just add layers of straw or other bedding material when poop builds up and let it pile up. I will throw in certain dusts on occasion to prevent parasites. If for some reason a coop has issues with too much bedding I will clean it out and throw it in the run which is already filled with other organic goodies that attract bugs/worms. Chickens scratch it all up for me.. great workers. How often you clean out a coop will be based on your circumstances. the drier you keep a coop the less often you need to change out bedding. I am finding this out the hard way which is the best way to learn.

 

[Compost King]

One thing to keep in the back of your head about compost/deep litter/deep bedding and slopes, the chickens will feel obligated to move everything to the bottom of the slope. In fact it's a game we play, I pitchfork everything to the top of the slope they scratch it all down... over and over because it's so much fun.

JT

LOL so I am not the only one who has fun doing that. Sometimes I am not happy unless I have a pitch fork in my hand.

 

[Compost King]

for a cheap coop, if you can get away with it, an old dead van that isn't worth the effort to fix up. Needs to be in the shade though. I am not sure if my city has codes on people keeping old vehicles in the back. Luckily though they have the most relaxed chicken codes I have ever seen... 2 common sense rules 1. Keep the chickens on your property 2. Keep them in Humane Conditions. (Salisbury NC)

 

[SomeChickinTN]

for a cheap coop, if you can get away with it, an old dead van that isn't worth the effort to fix up. Needs to be in the shade though. I am not sure if my city has codes on people keeping old vehicles in the back. Luckily though they have the most relaxed chicken codes I have ever seen... 2 common sense rules 1. Keep the chickens on your property 2. Keep them in Humane Conditions. (Salisbury NC)

My father in law used an old truck topper for his coop. But he lives back in the woods.. My city seems to be really vague. I'm on the edges of city limits, and I called multiple times to verify that I can have them. All she said was I can have roosters, and all the chickens have to be penned up. I don't even know how many I can have. There's someone living right in town with chickens too, so I guess they are pretty relaxed too.

 

[Hobbits Mommie]

My father in law used an old truck topper for his coop. But he lives back in the woods.. My city seems to be really vague. I'm on the edges of city limits, and I called multiple times to verify that I can have them. All she said was I can have roosters, and all the chickens have to be penned up. I don't even know how many I can have. There's someone living right in town with chickens too, so I guess they are pretty relaxed too.

You should look online for your city's local ordinances to be sure you didn't get someone too lazy to answer the question correctly at the government office. Speaking from experience.

 

[SomeChickinTN]

You should look online for your city's local ordinances to be sure you didn't get someone too lazy to answer the question correctly at the government office. Speaking from experience.

Yeah, I've been worried about that possibility, but I've tried every search term I can think of and can't find a zoning/ordinance page for my town. That's why I called them a few times. Incidentally, there are at least two other states that have regulation sites for their town with the same name....

 

[Arielle2]

Deep litter--- while deep litter works on the ground, the bedding that is on a floor tends to stay much drier. Remove it as you need to to refresh. Use in your gardens as dumping in the run will create a mucky area eventually as you dont seem to have a lot of drainage with that native soil.

The run. Chickens will love scraps tossed to them, and the extra will decompose. Just watch the the top material is rather course and good draining to keep the girls dry. Remove the lowest level close to the soil level as needed, and dump in a garden.

We all started somewhere with a coop. Look at the Woods style for a great one. Stability is important, how material is attached to each other is key. We use PT if touches the ground. Purchase a few odds ad ends for the structure then use "found" material. Here I use plywood. It is free and the gaps are over a structural 2x4 or 2x3.

THe concrete blocks just hold water, and increase the rotting rate. I have a couple coops that were built on pallets layed on the ground. They have lasted some 4 years. Two need to be rebuilt as the flooring has rotted with out air flow underneath to keep them dry and prevent/slow down rot.

 

[SomeChickinTN]

Deep litter--- while deep litter works on the ground, the bedding that is on a floor tends to stay much drier. Remove it as you need to to refresh. Use in your gardens as dumping in the run will create a mucky area eventually as you dont seem to have a lot of drainage with that native soil.

The run. Chickens will love scraps tossed to them, and the extra will decompose. Just watch the the top material is rather course and good draining to keep the girls dry. Remove the lowest level close to the soil level as needed, and dump in a garden.

We all started somewhere with a coop. Look at the Woods style for a great one. Stability is important, how material is attached to each other is key. We use PT if touches the ground. Purchase a few odds ad ends for the structure then use "found" material. Here I use plywood. It is free and the gaps are over a structural 2x4 or 2x3.

THe concrete blocks just hold water, and increase the rotting rate. I have a couple coops that were built on pallets layed on the ground. They have lasted some 4 years. Two need to be rebuilt as the flooring has rotted with out air flow underneath to keep them dry and prevent/slow down rot.

Thanks. This means that I probably shouldn't cover all the holes in the floor, right? It aids in ventilation......Can I use mulch in the run as a compost base? I know where there is a mountain of free mulch, but I'm not sure what's in it... You're not supposed to use certain kinds of wood chips, right?