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Coop?

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I built my own from looking at different ideas, but if you don't have the time or inclination to try it yourself try looking on craigslist in your area. Where I am at there are several retired guys building coops and tractor type coops (you can move them easily to different parts of your lawn) and they do some excellent work and use much more predator/weather proof materials for same price or less than a prefab. If you want a run watch for used dog kennels, another craigslist/garage sale item I use are used pet carriers they can be found real cheap and they make good nests for broody hens or isolation hospital for any chickens that needs to be away from the flock for awhile. I enjoy recycling materials for useful afterlife! And have seen some brilliant ideas on this site. There is pic now on this site of someone that recycled an old large tv dish as a roof for a round coop. Very cool!!
 
Cryss said:
I have that exact coop. I've never had chickens before and got my first 4 just this last November. I bought this coop with the intent that it would get me started and I could build a bigger coop in the Spring. Well, it's Spring! Boy have I learned a lot, both from experience and from BYC.
First the coop itself. I didn't know it needed to be painted. Heck, it looks pretty cool as is so I thought it WAS painted. This is the being of "What I didn't know that I didn't know". It would have been a piece of cake to paint inside and out by doing so before assembly. Assembly itself was pretty easy. My hubby and grandson did it for me but I could have done it.
Once assembled I saw that the latch for the nest area doesn't close it flush making it easy for a raccoon/rat/whatever to pry it open just enough to reach in or get in. I installed a bolt latch on the top corners both sides and use a carribiner on the original latch to confuse raccoons. Then I stuck my head inside the clean out door and saw light coming from gaps around the nest door. Not good! Drafts are deadly. (More on that in a bit). I screwed thin bits of 1 inch wide wood strips to all 4 of the inside edges of the nest doorway so that when the door was closed the door would be flush against the strips blocking drafts. I ended up needing to do the same to the clean out door. I also saw a gap in the wall between boards. That could be handled the same way from inside or outside. Once again, wish I had known this before assembly. Climbing halfway inside to use a screw driver or hammer isn't easy.
Ok, now I have it draft free. :) Wait, what about that HUGE gap above the pop door!:eek: Do NOT block That! This is for ventilation. Don't confuse drafts with ventilation. Drafts are low enough to blow cold air on birds which can kill them. Ventilation is the open area well above the birds heads when roosting that allows moist warm air to rise up and out preventing condensation which causes frostbite.
I accidentally broke the ramp loose whch just proved to me how weak the "wood" is in this whole construction. I reinforced it with a wider board screwed on underneath.
Weak a$$ wood made me think about how easily a predator could tear into it.
Heck, I could probably rip a hole with my fingernails given enough time. A predator would be through in minutes. :mad: I began researching. :caf
So let's stop here a bit and discuss the coops run and a bit about free ranging.
I thought that cute little run would be enough for them. Turns out what I didn't know that I didn't know was that each chicken needs 10 square feet of run space. This coop run is roughly 3x7 which gives about 21 sq. ft. That's only good for 2 birds. In the hen house they only need 4 sq. ft per bird. This hen house is roughly 3x3 giving about 9 sq. ft. Again, only enough for 2 birds. And that measurement includes the nesting area which needs to be a separate measurement! Whew! What I didn't know that I didn't know! So, is free range an option? Not so much for me as I have predators from rats and coons to fox and bear. In the interest of time I bought a 10x10 chain link dog run that I protected by wrapping with 1/2 inch hardware cloth, including an "apron" of hardware cloth to discourage diggers. The coop is inside the new run. Unfortunatey What I didn't know that I didn't know was that the coop shouldn't be directly on the ground. Not only will it break down the "wood" base but stuff gets in the way of opening and closing the bottom double door...dirt, snow, wood chips, anything the chooks scratch up and send flying. I should have put it up on a cinder block base or something. Live n learn.
Guess what. Raccoons can climb. So can almost every predator. And did I mention hawks, owls, etc.? Don't think you have them? They'll show up when your chickens start life in the coop. I covered the run top too. 1/2 inch hardware cloth keeps climbers out.
Ok, all safe. Gotta feed n water 'em. Can't fit it inside hen house. Don't want water inside anyway, causes condensation leading to frostbite in winter, wet dripping humidity in summer. Find a place in the run where the chickens can't be above dishes and poop in them. Hanging them is best. So don't be under roost or ramp. Only area left is underneath hen house, very difficult to access.
One more point. You have to take into consideration Chicken Math. I started in November with 4 pullets (aka young female chickens). I now have 5. I have my eye on 3 more. I dream of 12. Chicken math is calculated in the heart. Always go bigger than you THINK you will need for a coop keeping in mind the dimensions per bird. 4 sq ft inside coop, 10 sq ft in run. Count your current birds, then give Chicken Math some serious thought before you start build.;)
So. Can you use this coop? Yes. Temporarily with adjustments. But, why spend money on that when you can build cheaper? I'm looking to build using pallets.:cool:
Don't let any of this discourage you. Just research here, ask questions, and most of all, enjoy your feahered babies:jumpy:jumpy:jumpy:jumpy. It's all worth it.:thumbsup
Click to expand...
I would only feel comfortable with them free ranging while I’m outside just because we have a lot of predators around here. I have a big chain link dog pin that the dogs have only used a handful of times so I was thinking of using that as the run and building a coop big enough for them to sleep and putting it in the dog pin. I would definitely have to do some stuff to the pin to make it predator proof but I think that would probably be the best option, at least for right now.
 
Also a little off topic but my chicks are about 11 days old, when can I start bringing them outside just for a little while? (With me out there too) and when should I start putting them in the coop?
 
Momlife+chicks said:
I would only feel comfortable with them free ranging while I’m outside just because we have a lot of predators around here. I have a big chain link dog pin that the dogs have only used a handful of times so I was thinking of using that as the run and building a coop big enough for them to sleep and putting it in the dog pin. I would definitely have to do some stuff to the pin to make it predator proof but I think that would probably be the best option, at least for right now.
Click to expand...
Here' mine, scroll down a bit on this link for pictures.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/sand-as-litter.1209365/
 

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