Double-check on sizes for my first coop

[ikkynikinae]

I am a little torn and wanted some additional opinions, as I'd like to make this something in the spirit of a chicken tractor or still coop.

These are my first hens. Speckled Sussex as I live in US Zone 5, so cold-ish winters.

My county recommends 3 square feet per hen, I've seen for these slightly larger dual-purpose birds, 4-5 square feet is recommended.

By my calculation, if I build this as a 3 foot by 8 foot rectangle, the girls are getting 24 square feet. 6 square feet per hen?

 

[U_Stormcrow]

You are mixing numbers, which is understandable, its a lot to take in.

The typical rule of thumb, per full sized bird, is 10 sq ft run, **plus** 4 sq ft house. The house, per bird, is generally recommended to have 1 linear foot of perch, 1 sq ft draft free ventilation (24/7/365 - seasonally closed windows and doors don't count), and 1/4 nesting box (counting laying hens only).

Assuming dimensions scale proportionally, building that as a 3x8 coop is suitable for, at best, two birds.

/edit and the "window" in that door virtually ensures you will have a draft, at least some of the time, on your roosting birds. Better to make the window wider, not as tall, and place it above the nesting box, and opposite, facing into the run. Extend the roof to protect the window above the nest box, which will coincidentally help to deter leaks where the nest box meets the wall, which is a typical failure point for many designs.

 

[3KillerBs]

You might like to look at my Little Monitor Coop, which is designed for 4, standard-sized hens. It meets all the minimums in a compact design and can easily be attached to a run.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/authors/3killerbs.36480/

The small window beside the nest box could be closed with a shutter in the winter and still have the necessary 4 square feet for 4 hens up in the monitor.

 

[0die]

too small and too flimsy. Any of those pre-fab coops are basically junk IMO.

 

[NatJ]

I am a little torn and wanted some additional opinions, as I'd like to make this something in the spirit of a chicken tractor or still coop.

These are my first hens. Speckled Sussex as I live in US Zone 5, so cold-ish winters.

My county recommends 3 square feet per hen, I've seen for these slightly larger dual-purpose birds, 4-5 square feet is recommended.

By my calculation, if I build this as a 3 foot by 8 foot rectangle, the girls are getting 24 square feet. 6 square feet per hen?

View attachment 2566876

The chickens need about 4 square feet of space each even in cold weather, even when it's snowy, even when it's raining. That's the "coop" part of the recommendations.

The "run" is a bigger area for use in good weather, usually with 10 or more square feet per hen.

So the style of unit you pictured could work well, but the wooden part should be at least 16 square feet (4x4 or 3x6), with the nestbox still hanging off the outside, so it's not taking up space inside. And the fenced part should be at least 40 square feet, so 4x10 or 6x8 or something like that. (Assuming you have 4 hens.)

Here are a few articles with pictures of similar styles of coops, but big enough for 4 or more chickens:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/backwoods-playpen-coop.63391/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/the-chick-inn.73603/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/the-chicken-condo.64203/

I found them, and many others, in the articles section:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/categories/medium-coops.19/

 

[ikkynikinae]

Thank you all so much. I think I will limit this to just a coop build and use a hoop house to have a much larger run.

The way I've understood it, the SS is kind of social so I need to be giving them room to roam outside of the coop.

So if I understand, I can build a better coop focused on nexting/feeding/protection, and then focus on the run part differently, as with 4 hens, they would need something more like a 10x10 run if I want to give them some better exercise room.

 

[aart]

I think I will limit this to just a coop build and use a hoop house to have a much larger run.

How big and what configurations you use for coop and is often dependent on your climate. More space is always better for the birds and gives you, the keeper, some flexibility.

So...Welcome to BYC! @ikkynikinae
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