FIRST COOP BUILD FOR CHICKEN NEWB

[Jimmy D1]

Maybe too late now....but....
Better to hinge those window/vent covers at the top, so they can stay propped open during a rain.

Yep, I agree. Really wish I wouldn't have caulked the top of that trim piece. If I start to see rain blowing in I'll scrape and redo, that is the only thing stopping it though. Thought about the winter as well and if they were the other way then I could prop them in the cold as well. Hindsight.................

 

[aart]

Yep, I agree. Really wish I wouldn't have caulked the top of that trim piece. If I start to see rain blowing in I'll scrape and redo, that is the only thing stopping it though. Thought about the winter as well and if they were the other way then I could prop them in the cold as well. Hindsight.................

Both caulking and hinge change could still happen.

 

[Jimmy D1]

Both caulking and hinge change could still happen.

Hahaha. Yep.

 

[Jimmy D1]

Hahaha. Yep.

Put all the hinges on the top as recommended by aart. Thanks!

Unfortunately that's all I had time for today. The ever growing run is on the agenda for tomorrow as long as the weather holds out!

 

[Jimmy D1]

Well pretty much got the run done today. Just need to make a door and tie in the HW cloth at the seems. Ended up being 14 foot by 8 foot. Hope the girls like it. They will be in the coop/run while at work and running in the yard in the evenings/weekends. Hopefully it will make for some happy/healthy chickens.

 

[TK421]

Really Impressive! Will you have to go into the run every night to close the pop door?

 

[Jimmy D1]

Really Impressive! Will you have to go into the run every night to close the pop door?

Thanks! Yes. The door is under the ramp in the coop and it would have been slightly more difficult to bend down and open/close it from in there so I put it on the outside.

 

[Jimmy D1]

The coop is finally done!! Glad I can move on to some other projects now, especially getting back to the garden/yard. All said and done, I am really glad that we decided to build our own. The pre-built ones that we saw were way over priced in comparison. Way smaller with small runs and twice or in some cases three times as much money. All in, besides a few gallons of paint that we are still planning on buying, the total cost for this coop was $1331.83. The coop is 6 x 8 and the run is 14 x 8 x 6 foot. My lessons learned are make sure you know what you want before you start. I initially was going to do a different style roost bar but during the build, read about poop trays and PDZ so I changed my plan. Also my nest boxes were initially going to be on the opposite wall from where they ended up. Because of these design changes I framed my walls one way and then ended up not using the framing and had to use more wood to re-frame/redesign which cost me money and time. If I were to build another one I would just frame everything on 16 inch centers and build off of that once the walls were up. Anyhow time to sit back and enjoy now so here are some final pics!!

 

[briarandwillow]

You did a REALLY great job for being a newb! Looks good and I bet it's solid as a rock.

 

[Jimmy D1]

You did a REALLY great job for being a newb! Looks good and I bet it's solid as a rock.

Thanks! Oh yeah, for sure. It will last a long time with regular maintenance. Sorta overbuilt. LOL I think it is going to be a nice space for 6 hens though so we are happy with it.