Easy to build small coop ideas

[SpotTheCat]

"Easy" is relative. Google has hundreds if not thousands of ideas and images. My suggestion is to search the images, pick a style you like, think about how you can adapt it to your situation, and if needs be what materials you may need to substitute.
If you dont like this route, try prefab coops. But with a little confidence, you got this!

By easy I mean none fancy box or converting something else in to a coop like a shed or play house, prefabs are ridiculously expensive for what they are.
most coops I can find are too complicated or have other problems like not enough ventilation, nesting boxes same hight as roosts and too small or too big.
Also I have no building or chicken experience, I am not sure what is a bad idea and what isn’t, I am hoping people who have built and used different coops can help me, so I hopefully don’t need to do the same mistakes they have.

 

[NatJ]

Piggybacking a bit, but how would you use a hoopcoop somewhere where it rains and snows? Wouldn't the birds get cold and soaked?

Like the one here?
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/aarts-hoop-coop-chicken-tractor.72211/
Looks protected enough to me

Heavy snow on top might be an issue, but rain should run off just fine.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Like the one here?
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/aarts-hoop-coop-chicken-tractor.72211/
Looks protected enough to me

Heavy snow on top might be an issue, but rain should run off just fine.

Would it insulate enough during winters? I've considered hoopcoops since I need a few more this spring but we get cold cold

 

[3KillerBs]

Piggybacking a bit, but how would you use a hoopcoop somewhere where it rains and snows? Wouldn't the birds get cold and soaked?

There are different ways to build a hoop coop. The simplest version of just securing a tarp over a section of the roof and the upper half of one end is indeed only suited to milder climates -- even if only because severe storms would destroy the tarps.

However, there are versions that have a solid end and which use metal or polycarbonate roofing, which are sturdier.

There are also versions that have an enclosed coop built in at one end.

most coops I can find are too complicated or have other problems like not enough ventilation, nesting boxes same hight as roosts and too small or too big.
Also I have no building or chicken experience, I am not sure what is a bad idea and what isn’t, I am hoping people who have built and used different coops can help me, so I hopefully don’t need to do the same mistakes they have.

You are going to be a wonderful chicken-keeper! So few people do the research you're doing before they get their chickens and many people don't learn until they've made costly mistakes. Good job!

I can't point you at a specific coop plan. My Little Monitor Coop isn't for a beginner handyman, but I have to applaud your determination to learn what you need to know ahead of time.

 

[3KillerBs]

Would it insulate enough during winters? I've considered hoopcoops since I need a few more this spring but we get cold cold

Insulation is a moot point if you have enough ventilation. A dry chicken is a warm chicken.

There are a lot of threads asking about insulation where you can get solid information from other cold-climate chicken keepers. (Unfortunately, the search function is not so great on this forum, but you can just scroll back through the most recent pages and find some).

 

[Mellowmalt]

any coop is essentially just a big box. Add a slanting roof so that rain can flow off. A plastic cover will protect it and is the cheapest easiest option. Paint eventually lets water through.
You can make it fancier with sparating boxes and perching bars but all you really need is the laying boxes in a box with a slanted roof, anything more is optional. Raising the hutch does nothing to pretect the birds, it just adds a bit of area they can hide under and makes cleaning easier at an elevated height but it is not a requirement.

 

[Egg Snatcher]

Hope this helps.

 

[SpotTheCat]

any coop is essentially just a big box. Add a slanting roof so that rain can flow off. A plastic cover will protect it and is the cheapest easiest option. Paint eventually lets water through.
You can make it fancier with sparating boxes and perching bars but all you really need is the laying boxes in a box with a slanted roof, anything more is optional. Raising the hutch does nothing to pretect the birds, it just adds a bit of area they can hide under and makes cleaning easier at an elevated height but it is not a requirement.

Raised or walk in is a requirement for me unfortunately my knees and hips don’t all was want to help me do things.
I am looking for what to use to make the coop not really plans as much, at the moment because covid wood and things are hard to get and expensive, so I am looking at recycling things rather then buying new.

 

[NatJ]

I am looking for ideas for a small easy to build preferable cheap coop for 3-6 bantams, The space I have is 4ft by 4ft at maximum It can only be 3ft by 4ft if it is not walk in.

Cheap depends on what is available for you.

Some people use wood pallets: one for each side, plywood on the top. You might need to cover the pallets with metal hardware cloth to keep out some kinds of predators (like weasels, or raccoons that can reach through small holes to grab chickens.)

You could start with a big dining room table (roof & legs), then put hardware cloth around the sides (predator protection and ventilation). If it is next to a solid fence or a building, you might not need solid sides on the coop.

You could start with a plastic playhouse.

The hoop coops people have been discussing start with a wire fence panel. I think you've said those are not easy to get in your area, but you might look at how people build those coops and think about what you do have.

For the roost inside the coop, it's common to put a board across from one side to the other for the chickens to roost on. It can attach at each end, but have it at least a foot away from the sides and the roof, so there's enough space for the chickens' heads and tails. More space above the roost if often better, because then you can have ventilation above the roost without the air blowing directly on the sleeping chickens.

