Help with building the chicken coop

[katievallance]

I am finally working on building my chicken coop! Ya, LOL.. Well I came to a huge question. I am making the front 8 feet and the back 6 feet tall, the width will be 10 feet. I need help with how much of an angle I will need on the roof. I am far from being a carpenter, and this is my first big project!!! I would of been fin if I would of made it all the same sizes, but that wouldn't let the rain off.

Thanks in advance!

 

[OScarlet]

The way I did it is to look at roof pitches online



then once I had figured out what pitch I wanted I searched online for the angles I would need to cut.

DS and I decided we wanted something between 12/5 and 12/8 but weren't too fussy so long as it came somewhere in there.

You can look up online as to what slope is best for the weather you get. We don't get snow so I didn't have to worry about that.

 

[Black wallnut]

Rain will flow off flat roofs just fine. Pitch or slope of the roof is more dependent on snow load than rainwater drainage. What is the depth and where are you?

 

[yogifink]

Are you making a lean-to style roof?

If you are, why do you need an angle? The front is 8 feet and the back is 6, correct? Rafters from front to back, theres your angle. Over-hang a few inches or feet on both sides for water shed and your good to roll.

Or are you asking for an angle to cut the rafters at?

 

[katievallance]

Well I am making the coop so that it can be taken down when we move later on. I am working on building 5 pieces; the front, the back, the two sides, and the roof. I have the frames made for the front and the back and I am now working on getting the sides together. I have a 10 feet bottom, 8 foot front and 6 back. IDK. LOL. I might just lay it all out and wing it. I am at work today and thought I would ask to save me some time. I will be off Thur and Fri and hope to get it all finished.

 

[yogifink]

If I am understanding this correctly, your coop is 10x10, with an 8 foot front wall and 6 foot back wall. You’re making it in panels to disassemble and then reassemble.

Sounds like a fun project.

I Would:

Using 12 foot 2x4s make a few simple rafters - this will give a 1 foot overhang on the front and back. (look this up on youtube, to hard to explain in writing). Mark the top of the walls so that there is one rafter on each end and in the middle of each roofing panel. Then attach the rafters to the walls using hurricane straps with screws for easy removal later. Screw on your roofing panels, assuming you are using metal or plastic, and you’re good to roll.

Or, you could make the whole roof in one or two pieces on the ground using the same method as above, but you’ll need to attach furring strips perpendicular to the rafters on top before attaching the roofing material. And then lift into place, and again attach with hurricane straps and screws.

Or, maybe you could use angled joist hangers with screws on the inside of the walls, and hang the rafters like deck joists between the walls, flush to the top of the walls, and install the roofing panels with an overhang with no timber under it.

 

[katievallance]

Thanks for your help!! I will try the first one and let you know how it goes! Hoping to get it done on my 2 days off. I am using tin for the roof.

 

[ChickenLegs13]

If you use asphalt shingles you need no less then a 4-12 roof or the the shingles won't shed water properly. That means for each 12 ft of roof the slope raises or lowers 4 ft. Your 10ft roof with a 2ft rise = 2.4-12, kinda flat. But you're using tin, all is well! It would also take 4 good men to remove a 10x10 shingled roof from your walls.
Which leads to another ??? What about siding? Unless you use tin there also it will take 4 good men to move the 8x10, 6x10 and end walls.

 

[katievallance]

The back side will be all tin, the sides will be both tin and chicken wire, the front will be tin on the bottom and chicken wire on the top plus a screen door.

I was wanting to do fence pickets but we have plenty of tin laying around the house that needs to be used. So we are building a goat shed too, but that is the husbands project!

 

[ChickenLegs13]

Sounds like a plan! If you got any tin left over I need some. I've reused mine so many times I don't even have enough big pieces left to tin a birdhouse.