Has anyone ever built this coop before? Coop building advice needed.....

[3KillerBs]

It's wayyyy bigger that it looks and i am planning to modify some of it.

What are the actual dimensions?

Any elevated coop that you can't walk in to gets really HARD to clean if it's more than 4-foot deep from the access door.

Honestly, since I'm only 5'3", I have trouble with that at 4' deep and have to enlist tall sons if I need to get to the very back corner.

 

[TheCrochetChick]

I have more time to look at this and reply this morning.

What are actual dimensions?

According to the usual guidelines, for each adult, standard-sized hen you need:

• 4 square feet in the coop,
• 10 square feet in the run,
• 1 linear foot of roost,
• 1/4 of a nest box,
• And 1 square foot of permanent, 24/7/365 ventilation, preferably located over the birds' heads when they're sitting on the roost.

That means that a flock of 12 needs:

• 48 square feet in the coop. 6'x8' is more practical than 4'x12' since a long, skinny coop like that would be difficult to work inside.
• 12 feet of roost
• 120 square feet in the run. 10'x12' or 8'x15' -- 8'x16' means fewer odd cuts than either of those. 6'x20' is possible, especially if your run is an open-topped, fenced area instead of fully-enclosed with a solid and/or wire roof.
• 12 square feet of ventilation.
• 3 nest boxes.

I don't think that any elevated, non-walk-in coop would be practical for 12 chickens because it would be impossible for even the tallest person to reach the far side in order to clean.

Additionally, that design has no ventilation whatsoever and would quickly turn into an absolute oven in your climate.

Florida is a perfect place for an Open Air coop -- a big wire box with a roof and just enough wall on the windward end to provide shelter from storms.

Hi! Thanks for the advice. I am def going to modify whatever i build. I like som things about the coop and not others. I was planning to add windows and ventelation to it. I live in an urban area so a large walk in coop is not do able for me .

 

[U_Stormcrow]

Its cute.

The overhangs need to be increased, the whole thing desperately needs ventilation (make that monitor work as something other than decoration). The nesting box is low, which is a potential issue for your poop management system. Don't see roosting bars in that at all.

Only advantage to being off the ground is lifting up the nesting box to a more comfortable height, but it makes cleaning less comfortable. The nesting box itself should open on the face, not hinge at the top. The hinge ensures its not water tight and will ensure you quickly get rot in our climate. On mornings when the dew sits on the roof, lifting the roof will pour that water (admittedly, not a lot) into the coop. Neither do you ever want to have the roof come slamming down on you while reaching in for eggs. (and propping it up w/ a 2x4 on one side guarantees it will warp, too.)

Oh, and lumber prices being what they are right now, the whole thing is grossly wasteful of materials. and labor to build it. Particularly if it is going to be located in a large fenced run.

Did I mention its cute?

If you are already building a large run, and insist on a raised coop, I'd strongly recommend an open air run, roofed because our birds need the shade around here when its hot, and open air to address the humid, with a raised coop built into the side of the run, blocking prevailing winds in your winter and spring months. Based on this source, I'd select the North and East walls. And if doing a C wall design, I'd do part of the west, all the north, part of the east wall. Likely based on a modified kennel run.

 

[RojoMarz]

Guessing its 8x4, based upon the 32 sq feet...

https://www.thecreativemom.com/free-chicken-coop-plans/

• 32 square feet- enough room for 12 chickens

And the FAQ has:

How do you ventilate a chicken coop?

This coop has ventilation space under the eaves, and the door is always open. The air flow is just fine with this much ventilation.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

Guessing its 8x4, based upon the 32 sq feet...

https://www.thecreativemom.com/free-chicken-coop-plans/

• 32 square feet- enough room for 12 chickens

And the FAQ has:

How do you ventilate a chicken coop?

This coop has ventilation space under the eaves, and the door is always open. The air flow is just fine with this much ventilation.

The coop has square inches of ventilation, and the door looks to be less than a single square foot. Its a recipe for respiratory problems in our climate.

I grew up in Daytona Beach, 60 miles south of you [the OP] on I-95, under construction for about as long as I've been alive. I now live 320 miles almost due west of you [the OP], off of I-10.

I know the climate. You can see my flock in my signature below.

[edited for tone]

Obviously, for appearance sake, a fascia board can be installed to finish off the rafters, allowing cooler air to be drawn up under the soffits, warmed as it passes along the underside of the roof, and exiting at a ridge vent or gable vent - creating a passive flow system to move warm, moist, ammonia laden air from your hen house.

 

[3KillerBs]

Guessing its 8x4, based upon the 32 sq feet...

https://www.thecreativemom.com/free-chicken-coop-plans/

• 32 square feet- enough room for 12 chickens

And the FAQ has:

How do you ventilate a chicken coop?

This coop has ventilation space under the eaves, and the door is always open. The air flow is just fine with this much ventilation.

32 square feet is enough for 8 chickens, not 12. 4 square feet per adult, standard-size hen.

Even 8 chickens require 8 square feet of ventilation, which this does not provide.

Up there in Colorado you might get away with minimal airflow -- if your summers are cool and your winters are dry -- but the OP is in Florida. In a hot climate you may need double or triple the suggested minimums -- which is why hot climate residents are suggesting an Open Air style coop instead.

At the very least, the monitor should be enlarged, fitted with good roof overhangs, and made functional rather than merely decorative and annoying to build. (My Little Monitor Coop is for only 4 chickens, but it does contain photos showing how to construct a functional monitor).

I know the climate. You can see my flock in my signature below. Recommend you not be so dismissive of the experience you've invited to comment upon your question, as a number of posters whose experience dwarfs mine have all commented to substantially the same conclusions.

The person you are responding to isn't the OP.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

The person you are responding to isn't the OP.

OOOOPPS!!! More coffeee. Sorry about that. Definitely stepping off. Apologies all, I've misbehaved. Fixed.

 

[jthornton]

i would LOVE LOVE LOVE any advice you may have. I am planning to add a spacious run.

I've built that coop from Home Depot plans before I knew anything about chickens. Lots of modifications later and well it works for a roost box but not much else. Very hard to keep clean and not built for humans. My build and the things I learned in this article.

My next coop was more human friendly and much easier to maintain. It's a walk in coop! I must admit that the original perch at 8' long was too short for 12 hens. My run is too small for 12 hens so that's a challenge to keep them from picking each others butt feathers off but I keep trying. With my current setup for the 12 Cinnamon Queen hens I really only have room for 6 at the most. This is a thread about that coop.

My advice is to build a coop you can stand up in, twice as big as you think you need with twice as much run as you think you need and half as many chickens as you want. And as others noted in Florida an open air coop is the best with your heat.

JT

 

[RojoMarz]

32 square feet is enough for 8 chickens, not 12. 4 square feet per adult, standard-size hen.

Even 8 chickens require 8 square feet of ventilation, which this does not provide.

Up there in Colorado you might get away with minimal airflow -- if your summers are cool and your winters are dry -- but the OP is in Florida. In a hot climate you may need double or triple the suggested minimums -- which is why hot climate residents are suggesting an Open Air style coop instead.

At the very least, the monitor should be enlarged, fitted with good roof overhangs, and made functional rather than merely decorative and annoying to build. (My Little Monitor Coop is for only 4 chickens, but it does contain photos showing how to construct a functional monitor).



The person you are responding to isn't the OP.

I never said I like/had/wanted/whatever I regards to this coop. All I did was copy paste from the website, that was linked, to provide my "guess" of measurements, as the OP did not respond to the questions.

 

[Auntiejessi3]

So what did you end up building?