lights and doors

[6of6chicks]

Your coop is gorgeous! Nice yard, too!

I ended up re-doing the chicken door to the coop, simply because it helped ME sleep better at night. I had originally put a door that folded down onto the ramp, but it was a bit flimsy and I didn't cut it very well (wasn't entirely flush when closed). After something chewed the back doors to the coop, I kept worrying about the chicken door as another potential weak spot. EVEN though my run is secure AND I buried the hardware cloth & covered with concrete blocks. Rural area = predator heaven. So re-did the chicken door with a thick plywood cover that closes up tight. Maybe wasn't necessary for the girls, but very necessary for my peace of mind.

Oh, and my girls didn't like after dark lights either. It just seemed to confuse them about bedtime. Without the lights they march themselves into the coop about 20 minutes before it gets completely dark, then holler at me to come close the door (they've trained me well).

 

[omi4500]

hello, all! Am very thankful for your feedback and responses. Being new to all of this, I feel much more equipped now for having "chatted" with you. The chickens, on the other hand, seem to figure it all out leaps and bounds ahead of me.

ChickenCanoe - too many birds lost, and too many crafty predators.
Weasels chasing the chickens during the day? Yikes. Good luck with your traps. G-Quackers - good points about urban predators.

So, as mentioned, the light is out of the coop and the chicks happily zzzzz the night away. I have decided, thought, that I do need some kind of light out there - in the event that I need to check on the chicks after dark (like GoingQuackers & others mentioned). There is no other lighting out there presently, and the coop is at the back portion of my one acre lot (aka: very dark out there in the wee hours of the night). For the time being, I have an LED flashlight out there, but I like the idea of trying to find a small solar light that I can turn on/off. No electricity out there. However, the idea of pulling up a ground-staked solar light isn't bad either (ha! don't tell DH that I've already done that on occasion). The ultimate plan, once the whole garden goes in, is to have solar lights staked along the pathways anyhow.

Thanks for the nice comments about my coop. I spent a lot of time researching what I wanted. I ended up getting this one from SanTan Valley Coops in AZ. The design is based off of one of their standard coops, but I asked them to add the mid level cross bars for support, the kick plates at the bottom (since I intended to use sand as the litter/flooring), and a storage cabinet at the backside.I'm 5'8" so I knew I wanted a coop I could walk into (this one is 6'H). Once the girls moved in, I added a few things here and there (I changed out some of the locks and added another roosting bar inside the house, etc). I also added the log stumps (left over from a recent project in another part of the garden) and the tree branches. It's been a lot of fun getting it set up.

As requested - some shots of the coop...
Some inside shots. The floor area is 8'x9'

House entrance and the popular log stumps


Penny, the investigator, came to see why I am leaning inside her house.

And she says she likes the new roosting bar very much.


This is the gap that JanetS noticed. It's a one-inch gap. Thanks for calling that to my attention. I'll maybe install a one-inch length of wood in each of those gaps... must think about best options.


As you can see, all the sod in this area has since come out to make way for the future garden & other water-wise landscaping.

storage cabinet at the back - has come in so handy The red chalk shows where I intend to install some trellis for trailing roses or a vining plant to create more afternoon shade on this side of the coop.

You know what these are...

I like to sneak one of these chairs in the coop in the mornings and have coffee time with the girls.


Next project... figuring out a door to close them in at night. Thanks for the suggestions.

 

[hoping4]

I installed a "Red" LED rope light...shorten it to about 2 feet...comes on a dusk and off at dawn. Run it off a 12v battery. I luv it. They don't seem to have issues with it.

 

[omi4500]

Thanks for that info, hoping4. I didn't even know that LED red rope lights existed. Well, at this point, I've just taken the lights out and I'm keeping my eyes open for a solar powered light that I can turn on and off, if needed. So far, all seems good.