does anyone?

[Stoney22]

Have plans they'd be willing to share that I could build a coop from for about aa dozen hens as idw to buy the plans online and the free ones I found are a little pricey id like to spend two hundred or less building it or spend alot over time

 

[itom37]

No specific plans but check the coop design forum... some are pretty detailed. In terms of spending that little... be on the lookout for free stuff on craigslist, piles of "waste" materials on the side of the road, and constructions site dumpsters (with permission). you can spend very little, but you gotta hunt.

 

[ThinkingChickens]

You'll probably have to make up a design and then start collecting materials over time. >$200 would be so hard without a lot of free materials, though there are some folks on this board that can give you lots of suggestions like freecycle, craigslist and The Restore. Our run alone was over $600, but we couldn't find much in the way of used materials. Draw up some plans, use pallets or search pallet coops and happy building!

 

[Ridgerunner]

Try going to your public library and looking for books on how to build sheds. They have some that are pretty clear on how to build them. To convert a shed into a coop you need to add ventilation, roosts, nest boxes, and maybe a pop door. We can help you with those details.

In your climate I'd be tempted to look at a shed in the range of 8' x 8' or even bigger. It's a bit bigger than the absolute minimum some of us can get away with, but you are going to have some snow days when they can't get out. I also find it is less work for you managing them if you give them a bit of extra space. I serioulsy think bigger is better for them and for you, but bigger gets more expensive.

At that cost, you are not going to buy anything new. As others have said, look for used materials. Especially look for sheds people are giving away on Craigslist or something like that. Sometimes you can transport them and sometimes you can tear them down for the materials.

 

[Ole rooster]

I don't have any plans per se, but I looked at coops on here for almost 2 months. I didn't see any that would do things the way I wanted. So I took a lot of idea's of other and drew mine out at the kitchen table. Money, I haven't added it up yet but I would guess I'm into the $600 range now. As far as the coop is concerned, I'm done except for the trim and some painting. Then a run to open up into my TSC dog pen.

I have not been able to find recyled material but I have gotten some deal on damaged thing at HD. Of course the roofing tin came off my house.

This it a week ago.

 

[zookeeper15133]

Keep checking the cull pile at HD, you can get a lot at 50 cents each!

 

[duckinnut]

Quote:
Gotta love the supervisor underneath or is that the building inspector?

 

[Hawkeye95]

I say just check out the Coop Design section on the Home Page! I am building my coop too- myself! I have gone to the ReStore for windows and hardware... I've searched Craigslist. I think if you look at the designs, you can get a good idea of what you can do. I don't really have any plans- just sort of drew out something on paper and am going for it! You can see my progress on my homepage under my name- but I'm not very far at all! I JUST started. I got great ideas looking at everyone elses and it doesn't get much more free than that. Most of the designs are step by step photos which is how I'm building mine. I dont' know anything about building and I just am following someone else's pictures! So far, so good! If I were you, I'd start gathering crates, or whatever you can get your hands on right now. Also, check out your "Where am I, Where Are You' and get on a thread with your State and ask the people there if they have great ideas on where to hunt down some free or cheap stuff near you. Local people usually have the scoop!

 

[Ole rooster]

duckinnut- I'm not sure of his title but possibly he is a spy. Everywhere I go there he is.

He even got in the act very early on. I think here he's checking the weight capacity.