How to keep the expense down? and another Q

[Fanny]

I agree with Rufus - many of my materials came from the backlanes and alleys near my house - lots of fence boards, 2x4s, plywood, etc. And my siding is made from coroplast (election sign material) - I guess you could say my chickens live in the 'Tim Horton's' coop, as I used a bunch of their old advertising signs. Fair warning though, it is a lot more work to build using salvaged materials - removing old nails, adjusting for different lumber dimensions, etc.

I built my small coop and run (3x5 coop, 3x10 run) for around $100. The major expense being the hardware cloth. Definitely could have used some free chicken wire instead, but didn't want to chance it.

I have 3 standards and 1 bantam, and they seem happy in their space.

 

[Plain Old Dee]

We built ours completely from recycled materials. DH is certainly no carpenter, and it shows, but the chickens don't care. Our hen house is about 12 x 15. The lumber came from recycled pallets. It's not insulated - covered in sheet metal. East end is open to the elements, but covered by welded wire left over from previous projects. (Because it opens to the east, no real wind blows in - plus - the chooks love sunbathing in the morning!) The entry door was salvaged from our old henhouse. (The roof collapsed during a huge snow storm, or we would still be using it.) All in all, we only spent maybe $10 - $15 on nails and screws.

As soon as I can get DH and SIL off their backsides, we will build a big run so the girls can really go outside and move around. We have the posts, but will need to buy more wire, unfortunately.

 

[jerseygirl1]

Not to hijcak the thread

Is that dog wearing a one piece pajama, Bravo?? How cute

 

[Bravo]

Quote:
LOL he's a show dog so he is in wraps and a wrapping jacket. I hoped no one would notice--he and the chickens are buddies so where they go he follows

 

[WallTenters]

We are modifying wood pallets to use for the main sections of the walls. What we're doing is stripping the boards off of some pallets and applying them to the others to cover the gaps. Pallets will be stacked on their sides to allow water run-off. They actually look cute when you modify them this way... will try to get some photos up eventually. We are using a recycled batch of tin roofing for the roof. The only things we're buying are some cheapo plywood for the floor (well under $15/sheet at any lumber yard) (and keeping our eye out for other recycled flooring, maybe vinyl tyle), 4x4s for the corner frame work, and three 2x4s to support the roof. One additional piece of plywood and a strip of hardware cloth will fill the gap in the roof.

Total cost estimate so far under $100 for our 12x8x(6ft-7ft roof).

We are planning on also stacking old straw bales on the other walls in the winter time, if needed. Since we're going to be on only solar/wind energy, we don't want to burn a heat lamp in there all winter. We may eventually add some cheap insulation to the roof area where the chickies can't reach it. We can get rained on straw bales for free in our area, or nice fresh ones for $2.50 ea. Either will work fine, as long as you check them periodically to make sure there's no heat. Usually self combustion happens in large stacks, so we aren't too worried about it. The bales will go to compost after each winter

.

 

[Chieftain]

Everything said and done, the Chicken McMansion came in right around $1200. I think it's a tremendous value for that money, and I sleep very well at night knowing my chickens are safe, warm, and dry. I know that sounds like a lot of money, and it is, but we managed to accumulate it over a period of months, and we paid for the entire coop in cash, and no interest of any kind. I got exactly what I wanted for my money, and did not have to adapt someone else's design for my use, or settle for "good enough".

The other way to save money is choose materials carefully, and shop around. I opted to use inexpensive CDX grade plywood instead of T-111 siding which is four times more expensive. I also utilized the primer and paint that I already had on hand, and that too cut costs.

My advice to anyone considering a coop, is do not cheap out. Get what you need to do the job right. Plan the job carefully, and "build it in your head" a few times before you ever break ground.

Last, buy yourself a copy of "Storey's Guide to Raising Chickens" by Gail Damerow, and read it cover to cover. If you understand what the chickens need at different times in their lives, it will help you to design a great coop that you and the chickens will feel good about.

Good luck, and let us know if you need any more help!

Cheers!