Could you post pics of your ladder-type (staggered) roosts please?

[gritsar]

In my adult coop all the roosts are at the same, low height because I didn't want the brahmas to injure legs jumping down from heights. Having them all on the same level takes up alot of coop space though.

I'd like to try the ladder-type roosts in the new coop, but need to see some pics to get the idea of how they go together. Do you have to notch the uprights to fit the 2x4s into, as you would steps?

TIA

 

[Happy Chooks]

I'm building a new coop too and also interested, so I'll be looking forward to the responses.

 

[The Sheriff]

Scroll down on this thread: https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=294259&p=4

 

[NevadaRon]

I used closet poles - like you hang your clothes on. I figured round would be easier for the birds to grasp. Here is a picture, but you can only see the center support, which I just put under the poles, then screwed them down to it. The ends are screwed through the 2x4 directly into the center of the pole. They are spaced 12 inches apart.

 

[Kittymomma]

Well, I have a ladder style roost (I'll get pics tomorrow) but am changing over to a 2x4 single level set-up because I don't like the ladder style. Mine is built so I can raise it up and prop a 2x4 under it to make cleaning easier, but it takes up a huge amount of room in the coop. The chickens can walk under it, but don't really seem to want to and I can't get a poop board under there that is big enough to do the job, but small enough to pull out for easy cleaning. There is also a lot of squabling for the top rung and they crowd up there and to a lesser extent on the next highest rung but won't use the bottom two at all. The other thing I don't like about mine is that I used alder saplings for the roost, I know now that 2x4's would have been better for them, but either way the design itself isn't working out well for me.

I'm putting in two 7' 2x4 roosts about 4 1/2' off the floor with a poop board about 18" below the roosts. I may adjust the height etc. a bit as I put things together, but I'm hoping that the poop board will be an easy height for me to scrape and that they'll make better use of the floor space below the roosts. The nest boxes on the end of the coop have platforms in front of each level and they use that now to get to the top roost, but I may add a ramp to the new set up as well.

It would be better if I could "see" how things go together without having to put it together first, but I don't have that talent so I tend to have to modify as I go. Wish me luck.


--I don't have any truly heavy breeds so am not as concerned about the height, but my dual purpose birds never use the ladder to get down in the morning, only to climb up at night. In the morning they all fly/flop off of the top two rungs of the ladder roost so your Brahmas may do the same thing???

We used (ugh, can never remember names of things!) The metal strapping that I think plumbers use to secure the saplings to the 2x4's , it's been up for over 1 1/2 years and nothing has shifted so it works pretty well.

ETA: I got some brackets that I'm going to use to secure the 2x4 roosts to the 2x4 frame on the new set up. I think they would work well for a 2x4 ladder roost as well so if you want I'll take pictures of them tomorrow too and/or go find my Home Depot receipt from today so I can tell you what kind of brackets they are.

 

[NevadaRon]

Quote:
Plumber's tape

 

[Tala]

I cut to length and used framing brackets (about 75cents each at Home Depot type places)

They have a screw halfway driven in so that they don't "wobble" in the brackets, but I can back it out if I want to remove the boards for any reason.
See screw?

The top one is 3ft up and the bottom one is 2ft high, all the adults sleep on the top row, pullets/underlings on the bottom. They also use the bottom as a stair step.

I am aware that many people use the 2x4 wider side up, but it just doesn't get THAT cold very often in Arkansas. The birds like these roosts just fine.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Since you need to space the roosts about 1 foot apart if they are level to give the birds room to roost or 1 foot apart horizontally if you are building a ladder roost so they don't poop on each other too much, I don't see that you really save any coop room with a ladder roost. There are other valid reasons for a ladder roost, like having breeds that may not be able to fly up to a roost but you may want to space them a little further than 1 foot apart to reduce them pooping on each other a bit. Just thought I would mention it.

There are different techniques for attaching the 2x4's depending on how you are building them. If you are building them outside the coop and moving them in, or if you have room to get to the outside of your "vertical/diagonal" runner you can put two screws or nails from the outside of the runner into the 2x4's to hold them into place. Probably the easiest way to build them but it can be difficult to get them in the door and attached to the wall. Depends on your layout.

If you are building them in place the brackets are a good way to go. Or you can toenail the horizontal roosts in place, either with nails or screws. If you use something larger than a 2x4 for the vertical diagonals and notch them, you may be able to just lift them out to get them out of your way for cleaning. If your vertical diagonals are not against the wall, you could maybe notch both the vertical diagonals and the horizontals and get a good tight fit that would not turn over and still be fairly easy to just lift off. That would keep the horizontal from sliding in the notch. Or you could notch a 2x4 enough to get the 2x4 roost to set in place and toenail it into position.

If you are not set on 2x4's for the horizontal roosts, get some tree limbs and drill holes where they meet your supports. Then drill vertical holes in your supports to match. Next, drop a 4" or 5" nail through the roost and into the support. Very easy to remove for cleaning. That's how I did mine but mine are level, not the ladder type. It would still work for a ladder type.

Have fun with it.

 

[darkmatter]

Quote:
Check out my Coop on my BYC page. My ladder roost is pivoted to lift up out of the way for cleaning out the compost/litter for the garden. I rounded the 2x4 corners on the upper end, and drilled a hole in the center for a carriage bolt which also runs through the frame 2x4. I have a pulley mounted overhead with the wire cable run through pulleys to the side of the door with a counterweight to make pulling up the roost easier, there is a loop on the end of the cable with hooks to position the roost where I want it. You may notice that I also placed a couple cross braces on the ladder roost to keep it rigid. I did notch out the 2x4 for the 2x2 roosting poles which I also rounded off the upper edge. I left it unpainted as recommended in various publications.

 

[Sledrock]

My roosts:

I built a 2x4 frame, 4 foot deep by 8 foot long x 2 foot high. Then I took 2 2x4s, spaced them a foot apart and parallel and stapled 2x4 wire to the narrow sides of them. (The wire was 8 feet long and 4 feet wide.) Then I put the wire (with 2 2x4's attached) inside my 4x8 frame and nailed all the sides to the frame. (The wire is on the bottom of the 2x4s) So the birds have 24 feet of roost (the 2 2x4s in middle and the board on the front of roost. (On the front board - It's 50-50 whether the bird's but hangs over the roost pit or over the outside)

On the front of the roost, I made a 2x4 frame, covered it with wire and attached the frame with hinges to the top, front part of the roost frame. (I can swivel the front frame up to clean out under the roosts)

On the floor under the roosts, I put an old 4x8 piece of slick linoleum where the poop falls to.

To clean out: I swivel up the front panel and use a hoe to pull the poop to the front where I can shovel it into a wheelbarrow or bucket.

It takes up a lot of space, but the cleanout feature seems to make it worthwhile, plus with the birds all being on the same level, it eliminates any competition for higher roosts on the ladder-type roosts.