Efficient coop and run design for all weather

[KrazyChromatics]

if we see some grass again before the next storm i want to peg out the dimensions, being on the place will give me better perspective of the final sq.ft of the whole project, i dont plan to take down any trees, so there will be trees in the "habitat" as well, apples and pine are big in that particular area, i might make an extra long run and run it down to some water, maybe get a small handfull of ducks later on... i plan to build as much as i can "panel style" so i can take apart and put together easier for whatever reason... like if i want to shorten or extend a run, i just have to move the bak panel in, or out and add the side panel and more netting on top, we have hawks, owls, fox, coon, coyote, crows so better to protect everyone big and small... in the free range areas i think im gunna use moveable netting and a portable coop, like set the moveable at the chook door, and just walk them through the pen push em out the door and close up behind them, then just hook it back up later to put them back in the run... idk i have cool ideas like this a lot, its just a matter of getting around to doing them... im setting up my incubator this week to start hatching, ready or not... ive got a few months to get the first pen set up anyway

 

[Alaskan]

redid it a little more to scale with the height, the peak will be 7ft, top of boxes will be at 6, i colored the windows in the roof, the nest boxes, the red lines are open doors, the roofs ov the winter boxes will have the breathable anti weed fabric, it will let some light in and attract heat, ill just take that off and have caging showing in the summer.... the human door will be screen, but ill plastic it over in the winter....

It looks like the chickens would have to go outside before they could get under the nesting area. In nasty winter days they will not want to walk out where it is colder and maybe snowy, before they reach the underside that is protected. The nice thing about the Woods Coop is that the front half is pretty much all play space that is completely sheltered from the weather. You need a large area of sheltered play space for the chickens in the winter. You could always build the Woods Coop on a smaller scale, it you only want it for a few chickens. But, personally, I think an 8x8 footprint is just barely big enough for four chickens if you are in a harsh climate. I did like that first photo of the barrel roofed coop. It has a large covered run part, and looks cute, probably good for a city lot. But, the problem with that, is that you are standing in the weather to tend to the flock. I really like being able to run to the building and close the door behind me. Also, with a coop that you can stand in, you can stand there for 20 minutes and watch your flock to make sure everyone is doing well. Bigger coop also means that you could find a corner to stick a trashcan that will hold your feed. I don't like running through the wind and snow with a bucket of feed if I can help it. Easy, I like it easy. As for the grass in the runs.....I tried hard to do that, I set up several pop doors leading to different runs. I still needed one sacrifice run. However, I haven't ever used those grow frames that I mentioned before. I want to try them this coming summer, they sound great.