Deep breath - totally new coop plans for 'Les Poules' after being here!

[PouleChick]

I think you guys are awesome - I have learnt huuuuge amounts from threads on here however you've made me have to redo all my coop plans!

I'd spent so many evenings a couple of years ago sorting out my coop plans. Luckily as it turns out I spent more time on here and didnt' ever get around to building it as I would have had a seriously %(&*)(*ed off husband a few months down the line when I would have told him that actually I have made a huge mistake and the coop we just spent however many euros and hours on was just totally too small and we'd have to start again as I'll totally need more than 6 chickens!

My original plans can be seen here (with descriptions ofr plan b which I thought would be enough ):
https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...es-help-feedback-for-a-newbie-please.1094735/ and you can see those who have caused me all the extra work totally redoing my plans!

I'm thinking 12 chickens are a more realistic number and I'm building to fit 18 What do you think - it has been doing my head in how to make my concrete base bigger (2 x 2.2 m) and realised I can make a clever poop under roost drop with hardcloth off the edge of the existing concrete to add 1/3 extra space and eliminate the daily cleaning of a poop board which I'd been planning (as it will just drop out into an area underneath it which I can either layer other compost stuff (leaves / grass etc) and let it compost in place or dig it out when needed and move to the compost pile.

The other thing my new design allows is a hospital / brooder area within the coop and all of it now in a walk in coop which on reflection with my slightly dodgy back will I think be a godsend! I haven't got the different walls drawn up yet (with lots of ventilation!) but thought I'd run the floor plan by you guys at this point for some feedback.

 

[PouleChick]

Oh and you'll note although I'm totally allergic to the old fashioned feet thing I even went and translated all my metre measurements to feet so you guys who are in the states can understand my plans and sizes easily

 

[PouleChick]

Grrr can't work out how you can make it bigger to see the writing etc. Hmmph I need my bed. I hope you cna see what you need to!

 

[Folly's place]

It's hard to see your drawing/ dimensions, but 2m x 3m isn't really that large; I think way small for 18 birds. Most of us plan on a bit over 1m sq. per bird in the coop, and larger is better.
Also, chicken poo will NOT gently drift down through 1/2" (1 cm.) hardware cloth. It will stick on top and be miserable to clean off.
Mary

 

[lazy gardener]

For 12 birds, you will need a total of 48 sq. ft. You should have 12 linear feet of perch, and the perch(es ) should be 2 - 3' above the floor of the coop and at least 18" below the roof. The back perch should be at least 12" away from the back wall, and there should be plenty of room in front of the perches so the birds can jump down without doing a face plant. @aart has a nice article about maximizing your space by taking advantage of stackable vertical spacing. Lots of ventilation: = to 10% of your floor space or 1 s.f./bird is also important. Natural lighting is also a must! Welcome and happy planning.

 

[squirtsmomma]

I used hardware cloth in the bottom of the house, below a roost in a chicken tractor so poop would just fall through, and I constantly had to scrape and use the garden hose to clear it. Wish I never had put it in. Just a thought. Don't you love the excitement of planning? We all live and learn.

 

[aart]

@aart has a nice article about maximizing your space by taking advantage of stackable vertical spacing.

Not really maximizing per se...just some general guidelines for heights.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/coop-stack-up-how-high-should-stuff-be.73427/

It's hard to see your drawing/ dimensions, but 2m x 3m isn't really that large; I think way small for 18 birds.

2m x 3m is about 7' x 10'.....so, yeah, a bit tight for for 18 birds,
12 birds would be better.

Will have to look closer in the morning when more awake.

 

[Brahma Chicken5000]

First off, the 4 square ft per bird rule only applies IMO if you are free ranging your chickens and they’ll be locked inside the henhouse when there’s bad weather. If your chickens are only going to sleep and lay in the henhouse and you have a covered attached run that they have daytime access to then you could do 2 square ft per chicken in the henhouse.

 

[aart]

particularly the 'how much space do they need' one. In that you wrote

I did not write that article, but it's a good one so I have it linked in my signature.

Yes, you can have a smaller coop(less floor space) in mild temps with a wind and rain protected covered run, BUT you still need to have room for them to navigate roosts feeders nests etc.

Roost length can be one serious limiter in a smaller coop.
12" of roost length per bird is a good rule of thumb,
BUT that can depend on how high roosts are and how much landing area is needed to get down from roosts without crashing into something.

Crowding on roosts can cause much stress and even injury....the RoostTimeRumble is usually a pretty combative time of the day. They might squish into less space to actually sleep, but they need more space to fly up and jostle for position.

Another detriment to a smaller coop is adding new birds, which almost everyone does eventually due to wanting more birds or just replacing with fresh layers or due to losses from other issues. Integrating new birds takes 'extra' separate but adjacent space...so keep that in mind too.

 

[imnukensc]

How will the bigger stuff work if they try to walk on it (picturing broken legs!)? I'm wondering if I can do some sort of drop down solid board for that section on hinges that I just open like a slide and scrape off.

My birds don't walk on the welded wire. At least, I don't think they do. My coop is 5 ft x 5 ft (1.52m x 1.52m). The welded wire area under the roost is 2 ft x 5 ft (0.61m x 1.52m), but it looks much thinner than that in this picture. The top of the roost is about 2 ft (0.61m) from the floor and 1 ft (0.3m) from the wall.. My nest boxes are exterior to the floor space. My chickens spend nearly no time in the coop except to roost or lay eggs.