How much headroom on run? Roost positioning? HELP newbie

[AK-Bird-brain]

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You guys got slammed pretty hard this winter. We were clear all winter, and down in the -20 to -30°F for what seemed like forEVER! But the girls did just fine.

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Sounds perfect.

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Yay!

You sound just like us!!! I'm not the only one! Hey, saves on modifications later when you think it out and do it right the first time!


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I think that would work just fine. Oh, and the 1/2" rabbit wire is too small for the dropping pit... use 1" chicken wire... small enough they can walk on it, big enough for big dumps to fall through. 3-4 hens will do just fine in the area you're working with. They're going to be happy campers!

I look forward to seeing the finished product!
Mrs. AKBB

 

[SeaChick]

Hi guys-
This thread has been wonderful for us as we consider our future coop (should know in less than a month what the city decides!) You both sound like me: I've been reading and planning this coop for a while and want to design it just right. Also have the same concerns re: insulation, cold (Maine), small flock, ease of keeping scrupulously clean. So.... thanks for all this great information!
4MyHennyPenny.... please, PLEASE post photos when you start building!
Best wishes
Stacey

 

[BirdBrain]

As I have been considering how to bulid a droppings pit for my Mom's birds I have been wondering if I could design the pit in such a way that it has outside access so I can just rake out the old stuff and then sprinkle in new from the inside. If it had a lift door from the outside that might work for you--sort of like the "lift" doors for inside nests. Don't know if that will work, but it is just and idea I thought I would throw out there and see if you could use it.

 

[AK-Bird-brain]

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Yay! <Clapping hands> That is an AWESOME idea, and I wish I had thought of it! Like the old fireplaces that had holes/shutes built in so you didn't have to get soot all over the room... brilliant!

 

[4myHennyPenny]

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Good to know this! I would have used the same 1/2" I was using everywhere else. I've got loads of chicken wire sitting around anyway; it's not too flimsy, is it (i.e. do I need to get the 1" hardware cloth)?

SeaChick, will definitely post pics when I start to build, but that probably won't be for at least a month. We're inundated with other building projects at the moment, and I need dh's expertise (even though this is supposedly "all my thing"

). Sounds as though you and I have similar design considerations, so hope it will be helpful.

BirdBrain: I'd been thinking of something similar. I was considering a hatch door or lift door about 10" or so high by the length of the drop pit. The drop pit would be totally open to me when I opened the door, allowing for easy cleaning with the cat litter scoops that so many seem to be recommending. Plus, door would be high enough to allow me to dump in additional sand & shavings when necessary. Oh, I should probably mention that I was planning to have the framed chicken wire cover of the drop pit on hinges so that it could be lifted up (away from me, so to speak) to ease cleaning even further. Because the coop will be elevated, droppings could be easily scooped out into the wheelbarrow or such below.

Only spot where this will be a bit different (potentially) is at the point of the pop hole and chicken ramp. I'm not sure if I should just stop the roost before this point, keep the roost and plan to clean the drop pit through the pop hole when the door is open, or ????? If you have ideas, I'd love to hear them.

And just to be clear, 12" of headroom under the roost is not just fine for them to walk under, but will also allow this floor space to be considered usable and part of the 4 sq ft per chicken, right? (I think that's what I inferred from AK-B-B's answers, but just wanting to dot all my i's and cross all my t's.)