Just getting started, an idea I would like some thoughts on.

[Dan in Reno]

Good day all!

My wife and I are excited to be posting after the purchase of a small ranch last month. We purchased 3 hens (1 Ameraucana and 2 sex links) and a rooster at a local swap this weekend.

Currently we have them setup in a small coop in an old dog run on the property. The run is 20x40 and they are free to wander both in and out of the run during the day. Thus far, they have stayed in the run during the day. At night they are in the small coop and our older hen (Pearl, Ameraucana) has given us an egg 2 of 3 days!

We would ultimately like to have around 10 hens for the rooster and I was looking into some plans for a coop when I realized that I may be able to just use what I have.

Adjacent to the dog run, I have a 10x10 shed that we are not really needing. I would need to bury some wire around the foundation to keep predators at bay and also build out some nesting boxes and perches, but anyone see any issues with this as a coop?

I also plan to continue allowing them to free range during the day, but I may regret that one day. We do have marmots, skunks, raccoons, and all of the birds of prey you would expect out west.

Feedback and tips welcome!!

Dan and Mary

 

[andreanar]

That is perfect! Id cover the window with hardware cloth. Add some hardware cloth covered ventilation up in the rafters. Put some nest boxes in there, you don't need to build them out unless you want to. Put up a nice 2x4 roost and a poop board under it. Good to go! Beautiful property btw.
Roost with poop board under it, filled with PDZ so I just have to scoop out the poop-easy peasy.

 

[Dan in Reno]

Thanks! We were super lucky to find a 1950 Ranch on 3 acres out here. It was always owned by the original owner until they passed this spring.

What is PDZ- by the way?

 

[andreanar]

PDZ or sweet PDZ is horse stall refresher. It helps with the poop smell and dries the poop out nicely for scooping it with a cat litter scoop.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Where are you located? I'm asking for climate considerations.

That shed will work great. To make it into a coop you need to add roosts and nests. A "pop" door is usually a good idea. The chickens need to go in and out during the day. You can lock the people door open but that can let in a lot of rain and weather. A small door in the range of 12" square near the floor but up high enough so any bedding doesn't block it usually works really well.

A general rule of thumb is one nest for every four hens. Theoretically you could get by with just one nest for three but I'm a great believer in flexibility. Since you are thinking about getting more anyway I'd go with three to start with. With some tiny coops hanging the nest outside is almost necessary but with your big walk-in coop it works great to have them totally inside.

Where climate comes in is ventilation. Regardless of what your climate is they need ventilation so the coop can exchange bad air for good. Even in sub-zero weather it's good to have some fairly large openings up high under the overhang to help keep rain and maybe snow out. In warm weather you can open it up as much as you wish.

I can't tell if the floor is wood or the ground. Mine is dirt. I put wood shavings on it as bedding to absorb the moisture form the poop so it stays dry. Others do all kinds of different things, whether it is wood or dirt. The main thing is that you want it to stay dry. A wet coop will stink and probably be unhealthy. A dry coop is pleasant to be around.

If poop builds up it can stay wet. With yours roaming during the day that isn't likely to be an issue, but at night it's different. They aren't moving around and they still poop a lot at night. Poop builds up a lot at night. A lot of us use what we call droppings boards. That is something under the roosts that catches the poop for easy removal. Some people use trays, some use bins, mine is just a flat piece of plywood. Some people use sand, wood shavings, or something else on those droppings boards, I don't use anything. PDZ is something that absorbs moisture and is often used around animals to help keep the poop dry. If you read enough posts on this forum you will find a huge range of things people use. I don't use anything but scrape it when I need to and add that pure poop to my compost pile.

 

[enrgizerbunny]

The most important modification that you need to make to the shed is VENTILATION. If you read the articles about coop design, ventilation will be a pretty universal concept. You don't want you coop to get humid when it's cold out, and you want the ammonia vapors from their waste to be able to escape.

Based on the pictures, you should be able to cut rectangle holes just below the eaves on the low and high ends of the roof. (Yes, cut right through the plywood wall and cover the hole with hardware cloth) Cutting large holes provides more of an opening than swiss cheesing it with a large drill bit, but the drill isn't out of the question if you want to go that route.

Here is a link to the coop I built:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/building-the-chicken-palace-this-weekend.1142361/page-2
If you look above my wall, there is a 3.5" gap between the top of the wall and the roof. That's about the size I would shoot for when cutting holes. Maybe fewer, larger vents- either way that's the main feature that needs to be added if you ask me. Besides that it looks like a GREAT potential coop.

If you build out nest boxes on an edge that's outside the run you can collect eggs without stepping in poop, but it's not necessary by any means.

Oh yeah, ventilation article:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...-there-and-cut-more-holes-in-your-coop.47774/

 

[andreanar]

Photo of ventilation in my converted shed all along the roof, under the overhang going all the way around the coop. Covered with screen on the outside, for fly repellent, and covered with hardware cloth on the inside to prevent any nasty chicken killers getting in

 

[Toothpick]

I think that shed would work just fine. My new chicken coop is being built today and it is a 8x10 shed.

Just make some modifications and you are all set.

 

[aart]

You've gotten lots of good advice.
Welcome to BYC!

 

[Dan in Reno]

Thanks! I am in Reno, so hot summers (95-103) with cool nights (55-68) and cooler winters (days in the 40's, nights below freezing). We are desert but get some occasional snow.

The ventilation is a great point and easy to add here. The one thing I don't have out there is power. I could run an extension cord as needed.

It's a plywood floor about 8" off the ground on blocks.

Thanks for all the great tips!

Where are you located? I'm asking for climate considerations.

That shed will work great. To make it into a coop you need to add roosts and nests. A "pop" door is usually a good idea. The chickens need to go in and out during the day. You can lock the people door open but that can let in a lot of rain and weather. A small door in the range of 12" square near the floor but up high enough so any bedding doesn't block it usually works really well.

A general rule of thumb is one nest for every four hens. Theoretically you could get by with just one nest for three but I'm a great believer in flexibility. Since you are thinking about getting more anyway I'd go with three to start with. With some tiny coops hanging the nest outside is almost necessary but with your big walk-in coop it works great to have them totally inside.

Where climate comes in is ventilation. Regardless of what your climate is they need ventilation so the coop can exchange bad air for good. Even in sub-zero weather it's good to have some fairly large openings up high under the overhang to help keep rain and maybe snow out. In warm weather you can open it up as much as you wish.

I can't tell if the floor is wood or the ground. Mine is dirt. I put wood shavings on it as bedding to absorb the moisture form the poop so it stays dry. Others do all kinds of different things, whether it is wood or dirt. The main thing is that you want it to stay dry. A wet coop will stink and probably be unhealthy. A dry coop is pleasant to be around.

If poop builds up it can stay wet. With yours roaming during the day that isn't likely to be an issue, but at night it's different. They aren't moving around and they still poop a lot at night. Poop builds up a lot at night. A lot of us use what we call droppings boards. That is something under the roosts that catches the poop for easy removal. Some people use trays, some use bins, mine is just a flat piece of plywood. Some people use sand, wood shavings, or something else on those droppings boards, I don't use anything. PDZ is something that absorbs moisture and is often used around animals to help keep the poop dry. If you read enough posts on this forum you will find a huge range of things people use. I don't use anything but scrape it when I need to and add that pure poop to my compost pile.