Coop in the making

[FuzzyChicken]

Thank you all for the advice. I've got a few months to decide on my ultimate plan. You have given me food for thought.

 

[FuzzyChicken]

As work allows I've been tackling some of the repairs to my little shed in the hopes of constructing my coop. First off was to remove the door.


I started giving the interior a good once-over. I found some wood rot in the floor, which was covered by a scrap piece of OSB. I suspect this part of the shed, in it's former life, was exposed to the elements hence the damage.



Once I removed the scrap wood I was able to get a good sense of the extent of the rot. No doubt it was continually exposed to rain and/or wet conditions. I suspect the door was routinely left open or agar allowing rain to fall on this one part. The rest of the coop floor is intact but was soft and spongy in areas.



So I decided to remove the upper part of the shed from the base. I will commend the previous owner who in building the shed attached it to the base using lag bolts. I removed these and lifted the structure off. Oh ya, and by the way, this sucker is heavy.





With the floor removed I inspected the base. For the most part it is good. It's constructed of pressure treated wood. Aesthetically, it's well-aged but solid and the base is square. The corners are half-lap constructed. We can get a lot of rain here on PEI in addition to snow and ice in the winters. I didn't want to build a new base as I'm trying to re-purpose as much as I can. With some scrap 4x4 PT lumber I elevated the base 18" and strengthened some of the weak areas, which will support the floor.





Base is nice and solid now and can withstand me walking on top of it, which is no easy feat ; ). I will be giving the entire base a good once-over with the rasp file and sander just to remove any sharp edges.

Next I will be adding a new floor of 3/4" plywood, lifting the structure back on top and bolting the entire thing back on. I will have to enlist some of my work colleagues to help with the lifting back on. Did I mention that this sucker is heavy!!!!!

So, to date, I've spent $125 to purchase the shed and $40 on the sheet of plywood for the floor.

I still haven't figured out how I'm going to arrange the interior (place chicken door, nest boxes, roost's, etc). If any of you have some ideas, please weigh in. I appreciate all the help and guidance you can give.

 

[Jakoda]

nice job Ok I'll throw out my ideas for the interior on what I would do

The door would be for "my" access to the coop. With that in mind, I'd have that door on the outside of my run area, again for easy access and cleaning.

I'd most likely have the 6ft length of the coop, abutt my fencing..with the roost going along the 6 foot length of the interior, a poop board beneath it, and my nesting boxes beneath that (all to save space) I like my nesting boxes INSIDE vs outside, makes for less critter invasion and better use of 'heat' in winter.

The reason I'd do the long roost , is you mentioned 3-5 hens..Not sure going on the 4ft section that would be enough roosting space for 5 hens. Altho it could work.

I'd also do my chicken door on the opposite wall of the roost, off to the side, to be able to use more "side" space for hanging food/water containers. (Maybe do it opposite the side of YOUR access door, so you can easily access the food/water when you open your big door.

I'd probably put a couple of 'vents" ABOVE the roosts in the peakes for ventilation...And Ideally, I'd throw in a nice big window) maybe along the opposite side of the roosts/..

Ok those are my ideas) good luck with your project
Diane

 

[FuzzyChicken]

Diane,

those are awesome ideas!!!! I just kinda drew up what you suggested and it works out nicely. I have plans for the venting. I have 2 re-purposed windows for free from a local window shop specifically for the coop. Thanks again for your input - much appreciated! Keep checking in for progress pic's.

 

[Jakoda]

ok glad you liked them) Definitely keep updated with pics I am going to be re-doing my dutch barn this spring (sandy storm destroyed it, but left the 12 x 4 area for chickens so am excited to grab ideas here and there for a redo

 

[3forfree]

I was given a 5x8 shed and took a good look at it as you are doing, the only thing that could be saved was the base and wall framing and the steel roof panels. everything else was water damaged. What I'm going to do is raise it high enough to get a wheel barrow under it for clean out. then build from there. I'm also butting it up against a dog kennel, and haven't come up with a way to attach it to each other. I need to build fast as the birds have been in my basement until they outgrew the brooder. then they were in the garage till they outgrew that. now they are in the barn and it's getting trashed as they are fighting and just being chickens and need something bigger.

 

[PEI chicken]

Hi Fuzzy chicken

Glad to see that you have started to build your coop. You've received good advice. I also would recommend that you butt the coop up next to the run to give the chickens more room outside. You would still be able to use the space under the coop by securing it with wire cloth and use an apron of wire too around all to prevent anything from digging under.

I would recommend that you feed and water your chickens outside your coop too, except in the coldest days of winter. This prevents water spills inside the coop, which should be kept dry as possible. I use a heated pet bowl under the coop in the wintertime. It also encourages the chickens to stay outside their coop in the daytime (less mess inside).

You had sent me a personal message about my spprs. Today my chickens were out in the snow. I threw some treats in the snow in their run and it wasn't long and they were gobbling them up and disregarding the snow. I try not to pamper them too much. No heat, except for the heated water bowl. This is okay for chickens that were bred to live in a cold climate (like Plymouth Rocks and others). Probably not so good for silkies or other fancy poultry.

Anyway, good luck with your coop. Glad you can work at it inside, since it looks like winter has finally arrived.

Merry Christmas!

 

[FuzzyChicken]

Happy holidays everyone! Even with all the hustle and bustle of the season, I still managed to get a few reno's completed on the coop. Like many of you I scour the forums/pictures on this site for ideas and advice. I also appreciate the comments given. This project really is a labour of love and I find myself lamenting over where to put nesting boxes, roosts, ventilation, etc. From what I gather no coop is ever perfect and changes will invariably be made. As I mentioned before I'm trying to re-purpose/recycle what I have on hand and what I can scrounge from dumpsters, etc. For those of you that remember the sitcom, the name "Sanford" springs to mind, but I have been able to get my hands on some nice pallet wood to re-side the coop and a couple windows. I also set out one day to get some lino for the coop floor. I was adamant with myself that I was not paying any more than $20 for a remnant. After visiting a few stores I finally found a 5X7 piece priced for $30. I offered to pay $20 and was flat out told "no". After some negotiating with the store manager I was able to get the lino for my set price of $20.00. Anyways, as promised, I have posted some pic's of the upgrades made to date;

New sub-floor of 3/4 plywood (this was a needed expense) and new lino floor installed.






I was able to convince a few of the boys from work to help me lift the structure back onto the base.



Started work on the people door. Removed the old boards and framed in one of the aforementioned free windows. Hinged the window allowing me to open it for additional ventilation. Dry-fitted the door and I think it will work nicely. I will add some hardware cloth on the inside to prevent any intruders.









Until next post, Happy New Year to you all!

 

[backyardcelia]

wow a fantastic find and great work! i look forward to seeing your progress. & congratulations on your negotiation skills! also, i LOVE your window design.

 

[FuzzyChicken]

Well, winter has definitely landed on PEI. In between snow storms and shoveling marathons I have been working away at the coop. I also ordered my chicks (2 Silkies, 2 Barred Rocks, and 2 Silver Laced Wyandottes) and they should be arriving in May.

Coop reno's to date:

Cut out and installed another window on one of the side walls.



I put hinges on this one as well to allow me to open and provide some extra ventilation in the summer. I will be putting a screen (to prevent bugs) covered by hardware cloth over the openings.



Built my nesting boxes using scrap wood which will be mounted inside the coop. I went with the 14x14 square design and it is 2-tiered.





That's it to date. I will post more as the reno's continue. Take care all.