Fairly urgent, please help

[John Knight]

Due to a hurricane, I'm in a serious time crunch to get a coop and run built for my pullets. Here are the factors involved-- I've searched this forum to no avail. I'm an inexperienced builder without a lot of money, so if anyone could link me to a stepbystep coop plan that includes what materials I need to buy, I sure would appreciate it.

Live in FL so it's usually hot and rains a lot (temp rarely goes above 90 but it's humid. Need lots of ventilation and built off the around on blocks or something due to rain?

I have 11 hens, 3 banties, mostly large egg layers though

Space is a factor, this will go on my small backyard. I picked chickens that bear confinement well, but I still want them to have room to be happy

Guess I'll need 3-4 nests accessible from outside coop,and want a sloping top to prevent nest roosting

Need about 200" of roosting bars of varying heights, all above thee nests

Ned a pullout poop drawer for cleaning

A dustbath would be cool, but I can just make them one in the run

Would be cool if run is large enough to walk in and hang out with them, they're pretty cool

I need step by step directions for a novice, including what size materials I need and what tools.

Finally, should I just order a prefab from somewhere and build a run for it? I on!y have a few hundred or a little more and all the prefab are pricey and reviewers say they're absolutely flimsy. If so, can you suggest a seller who delivers?
Thank you for your consideration,
John
Ps- the neighbors would really prefer something nice looking but my skill level may not be high enough to make a chicken mansion

 

[Micaelasaintlaurent]

How big is the space you have for them? If you tend to free-range them and not have them confined to the coop the entire day, you can go smaller on the coop size. We decided to go smaller on our coop for our 18 chickens because our chickens only sleep in the coop. We live in California so we never have a "cold" winter. It does rain occasionally, but we decided to lift our coop to provide them a place to run underneath. We also did a slanted roof with more of an overhang to allow us to hang items from the roof. I will take pictures tomorrow. My father loves to build and I am sure he can help. It just depends on the same you have to work with and if you are planning to keep your chickens inside their coop the entire day.

 

[John Knight]

Thank you for replying! I have probably a 15' by 25-30' area to work with. Unfortunately there's no fence between ours and our neighbors yard so I can't just let them roam so I'll probably need a big run. Probably, though, if your dad built it by hand he doesn't have step by step instructions I can follow, and I'm certain I can't build one from looking at a picture

 

[Rickba]

Right now prefabs are on sale. I got some from Wayfare. They ship free. The only upgrade I needed to do is add roost and cut a 2x4 into lattice to re-enforce the screen. Any prefab has the same issue with the screen easily pushed in if it's not re-enforced. A couple hundred bucks should fix you up right well. here are some pic's of my Wayfare coops. I but 2 together end to end. If you look inside you can see the lattice I cut and put in the strengthen the screen. Roost I put inside. Of course, this is a larger coop, but with a little upgrade they make a good coop. The bottom pic is where I added cloth to the bottom to keep digger out and hot wire to keep climbers out. The run is made of a torn down old porch wood. I have about 700$ into this. I realize this is more than what you're looking for, but this is an example of prefab and recycled to make a nice inexpensive coop. I've since painted it and added to it. I made another coop in the corner with recycled deck wood I got. (bottom pic). All I have in that coop is some hinges, a latch, a pound of screws, and 20$ for a damaged pack of roofing tiles. If you do some scrounging', you can pick up some good stuff.

 

[ChickNanny13]

It's been recommend 4sq ft per bird in a coop & 10sq ft per in the run, preventing over crowding issues. I would not recommend pre-fab, they are pricey and don't hold up very long.

We have hot, rainy & humid weather here also, Hubby kept it very simple, it's been 2yrs & very efficient so far. The base & frame work is all 2 x 4 as is the roosts, nest box = large dog house, roost above it an after thought poop board. Wrapped in chicken wire (predators not an issue here), metal roofing, shower curtains (over lapped) on EMT rods for rainy days.

Some that I know purchase a chain link kennel, secure roofing & plastic dog houses for shelter/nesting. There was someone that posted a picture of a run/coop made out of PVC although heat was a problem (TX) but looking into EMT (electrical metallic tubing)....Post was on Fri/Sept 29 by Savitar88, titled "PVC Runs How long do they last". I love it although PVC would warp & he's looking into EMT also. Check it out, you may be able to get some info from them. Good luck

 

[John Knight]

Right now prefabs are on sale. I got some from Wayfare. They ship free. The only upgrade I needed to do is add roost and cut a 2x4 into lattice to re-enforce the screen. Any prefab has the same issue with the screen easily pushed in if it's not re-enforced. A couple hundred bucks should fix you up right well. here are some pic's of my Wayfare coops. I but 2 together end to end. If you look inside you can see the lattice I cut and put in the strengthen the screen. Roost I put inside. Of course, this is a larger coop, but with a little upgrade they make a good coop. The bottom pic is where I added cloth to the bottom to keep digger out and hot wire to keep climbers out. The run is made of a torn down old porch wood. I have about 700$ into this. I realize this is more than what you're looking for, but this is an example of prefab and recycled to make a nice inexpensive coop. I've since painted it and added to it. I made another coop in the corner with recycled deck wood I got. (bottom pic). All I have in that coop is some hinges, a latch, a pound of screws, and 20$ for a damaged pack of roofing tiles. If you do some scrounging', you can pick up some good stuff.
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Oh man that is nice! If I can't find easy, free stepbystep plans with in expansive materials, I'm going to try something similar. Thank you the ideas

 

[John Knight]

It's been recommend 4sq ft per bird in a coop & 10sq ft per in the run, preventing over crowding issues. I would not recommend pre-fab, they are pricey and don't hold up very long.

We have hot, rainy & humid weather here also, Hubby kept it very simple, it's been 2yrs & very efficient so far. The base & frame work is all 2 x 4 as is the roosts, nest box = large dog house, roost above it an after thought poop board. Wrapped in chicken wire (predators not an issue here), metal roofing, shower curtains (over lapped) on EMT rods for rainy days.

Some that I know purchase a chain link kennel, secure roofing & plastic dog houses for shelter/nesting. There was someone that posted a picture of a run/coop made out of PVC although heat was a problem (TX) but looking into EMT (electrical metallic tubing)....Post was on Fri/Sept 29 by Savitar88, titled "PVC Runs How long do they last". I love it although PVC would warp & he's looking into EMT also. Check it out, you may be able to get some info from them. Good luck

Man you people don't mess around this thing is sharp, well conceived and perfectly placed. Thanks!

 

[John Knight]

These members were very nice to help me. But I still know there's someone out there with a link to very detailed plans a child could put together for an inexpensive coop and run for 12 chickens!

 

[ChattyChickens4Life]

This is a pretty nice one. It may be a bit small for your needs, but maybe you could change the dimensions. It's worth a look! Good luck!

https://steamykitchen.com/20640-the-palace-chicken-coop.html

 

[John Knight]

Thanks chatty!