Finally finished my small coop (3 hens)

[Acre of Blessings]

Ver cute! don't worry, your wife will soon be the one buying the chicks for ya.

 

[chad76]

Thank y'all so much!

Lisabug, I don't have any blueprints or directions... I just made it up as I went along. I did take some photos of the frame before I put the siding on. If you want, later tonight (when I get home from work), I could add those so you can see that part. It's really much more sturdy than it needed to be, but I guess that's better than not being sturdy enough. My inlaws have been calling it a bomb shelter and saying if we have a tornado warning, I should leave my house and get inside the coop.

A few more details in the meantime: The overall size of the frame is 3'x4'. I framed it with 2x3's since they were cheaper than 2x2's for some reason... and it was a lot easier to find straight 2x3's (plus they're just easier to work with). All of the 2x2's were warped and twisted. I used the thinner T111 siding. The red paint is American Accents Garnet Red. I'll go through my other pictures later and see what I can find that may help.

Chad

 

[chad76]

More photos:

Well, I didn't have as many photos as I thought. I only have photos at this stage and the finished product. But I'll post them just in case it helps. This is the point where my inlaws started joking about my "bomb shelter".

Close up of the nest (the sides were cut at different angles on purpose). I treated the nest and the roosts with butcher block oil (from Lowe's). I'm guessing that will help preserve the wood (and make it easier to clean) and it's FDA approved to eat food prepared on it... so it's definitely safe for the chickens.

A photo of the inside of the finished coop to show the vent on the back wall. Also, I just painted interior parts that were in easy reach as I went along... regardless of what color paint I had on the brush at the time. That's why the inside is multicolored.

A better photo of the pull out tray. I'll let y'all know if this works at all when I clean it for the first time.

I used a scrap piece of vinyl that came from our bathroom and attached it with spray adhesive in the middle and roofing nails around the edges.

And I realized I didn't have a photo of the hens' entrance. It's hinged so I can lock them up at night.

Hope that helps a little, lisabug.

 

[Dawn419]

What a beautiful job, Chad!

Dawn

 

[S n M Poultry]

Thats a nice little coop.

 

[Suisan]

Thank you so much for the extra pictures.

My husband and I are trying to decide on how to build a small coop. I did a drawing of one which would fit in the corner of an existing building, but instead of fitting five chickens, it only fit three. So now we're arguing about whether to get three or five. Agh.

I do have a question about your interior shots though -- do you have water set up for them inside? I see the feeders in the run, but not inside. I found that a lot of my square footage inside was getting gobbled up by the feeder/waterer.

It's a darling coop. And I think the chickens must surely deserve a bomb shelter.

 

[chad76]

Thanks, y'all!

Suisan,

You're welcome! Space for food and water was a concern when I was trying to figure out my floor plan. So, I put their main food/water outside and have a second (smaller) food/water inside. I figured the best way to save space was to attach it to the big door... that would also keep it off the floor. I found a little feed dish at Tractor Supply for $4 that doesn't take up much room and holds plenty of food and water (it's called a mineral feeder). It's permanently attached, so that makes washing it out and filling it up a little more work... but I have a water hose within 6ft of the coop. I wasn't sure if they even drink/eat at night, but I thought for $4, it couldn't hurt.

Look on the inside of the door in this photo:

 

[Suisan]

Ahhhh. I missed that on the door.

Thank you so much. This shouldn't be rocket science, building a coop, but I find myself laying boards out over and over again trying to get the arrangement right.

 

[chad76]

I spent a lot of time drawing mine out... doodling mostly... trying to figure out where everything would go. It's tricky fitting everything into a small space. When I got the idea to mount the food/water to the door, everything else fell into place.

 

[CoopDelisle]

This is so cute and cozy looking! I have decided that if DH and I ever have to move to a place with a small yard, it will be full of plants and flowers, and have a little chicken coop with a couple of hens, just like this! Adorable!