For nestboxes, you will only need one or two because the hens take turns laying eggs. The hens aren't very picky, as long as it's a good size (about a foot each way). (Exception: if your hens go broody, each broody hen will want a nestbox of her own. That only lasts while they are broody.)

Nestboxes can just be boxes (cardboard, wood, plastic) sitting on the floor of the coop. This is really simple, but makes less floor space for the chickens to walk in, which affects how many chickens you can keep in the coop.

Or nestboxes they can be mounted on a wall of the coop or supported on something.
I've seen photos of plastic buckets inserted between the rungs of a ladder
Mounting the nestboxes above the floor means you can keep more chickens in the same coop. Some coops have nestboxes that stick out and you lift a hinged roof to collect the eggs. That style is more difficult to build, so probably not what you want at present.

The chickens need food and water available all the time they are awake, and the food needs to be protected from rain. Some people put food & water in the coop. Others put food & water in the run and have at least part of the run covered to keep it dry. Some people have raised coop, and put the food underneath. I think I've seen pictures of an umbrella over the food in a run that was otherwise uncovered.

Many people add a pop door (small door for chickens to go through.) But if you don't want to build one, chickens can just go in and out through the same door you use when tending them--leave it open, and maybe tie it or put a rock to hold it open, so the wind cannot blow it closed.

I am thinking of turning a plastic play house in to a coop what are the pros and cons of doing that?

The main con I can see is that I don't know much about attaching things to plastic
I know some people do it, I just don't know how.

Things needed when converting:
--cover all windows and other openings with hardware cloth (metal, holes no larger than 1/2 inch) to keep out predators while allowing ventilation.
--add roosts (maybe sit a chair or sawhorse inside for the chickens to roost on, depending on what you have available.)
--add nestboxes (could be boxes on the floor.)

About space per chicken: a common recommendation is 4 square feet per hen in the coop, but bantams are often fine with half that much, because of being smaller.

 

[SpotTheCat]

Cheap depends on what is available for you.

Some people use wood pallets: one for each side, plywood on the top. You might need to cover the pallets with metal hardware cloth to keep out some kinds of predators (like weasels, or raccoons that can reach through small holes to grab chickens.)

You could start with a big dining room table (roof & legs), then put hardware cloth around the sides (predator protection and ventilation). If it is next to a solid fence or a building, you might not need solid sides on the coop.

You could start with a plastic playhouse.

The hoop coops people have been discussing start with a wire fence panel. I think you've said those are not easy to get in your area, but you might look at how people build those coops and think about what you do have.

For the roost inside the coop, it's common to put a board across from one side to the other for the chickens to roost on. It can attach at each end, but have it at least a foot away from the sides and the roof, so there's enough space for the chickens' heads and tails. More space above the roost if often better, because then you can have ventilation above the roost without the air blowing directly on the sleeping chickens.

For nestboxes, you will only need one or two because the hens take turns laying eggs. The hens aren't very picky, as long as it's a good size (about a foot each way). (Exception: if your hens go broody, each broody hen will want a nestbox of her own. That only lasts while they are broody.)

Nestboxes can just be boxes (cardboard, wood, plastic) sitting on the floor of the coop. This is really simple, but makes less floor space for the chickens to walk in, which affects how many chickens you can keep in the coop.

Or nestboxes they can be mounted on a wall of the coop or supported on something.
I've seen photos of plastic buckets inserted between the rungs of a ladder
Mounting the nestboxes above the floor means you can keep more chickens in the same coop. Some coops have nestboxes that stick out and you lift a hinged roof to collect the eggs. That style is more difficult to build, so probably not what you want at present.

The chickens need food and water available all the time they are awake, and the food needs to be protected from rain. Some people put food & water in the coop. Others put food & water in the run and have at least part of the run covered to keep it dry. Some people have raised coop, and put the food underneath. I think I've seen pictures of an umbrella over the food in a run that was otherwise uncovered.

Many people add a pop door (small door for chickens to go through.) But if you don't want to build one, chickens can just go in and out through the same door you use when tending them--leave it open, and maybe tie it or put a rock to hold it open, so the wind cannot blow it closed.



The main con I can see is that I don't know much about attaching things to plastic
I know some people do it, I just don't know how.

Things needed when converting:
--cover all windows and other openings with hardware cloth (metal, holes no larger than 1/2 inch) to keep out predators while allowing ventilation.
--add roosts (maybe sit a chair or sawhorse inside for the chickens to roost on, depending on what you have available.)
--add nestboxes (could be boxes on the floor.)

About space per chicken: a common recommendation is 4 square feet per hen in the coop, but bantams are often fine with half that much, because of being smaller.

The only predators I have are foxes and rats.
The coop will be behind a shed right next to tree which is up against a fence so it is quite sheltered, the run will be completely roofed so water and food will stay out in the run.
so if I made it out of pallets do I need to fill all of the holes with wood?