How big of a coop do I need to build?

[bock]

I will be building a new coop soon out of recycled wood from our old balcony. I will have about a total of 30 standard chickens in there. If they were to free range during the day, how much room would they need?

 

[NoseyChickens]

They should still have 4 sq feet per bird. I have read you can go with a little less if you live in a mild climate. But I wouldn't go any smaller, people tend to want more as they go along.

 

[Matt A NC]

10x12 would give the 4 square feet per bird recommended. If your birds are never in the coop, except to roost, you can get by with smaller. The truth is that if you are a chicken addict you should go as BIG as you can. That way you have room to expand the flock later.

Matt

 

[PunkinPeep]

If you're thinking 30, save yourself some headache and plan for 90.

At least that's how it goes around here.

 

[Dixiedoodle]

How much money do you have?????

I would build the largest, most secure coop I could afford! I only wanted a tiny coop--maybe large enough for 4 hens, dh built it to house 18.. I want --oh maybe 100+... You can NEVER have enough room.. Be smart --build some dividers --make different sections... Cause you will want large fowl, bantams, then you'll want to breed some, then you will want to add a rare breed, then you will want some show birds, then you might need a few geese or a couple of ducks... it goes on and on and on!!!

So, how much money do you have????

 

[bock]

Thanks everyone! We were planning on building it out of the wood from our old balcony, along with the some panels, nails, screws, doors, and wire from Home Depot. I would prefer to keep it under $100. I don't think it will be too hard since we have most of the supplies on hand. I really am not very worried about predators. I know it sounds dumb, but I have left the door open to my chicken coop for the past year without any losses. I also have 15 ducks and 2 geese that free range during the day and sleep in the backyard at night. I have never lost one. Of course, my I have heard my two dogs chase off a coon or two in the night.

I know it's better to be safe than sorry though. Knock on wood. I don't know if I will really get into breeding or showing. I might just let them hatch out a few mutts when they go broody, but nothing much. Thanks for the advice! I will start whenever we get a sunny weekend.

 

[motoclown]

Buy the big box of screws right from the get go.
We ended up buying 3 boxes of screws for our second coop, spent 20.oo on the 3 small boxes.

 

[Cargo]

You can never have enough wood screws.

 

[Matt A NC]

Quote:
I had birds for 3 years before the predators found them. My first problems were possums and early morning hawks. This year I have dealt with abandoned cats. I close all the houses up each night.

Matt

 

[bock]

Well we started on it. While I was away christmas shopping, my dad decided to start . He finished the base part, it has a deck design. It's kind of hard to explain, but the front of the coop is on the the top of the hill, and the end is standing on ''stilts'' where the hill is descending downwards. The problem is, he only made it 8x10. Trying not to sound rude, I explained that that would be terribly cramped for 30 chickens. So, we compromised and the part under the deck area will be closed off as well to give them extra space. That way it will be sort of like a 'chicken cellar'.

I think it will work out well. I will post pics when we finish!