Help me lay out my new coop (please excuse the rough drawing)

[ajhunt2]

This is a very CRUDE drawing of the coop. We are relocating it from it's little metal shed into this barn/tack room. Dimensions on the insde are 5x10. Where the triangle is is the door. It does open out so that frees up the space on the wall. The "barn" itself is really an L shaped structure so anthing that is not boxed in is open to the field. We do not have any other animals at this point but plan on having cows. The front 5 ft section and the 10 ft section with the door will be open to the pasture where cows will eventually be. Because of this, the nesting boxes will need to be INSIDE the coop, as much as I would love to have the ones where I can just lift the flap and get them out. UNLESS I decide to do that and have the boxes stick out into the run.

So, here's where I need the help....

Where to put the roost, and where to put the nest boxes? somewhere along the run side we will be cutting out a spot for the chicken door.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Do you have a window? That may influence it some.

It’s usually most convenient to put the roost as far from the door as you can because of access issues. You don’t need to be banging your head on them.

Personally I like going into the coop to gather the eggs. I’ve found a dead chicken, a possum, and a few snakes by going inside that I may have missed if I gathered eggs from the outside. But that’s just personal preference. I have access to the nests from outside but I never use it. Others love that feature.

Where to put the nests? First, where they won’t get pooped in from the roosts. Some people use the tops of the nests as a droppings board, so some of that depends on what your nests look like. Hen’s like to think the nest is a safe place to lay in. That generally means they don’t like the inside to be brightly lit. That’s why the window may be important.

I don’t know where you live or how hot it gets. In hot climates it might be best to put the nests on the north or east side so they don’t become ovens when the heat cranks up. If you have shade or the inside of another building that’s not as important.

That’s the things I’d consider if I were to be the one locating them. Good luck!

 

[ajhunt2]

Where to put the nests? First, where they won’t get pooped in from the roosts. Some people use the tops of the nests as a droppings board, so some of that depends on what your nests look like. Hen’s like to think the nest is a safe place to lay in. That generally means they don’t like the inside to be brightly lit. That’s why the window may be important.

No windows at the moment. was debating on putting one up high on the two long sides to be able to open up for ventalatio/cross breeze.

I don’t know where you live or how hot it gets. In hot climates it might be best to put the nests on the north or east side so they don’t become ovens when the heat cranks up. If you have shade or the inside of another building that’s not as important.

Live in KY so our weather can be somewhat crazy. HOT and humid in the summer and not too crazy of winters unless you count this past year. but I think everyone had freakish weather this winter

 

[ajhunt2]

Any other opinions