Helpful hints for building coops

[k2panman]

I've got a few newbie questions. We want some girls to do bug patrol in the yard, and we love eggs! We want them to free range as much as possible.

We are on a 5 acre farm in Hawai'i at 19 degrees latitude and 1200 ft. elevation. It doesn't get very hot here, and doesn't get cold either. 90 for a hi and 50 degrees for a low are our temperature extremes here.

My thoughts for what we need in a coop is it will be just a place for them to sleep and hopefully lay eggs. I'd like to keep it simple - no Taj Mahal yet.

I'm thinking a moveable (wheels or maybe set it on pipes and roll it) simple 8'x8' all mesh sides (1/2" hardware cloth) and a metal flat roof (there is no level ground here, so the roof will always have enough pitch to shed water - and we only have snow on the tops of the two big mountains). I'd like to have an automatic door, and a door we can walk in if we make it tall enough. I'm thinking nest boxes will be 5 gallon plastic buckets. Roost I'm thinking to use branches from some local trees (kiawe, guava, macadamia).

What are your recommendations for height - I could make it 4, 6 or 8 feet high.

Would the chickens rather sleep in something more enclosed?

 

[aart]

What are your recommendations for height - I could make it 4, 6 or 8 feet high.

Would the chickens rather sleep in something more enclosed?

Tall enough for you to comfortably to walk into.
I like to be able to walk in and easily grab a bird off the roost at night for exams.
But then my knees don't do the 'squat' anymore.
Here's some general tips on heights in coops:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/coop-stack-up-how-high-should-stuff-be.73427/

Tractor or movable coop.
They can get heavy fast and if ground isn't smooth they can be hard to move.
Use big(10") fat pneumatic tires for ease of movement.
Is your land flat?
Gaps around bottom edge can be an issue with night predators.
Do you plan on using bedding in coop for night manure management?
Bedding can impede coop movement, so either move it almost every day or go with a stationary coop...and weren't you going to use electric wire?

They're probably going to want a wind break for high winds and/or wind driven rain, so enclosing 3 sides around the roost area would be a good idea.

I personally think 5 gal buckets are a bit too small for nests, especially the height.
But a lot of folks use them successfully.
Did you know they actually stand up when the egg emerges?
So some head room is good and need space(2-4") for the bedding too.
They like to turn around and around when settling in, bucket can make that tight.
12" cubed is the recommended 'minimum'.
Mine are 14x14x16".

 

[aart]

and figured out how to mow in reverse.

What was the story here....some kind of safety switch that shut the blade drive off when put into reverse gear?
Glad you figured it out....yeah, need to be able to back up....tho when cutting grass in reverse the discharge doesn't work worth beans(which never really made sense to me).

 

[jvls1942]

the height depends on how tall you are and if you intend to go into the coop very often.
8 x 8 with a metal roof might be a little heavy or awkward to move very often.
what do you have to watch out for as far as chicken killing predators ? coops must be built not to keep chickens in, but to keep predators out..
How many chickens do you plan to keep ?
hint: move the coop while the chickens are free ranging and not in the coop.
You might want to consider a hoop coop made with bent pvc covered with hdwe cloth. then you could just go inside and pick it up to move it. a tarp over the roost area would be less expensive. you will have to replace every couple of years.
no need for a chicken door. just leave the people door open for the chickens to use..
You should be able to rig up something automatic for that door..??
......jiminwisc.....

 

[jvls1942]

What was the story here....some kind of safety switch that shut the blade drive off when put into reverse gear?
Glad you figured it out....yeah, need to be able to back up....tho when cutting grass in reverse the discharge doesn't work worth beans(which never really made sense to me).

Looks like we posted at the same time.
the motor would shut off if I tried backing up with the blades engaged.
so back to the manual. read jim, read.
there is a position on the key to set to and then a button to push to keep the blades engaged while backing up.
when mowing amongst over 125 trees, there are multiple times when I have to back up to navigate around the trees.
I don't make it a habit of mowing backwards.. but when I am doing the tall weed/grass performance, I go through a swath forward, and then back up on the same swath to clean up what I did not catch on the first pass..
this first mowing through the trees and hitting way too many fallen branches that I didn't see really nicked up the blades. nothing too deep, but they really really do need to be sharpened.
..I got stung two more times yesterday.
I did find the bee's nest. it is in the dash of the tractor. of course I don't have any wasp killer spray, but I gave them a dose of ant killer right at dusk.. either it will kill them or make them really angry.
.....jiminwisc....

 

[k2panman]

Thanks for the suggestions aart and jiminwisc. Our land is all hilly here - sloping down to the sea - no flat land at all here. Lava is sticking out of the grass a lot of places, so uneven ground is going to complicate things. Was thinking of making some boards with about 1' of 1/2" hardware cloth to attach to the bottom edge of the coop to "seal" out the predators (rats, mongoose, owls and hawks are our only predators here in Hawai'i).

Nest boxes - I've been doing more reading here on BYC and yes, I'm going to go with 14x14x16 boxes instead of the buckets - so much for saving a few $. Like everyone says... 3x the time, 3x the $...!!!

Going to think about the hoop coop with a tarp. Really sounds easier than 2x4s, even though I've built many houses and a few barns. Simple is good. PVC covered with 1/2" hardware cloth.

Mahalo for the suggestions! I'll work on a hoop coop design... want an auto door for the chickens - will look around at designs for them. I am a retired electrical engineer - wiring a photosensor or battery backed clock to a door will be easy - maybe put a camera with facial recognition (maybe feather recognition...hmm..)

 

[aart]

Was thinking of making some boards with about 1' of 1/2" hardware cloth to attach to the bottom edge of the coop to "seal" out the predators (rats, mongoose, owls and hawks are our only predators here in Hawai'i).

I put a hinged anti-dig apron on the hoop coop I built, might work for you.

 

[k2panman]

Thanks for the link to your coop aart. That is a good looking, simple design. Great explanations and photos - that really helps me a lot. I like your hinged anti-dig apron. Is the 1x2" mesh keeping out the critters? I'm thinking rats could slip thru that and dig their way in if they wanted.

I built a kid cart (tandem stroller) way back when my girls were little. I used some wheel chair wheels. They worked great, and they can handle a lot of weight. I may try to find some of them for my coop, as we have really rough, rocky ground here.

Terri made a big frown when I said "and we just put a tarp on for rain" - I could see her thinking "looking like a homeless camp...". I hope there are some creative ideas around BYC on how to make a more stylish looking hoop coop, without getting too difficult or expensive.

 

[aart]

Is the 1x2" mesh keeping out the critters? I'm thinking rats could slip thru that and dig their way in if they wanted.

I sold that coop to some buddies, as far as I know, nothing has breached it.
They use it for meat chickens and turkeys.
I have no idea if a rat could get thru 1x2 holes or not, could always go with smaller mesh.

 

[jvls1942]

I always heard that if a rat can get his head through, the rest of his body will follow.
maybe you could paint a mural on the tarp so it won't look so refugee campish.. 64 square feet of metal roofing is quite a lift
now add the wire mesh sides and enough wood reinforcing to hold all this rigid ..
Use the large wheels from the wheel chair.
that is what I used on the yard cart I built.. I have trouble keeping air in them