Has anyone purchased the Amish combination Quaker coops? If so do you like it?

[flipflops]

I am seriously considering either a 6x10 or 8x12 combination coops that are made by the Amish from a local shed store. Has anyone else purchased? Was quality as good as I assume?

 

[Fanci Feathers Marans]

Pictures might help, but if they are what I think they are, they are really good coops. They tend to overestimate the amount of birds you can fit in one, however. A 6x10 run would hold 6 birds with no free range. A 6x10 house would hold 15 birds with access outside.

 

[flipflops]

Like this type here....

 

[aart]

'Amish' does not necessarily mean 'quality'....or good design.
Assess actual coop for both.

6x10 or 8x12 combination coops

Are these the dimensions for the coop itself or the run?

 

[flipflops]

Its the coop run combo, the run goes under the coop as well, the hen house itself is 6x4 on the 6x10 size.

 

[aart]

Its the coop run combo, the run goes under the coop as well, the hen house itself is 6x4 on the 6x10 size.

An important distinction to be made when shopping for coop/run combos.
Typical terminology is:
'Coop' where they roost(sleep) at night totally safe from predators and weather.
'Run' is where they spend much of the days, level of security/shelter can vary.

There's a 'rule of thumb' oft cited here at BYC:
4sqft per bird in the coop.
10sqft per bird in the run.
It's bare minimum IMO.
Much can depend on climate.
Being able free range all the time can help, kinda....
.....but....coop space is the main limiter.
Try to cram too many birds in a coop and you'll most likely have trouble.

Here's a good article on Space:
http://www.backyardchickens.com/a/how-much-room-do-chickens-need

Ventilation is very important too:
http://www.backyardchickens.com/t/1048597/ventilated-but-free-of-drafts

 

[dfalco]

It looks like a nice coop, but that's just the outside. It's probably a good choice to house your chickens. But you can't, in most circumstances, just plop that out there and put the chickens in. You will need to secure it in such a way that nothing can dig under to get inside. Hardware cloth all the way around, screwed to the bottom tightly, and set down under the ground a foot, then place heavy rocks all the way around it, would be my attempt at that security.

My coop sits on very rocky...as in impossible to dig rocky, soil. I put hardware cloth all the way around, then instead of sinking it in the soil, it spreads outward over the top of the soil, about 12-15". Then I placed as heavy a rock as I could lift all the way around it, on top of that hardware cloth. (In many cases, the rocks are stacked or piled up.) That was 6 months ago, and so far it has worked. Nothing has dig under.

Know your particular possible predators, their habits, and your soil, then decide on how to secure your coop and pen.

That house looks nice...better than some people live in around here.

 

[flipflops]

Oh we would definitely be making mods to keep predators out. We are in a suburban neighborhood, but I know we have plenty of raccoons, possum, and random dogs, etc. I was planning to put wire all under the bottom, so nothing could dig through.
Has anyone purchased just the actual amish style hen houses, and then done their own runs? I thought about doing that or maybe the black runs from TSC, etc. then modding them some.

 

[blackdog043]

Those windows would need hardware cloth behind them, so you could have them open for ventilation and keep predators out. Will you be able to open them then? What other ventilation is there on the coop?

 

[flipflops]

The other side has a big mesh rectangle that provides ventalation. I would def put wire over windows