Have the chickens, now I need a coop. Please help!!!

[aart]

The inside of the shed.

https://images.thdstatic.com/catalog/pdfImages/18/1802dd4d-dbc6-447a-a6bc-35764f64f785.pdf

I'm kinda worried that once I start removing metal sheeting on the sides it won't be structurally stable.

I built this same shed on a wooden foundation.
4x4" posts down into the ground(frost heave here), 2x8" joists and 3/4" floor sheathing....all pressure treated. I also added a large double door with a ramp to drive a snowmobile inside. The door was framed in wood and sheathed in the metal siding cut out for the door.

 

[ashcons]

It would be best if you could relocate the coop and run somewhere drier or work out a drainage solution. Wet + chicken waste = ammonia-smelling nastiness even if you ignore chicken health. I would use a few inches of wood chips on top of the soil to help them stay dryer. It'll essentially work like a slower deep liter compost in the run.

DL should also be ok in your coop with the summer humidity. Stay on top of adding your carbon material.

 

[3KillerBs]

There's an oval garden bed, then a 2-3 ft tall berm which you can just see the top of going across the middle of the picture, then a post sticking out of the ground (hammock stand), and past the post is a stump. Just past the stump to the fence and from the stump to the fence on the right is the area I plan to put the coop. The land drains from the back of the property towards the berm (like a 3 ft down ditch where the water runs sideways to the right off the property). However, there's some depressions where trees were removed, and the soil is clay, and the grade isn't high, so there is some standing water when it rains.

Sounds like you ought to be able to combine ditching with fill to eliminate the standing water problem then.

 

[FunClucks]

Sounds like you ought to be able to combine ditching with fill to eliminate the standing water problem then.

So what you are saying is I'd build a ditch a few feet back from the coop and run around the entire area of the coop/run and use the dirt to raise the level of the coop/run area, and then fill the ditches with rocks? I could run the ditch down to my berm area, but it doesn't really go anywhere after that, the water pretty much sits in the berm ditch until it absorbs through the ground in a few days (after a large storm). Trying to picture this in my head and having some trouble.

 

[3KillerBs]

So what you are saying is I'd build a ditch a few feet back from the coop and run around the entire area of the coop/run and use the dirt to raise the level of the coop/run area, and then fill the ditches with rocks? I could run the ditch down to my berm area, but it doesn't really go anywhere after that, the water pretty much sits in the berm ditch until it absorbs through the ground in a few days (after a large storm). Trying to picture this in my head and having some trouble.

Yes, you need to move water away from the coop and run area and build up the level of the ground the chickens will be on.

I would also suggest that once the chickens have enjoyed destroying the vegetation that you use coarse wood chips -- the sort you get from a tree-trimming service -- as litter in the run. Coarse wood chips are often considered the gold standard for managing muddy conditions.

Also, do you have access to pine straw? I personally find that a mix of materials works better in my run than just one material alone. I also find that pine straw dries out on top rapidly after even the heaviest rains.

 

[FunClucks]

Yes, you need to move water away from the coop and run area and build up the level of the ground the chickens will be on.

I would also suggest that once the chickens have enjoyed destroying the vegetation that you use coarse wood chips -- the sort you get from a tree-trimming service -- as litter in the run. Coarse wood chips are often considered the gold standard for managing muddy conditions.

Also, do you have access to pine straw? I personally find that a mix of materials works better in my run than just one material alone. I also find that pine straw dries out on top rapidly after even the heaviest rains.

 

[FunClucks]

Does it matter what type of wood chips? I have a truckload of somewhat coarse sweet gum wood chips from when we removed the sweet gums that were threatening the house. Guess I need to plant another pine tree.

 

[3KillerBs]

Does it matter what type of wood chips? I have a truckload of somewhat coarse sweet gum wood chips from when we removed the sweet gums that were threatening the house. Guess I need to plant another pine tree.

Anything but aromatic cedar and *maybe* possibly toxic black walnut should be fine.

A lot of what I've got is sweet gum that was removed from our house site.

 

[EliteTempleton]

Guess I need to plant another pine tree.

That reminds me of a water management thing I did. Plant a water hungry tree/bush in your standing water area so it will help drink up your problem. I'm nowhere near your climate so I don't have suggestions but around here weeping willows are used for this. I found a bush at the hardware store that grows some 8' tall with orange flowers and the tag said it required lots of water, also it was 30% off so that was the one!

 

[Percheron chick]

Not a fan of metal sheds. They look trashy very quickly, are easily tossed around in a wind storm, are hot, hot, hot and will become even more structurally unsound the more holes you cut to improve ventilation.
Take that $500 and build an 8x8 hoop coop. Line it with hardware cloth and roof it with metal. You will need minimal tools and skills. You can easily get it built in 2 weekends max. Easy to expand or just use as the run down the road.
Chickens in the south should not be housed in a 4 sided structure. Build for the most miserable weather in July and August. Heat kills more chickens then cold.
Thank you for researching those cute prefab coops and saving your $$.