How i built my chicken coop

[aart]

Love the awning area, definitely reduces pressure on coop space, and dry dusting all year around.
The automated nest cover....brilliant!
The poop chute is great!
Works well with poop-sicles but at warmer temps too?
-11C is 12F...not below zeroF, but below freezing for sure.
How much snow do you get there?
Has it ever piled up in the run roof CW?
My run roof is 2x4 welded wire, most snow goes thru, but if freezing rain precedes snow(usually a wet snow) it starts to accumulate and I have to go out and knock it off, and set props to hold up weaker spots if overnight heavy snow happens.
But I live in a snow belt, near a large lake to the west, we can get inches an hour at times.

 

[PeterDenmark]

Love the awning area, definitely reduces pressure on coop space, and dry dusting all year around.
The automated nest cover....brilliant!
The poop chute is great!
Works well with poop-sicles but at warmer temps too?
-11C is 12F...not below zeroF, but below freezing for sure.
How much snow do you get there?
Has it ever piled up in the run roof CW?
My run roof is 2x4 welded wire, most snow goes thru, but if freezing rain precedes snow(usually a wet snow) it starts to accumulate and I have to go out and knock it off, and set props to hold up weaker spots if overnight heavy snow happens.
But I live in a snow belt, near a large lake to the west, we can get inches an hour at times.

Thanks aart - that was a very kind comment, and makes the effort of shooting the video totally worth it .

I can do inch and foot conversions on the fly, but Fahrenheit eludes me . Thanks for the heads up.

The poop chute works fine with loose droppings as well. It's hard to see in the video, but the chute is actually covered with a layer of masking tape, that i replace once a month or so. It actually works better with thawn up poop, since they won't bounce out of the bucket or of the side of the chute .

Inches of snow an hour - that must suck. We can get 1-2 feet of snow in a day, but it's rare. A "normal" snowfall would be about 4 inches, so it's not too bad.

2x4 welded wire would be better than 2 inch. The Official recommendation where i live, is 3x3 inch holes in the wire, but i was unable to find it a reasonable cost.

When i built the "awning" , i was thinking it was overkill to make it raisable (is that a word?). But for once my over analyzing and over constructing paid off, since i use the feature quite often. Especially when collecting material for composting. And rototilling, which i do 2-3 times a year in the run, before laying down a layer of chipped wood, would have sucked with that thing permanently in the way.

 

[aart]

The snow can be daunting, I still love it tho not near as much as when I was still able to go out and play in it, and it was much easier to move it.

I can do inch and foot conversions on the fly, but Fahrenheit eludes me . Thanks for the heads up.

No worries...I can't do either without my converter program....and 'zero' is freezing to you.

When i built the "awning" , i was thinking it was overkill to make it raisable (is that a word?). But for once my over analyzing and over constructing paid off, since i use the feature quite often.

Adjustability(maybe not a word either, but it works!) and access are very important, always in my mind as I design stuff....never an over-build IMO, might take more to design and build but certainly worth it when it comes to operational functionality.

 

[PeterDenmark]

Adjustability(maybe not a word either, but it works!) and access are very important, always in my mind as I design stuff....never an over-build IMO, might take more to design and build but certainly worth it when it comes to operational functionality.

You are right of course, but i often succumb to analysis paralysis.

For instance: The new coop i'm building, with a one-sided slant roof. I can't decide if i should leave the eaves open (is that the word for the space between the rathers). On the one hand, it will provide great ventilation, which is important, on the other hand - if there is a snow storm it might be too much, and if it the storm is powerful snow could blow up into them.
So the solution must be some kind of shutter system. Should i make this on all the 6 locations, og just a couple. The coop will have a window with wire over it, to open.

Another problem is, that since i'm covering the new coop with metal sheeting like the last coop, but this time it's on 4x4's, and not on the ground, the profile in the sheets will leave small "holes" where the sheets have a "hill" along the bottom frame.
To avoid drafts, these should be covered, since draft along the floor with the chicks is a no no. But how to do it.
I could just put a piece of foam rubber down each "hole", a push i down far enough, that the chicks can't reach it. But that would also mean, that when i pressure wash the inside of the house, those holes would get filled with dirt, and possibly be the perfect home for all kinds of nasty stuff.
I could cover the holes with silicone, but then there is the risk that they will work it loose over time. Maybe concrete, ravel mixed with latex, or make individual wooden plugs to put into the holes with epoxi, but they would be hard to install if the "hole" coincided with an upright 2x4 .

Contemplating solutions is great, but i often can't progress, because i'm afraid i'm going to reach a point of no return, with a less than perfect solution .

 

[aart]

Am very familiar with analysis paralysis!

Could leave eaves open, but baffle them in the winter by tacking pieces of cardboard, or sheet foam insulation, on bottom of rafters to send air up higher.

Leave metal sheathing gaps open at bottom, not likely to be much air flow up thru those. Blocking them present more cons than pros.

 

[jthornton]

Am very familiar with analysis paralysis!

Just when I thought I was the one to over analyze everything, it's good to know I have some distinguished company...

JT

 

[Molpet]

Thanks aart - that was a very kind comment, and makes the effort of shooting the video totally worth it .

I can do inch and foot conversions on the fly, but Fahrenheit eludes me . Thanks for the heads up.

The poop chute works fine with loose droppings as well. It's hard to see in the video, but the chute is actually covered with a layer of masking tape, that i replace once a month or so. It actually works better with thawn up poop, since they won't bounce out of the bucket or of the side of the chute .

Inches of snow an hour - that must suck. We can get 1-2 feet of snow in a day, but it's rare. A "normal" snowfall would be about 4 inches, so it's not too bad.

2x4 welded wire would be better than 2 inch. The Official recommendation where i live, is 3x3 inch holes in the wire, but i was unable to find it a reasonable cost.

When i built the "awning" , i was thinking it was overkill to make it raisable (is that a word?). But for once my over analyzing and over constructing paid off, since i use the feature quite often. Especially when collecting material for composting. And rototilling, which i do 2-3 times a year in the run, before laying down a layer of chipped wood, would have sucked with that thing permanently in the way.

Thanks for the updated look.

 

[PeterDenmark]

Leave metal sheathing gaps open at bottom, not likely to be much air flow up thru those. Blocking them present more cons than pros.

Thank you for the feedback. You are right - making some kind of permanent seal along the bottom, will cause problems in the long run. I will just push woodchips up against the walls, and that will stop any draft. The chips with clog the holes, but will be easy to get out with an air compressor, leaf blower or even a wire when i want to clean the coop thoroughly.

Thanks for the updated look

No worries, and thanks for watching