Making coops by renovating Ice Fishing huts

[LadyCedar]

I have contacted a man that posted 2 ice-fishing huts on Kijiji, and I am hoping to get them, so if my previous idea of building coops out of recycled pallets/skids takes a little too long to complete, we can quickly renovate the ice fishing huts into coops. I have also been watching for free old hard bodied trailers to make into coops, as most have very high efficiency propane furnaces....and they are wired for electricity as well, any thoughts/idea's you could share on this would be most welcome.......I figure that if it meets the needs of my birds, and we can paint them or otherwise make the "nice looking" then it could work out.....has anyone else used this approach successfully?

 

[cnicho05]

Hello,

I've seen people transform old trailers into chicken coops with much success. An old employer who I worked with took a closed-top trailer and cut small doors in the side, installed nesting boxes and roosting poles and called it good. He would park it at the back of his field and slowly move it from place to place as the chickens fertilized each area. I always wanted to try something like this but never had a large area of land to work with...

As for your idea to transform an old ice fishing hut...I might worry about it becoming too warm inside the hut during the long summer months. Most ice fishing huts are built to trap heat, to keep the fishermen warm, so I would make sure you have plenty of air vents.

Either way, it seems like you have some good ideas...Best of luck...

 

[LadyCedar]

TYVM for reminding me about the "ventilation" issue, we have a small spare "ventilator" for a roof, I will also add windows openings with screens and shutters....was thinking about putting screens along the length of the top of the 2 longer walls. Under the roof to keep rain out and to let hot air escape.....

 

[LadyCedar]

Well, we have one coop basically done, just a few finishing touches needed.
I am pleased with the fact they are sheathed in heavy tin, to keep predators out!
We used a few "Florida Windows" we saved from scrapping an old slide in camper, and added them to the coop for ventilation. We lined the inside with recycled wood to cover the hard foam insulation.....

Will try and send pics soon! Hoping the Habitat for Humanity Restore has some cheap outdoor paint to make them pretty, lol.

A quick question : what is the ideal range in temperatures for Laying Hens to be comfortable?
And I also need advice on raising meat chicks from 1-2 days old, can someone help me find the right "thread" please?

 

[BubbaLikesIt]

Recycling ice fishing huts for chicken coops is a brilliant idea. The hut has everything you need for a coop. Good thinking.

 

[LadyCedar]

TYVM Bubba, sadly it is a sign of the times, except for this past winter, the past 2 decades have seen a serious decline in the fish, and the lack of thick enough ice to keep the ice-fishing folks in business......but their loss was my gain!
We get some nights when it hits -40C, so the insulation is a "must have"! Dad just finished the last nesting boxes today and the door ramp. "The Girls" seem quite comfortable!
We are raising 50 meat birds that arrive as hatch-lings day after tomorrow, so on to the second and hopefully the 3rd renovated fish-huts/coops.

 

[LadyCedar]

WE SURVIVED OUR 1ST PREDATOR ATTACK! Retired Ice-fishing huts rock!
Thanks to the metal sheath we didn't lose any Laying Hens, or the young meat birds. We are fairly certain these were raccoons ( though we do have Martins and Minks in our area), they managed to pull out the corner of the door, and opened a couple of seams an inch or so. But they did not get in. The guys went out and repaired the damage, and reinforced the weak spots. So far, so good!