How much was your coop to build?

[norahsmommy]

How expensive was your coop? What size is it. Hubby wants one big enough to house 25 standard chickens. We have a dog kennel area that is 6 ft fencing and its about 25' by 25'. We thought we could use that for a run. What would I need to do to that to make it chicken/predator proof? It does not have a cover on top. For the coop I was thinking something 8 by 10 or 8 by 8. I want to be able to store some feed and things somewhere in there without chickens getting into it. We dont have a garage to store things. I was wondering how much everyone else spent and what size your coop is. Also what would you have done differently in you coop?

 

[kenman]

I built mine this summer and will have 25 RIR plus two or three roosters. My run is 12X18. I built it with 3x3 treated posts, a treated 2x6 along the bottom, mostly buried, a 2x4 along the top and also various bracing. I put chicken wire around and over the top. So far it has been very predator proof. My coop is 12x8 which gives me enough room for my roost, nest boxes, water pan, feeder (used a 36 inch goat feeder, heavy duty), and I could put a couple of trash barrels for feed if necessary. The cost was over five hundred dollars. Much more than I had intended although well worth it. Hope this helps.

 

[sunnydee]

24 2x4's, 6 4x4's, 5 rolls of small guaged wire, vinal flooring, two windows, feed, feeders, water = EXPENSIVE over $400.

Afternoons spent with kids building run, hours and hours of watching chicken TV with kids, watching one of our girls lay her very first egg and me seeing the joy on my daughters face = PRICELESS!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[danamillette]

My coop is what used to be an old playhouse that was in the backyard. Came with the house. Everthing else I got second hand. My brother donated a piece of board that is now the new door. The hinges for the door, I took off another old door laying around. My parents had some sheet insulation which is what I used on the inside. My husband donated the tar paper which covers the insulation from some left overs he had on a job. The roosts and nesting boxes are also old laying around or salvaged wood I got from a job site on the side of the road(with permission) I asked around and put a listing on free-cycle for run- fencing which i received. I think I spent 1.69 on two small hinges that are used inside to house a couple of younger girls. I also spent 2.99 on a welcome sign with a rooster on it from a "junk shop" I also put an add on free-cycle for unwanted wood shavings. I havent received any replies on that yet tho. So, basically...it was almost free!
The supplies to start out:
Oyster shell- $9.49 50lbs?(may weigh more)
Layena Pellets-$13.49 50lbs
Scratch-$9.99 50lbs
Starter (non-medicated)$10.00 -lost the receipt, not for sure.
I have 8 chickens (so far

)

 

[BeauTabiano]

for these two togather i have spent around 150 $ wich is a good deal to me , cause the door is plexy glass , and the roof is strong etc .. on the big one , wich i spent like 110 on . the little pink one ive spent 40 $ on
here are pics of them
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=104163

 

[ROC4K]

I was lucky enough to have saved lumber over the years. My coop is about 18x6 and was built with all salvaged goods. Except for the last box of deck screws ($29) and 4 rolls of chicken wire($60).

 

[Chirpy]

My husband is a contractor so he thought is was necessary to build the coop well enough to get a building CO (certificate of occupancy)!

We ended up putting a good $500 into ours but we didn't have much around for used material. That was for both the coop and run. If I'd known I was actually going to get chickens I'd have been collecting stuff. We literally found out and got the chickens within a few days.

I did want to mention that if you want 25 standard chickens you should plan on a coop that is a minimum of 100 sq. ft. Larger would be better since you have to take into account the floor space taken by feeders, waterers and possibly nest boxes.

 

[BeardedChick]

Yeah, you'll need to be thinking at least 10x10, and 10x12 or 12x12 would be better.

I have an 8x8 so it seems like 16 would fit, but the finished interior is really 7x7 so really 12 is a better number. By the time you put in roosts, nest boxes, etc. it really feels smaller than that.

That said, I have 14 chickens, most standard size and a couple of bantams. I am planning to double the size of my coop to 8x16 and then will go up to about 20 chickens and have a little extra space.

Don't underbuild! Or we'll all be saying we told ya so.

 

[Omran]

Hi, if I tell you you think I am kidding!! lol my first coop with concrete floor costed me about $400.00 it is 10'x10' and 8' tall walls.
my run is 40'x12' it was expensive but got the best amterials, metal roof very heavey 14 gage welded wire was about $600.00
and my last 10'X8' new Additon to the run was only $150.00

but the truth I work in construction and I bring a lot of garbage back home with me when I go to clean jobsites( lumber, blocks,nails,shingels,and everything else I find in dumbstors).
check outmy page below and you can see.
Omran.

 

[norahsmommy]

Thanks for all the suggestions. I think maybe we will put in a concrete floor. My husband is a mason and we have alot of the stuff laying around. I think I can get alot of old lumber from my father, and it would make my mom happy to clean out the garage and basement. I am pretty sure they have an old door and window or two also. My husband wants to buy all new stuff but with the prices around today I don't think so. I will definitely change the size so that the birds have plenty of room and I have a little area to store things since we dont have a garage. Maybe 10 by 12 would be good. That way I can have a small storage closet in there for feed and wood shavings and stuff.