Who knew that a search for a new pet for my son to somehow match the coolness of his sister's two parakeets would lead me to where I am today?!
Never mind that he has long since moved on from wanting another pet of his own. Never mind that I wasn't even interested in getting more pets. It doesn't matter. After seeing info on line, finding this site, then spending countless hours reading all of the valuable information that everyone has given, the coop and run are now mostly finished, and inhabited.
Anyhow, at some point during the spring I latched on to the idea of getting a couple of hens - for myself! I'm still not sure it was the best idea, since we have many close neighbors, but the many drives home from a stressful work environment gave me ample opportunity to think about something much more enjoyable and relaxing - chickens.
One thing before going any further - I'm not a craftsman. I'm impatient at times, have little or no skill or experience building things, and lack the tools to do a great job keeping things straight, level, neat, and smooth. I basically used a circular saw and a jigsaw, but the jigsaw broke part way through, so it was down to the circular. It's interesting trying to cut out a window from a sheet of plywood using a circular saw, but I found out it can be done. Sort of.
Anyhow, here are the pictures of the past few months of coop/run construction.
This is the area I've been working with. A roughly 450sf area on the side of our house where our two male rabbits, Cupcake and Lil' William, have been living for the past year:
Looking straight on, this will be the area for the new hens (Lil' William looks on):
My son Jagger, along with Cupcake, help lay out the coop and run area:
The base is put in, and the rabbit-hutch-turned-chicken-coop is set in it's general place:
Lil' William inspects the framework for the run:
The coop has height added, plywood panels added, and a base made:
The inside of the coop shows where the hens enter (top left), their 2x4 roost with sand tray underneath, and the nesting area on the top right. Following suggestions, I put in a removable plywood base with peel-and-stick linoleum squares added for easy cleaning. The sand tray now has sand in it, and the rest is loaded with pine shavings. BTW, they don't use the roost, and either sleep in the nesting area or by the door:
After struggling with what to do about the roof, I finally brainstormed a sort of removable panel approach. There are three, 2'x4' panels that sit at an angle so that rainwater can run off. The hole for accessing the eggs is roughed in - a temporary cover is on it now, but will be replaced by the time they start laying. Their food and water are accessed from this end under the coop:
The backside of the progressing run:
A close-up of the picture frame window - thanks Barg for the great idea!:
An end view of the run, showing how the food and water are accessed from inside the run by walking under the plank to the coop (yet to be added):
Finally, this past Monday the 16th my son and I drove 50 miles to adopt our three new hens (the sun has gone away this week):
Another end view, showing the plank, and my son on his stool:
Ginger, Clucks, and Giggles enjoy some cantaloupe:
As stated in another thread, our buff colored girl Ginger was only with us one night. She was a very loud morning girl, and we live so close to the neighbors that I thought her surprisingly loud morning demeanor would be too stressful to both me and the neighbors, so she went to live with someone who had a lot more space to work with. Clucks and Giggles, our two Black Australorp crosses (crossed with either RIR's or Americaunas - we don't know which), are much quieter, and will fit better into our specific situation.
Here they enjoy their first time out of the run after 6 days "cooped up":
Giggles roaming around:
Clucks taking a dirt bath while Giggles watches:
The more or less finished coop and run, showing how I can remove one or more roof panels for easier access to the run:
Thanks for the opportunity to participate. Any feedback and ideas are appreciated, as well as any input on Clucks and Giggles. Specifically, any idea on which cross they look like more, BA+RIR or BA+Am.?
-Dave
Never mind that he has long since moved on from wanting another pet of his own. Never mind that I wasn't even interested in getting more pets. It doesn't matter. After seeing info on line, finding this site, then spending countless hours reading all of the valuable information that everyone has given, the coop and run are now mostly finished, and inhabited.
Anyhow, at some point during the spring I latched on to the idea of getting a couple of hens - for myself! I'm still not sure it was the best idea, since we have many close neighbors, but the many drives home from a stressful work environment gave me ample opportunity to think about something much more enjoyable and relaxing - chickens.
One thing before going any further - I'm not a craftsman. I'm impatient at times, have little or no skill or experience building things, and lack the tools to do a great job keeping things straight, level, neat, and smooth. I basically used a circular saw and a jigsaw, but the jigsaw broke part way through, so it was down to the circular. It's interesting trying to cut out a window from a sheet of plywood using a circular saw, but I found out it can be done. Sort of.
Anyhow, here are the pictures of the past few months of coop/run construction.
This is the area I've been working with. A roughly 450sf area on the side of our house where our two male rabbits, Cupcake and Lil' William, have been living for the past year:
Looking straight on, this will be the area for the new hens (Lil' William looks on):
My son Jagger, along with Cupcake, help lay out the coop and run area:
The base is put in, and the rabbit-hutch-turned-chicken-coop is set in it's general place:
Lil' William inspects the framework for the run:
The coop has height added, plywood panels added, and a base made:
The inside of the coop shows where the hens enter (top left), their 2x4 roost with sand tray underneath, and the nesting area on the top right. Following suggestions, I put in a removable plywood base with peel-and-stick linoleum squares added for easy cleaning. The sand tray now has sand in it, and the rest is loaded with pine shavings. BTW, they don't use the roost, and either sleep in the nesting area or by the door:
After struggling with what to do about the roof, I finally brainstormed a sort of removable panel approach. There are three, 2'x4' panels that sit at an angle so that rainwater can run off. The hole for accessing the eggs is roughed in - a temporary cover is on it now, but will be replaced by the time they start laying. Their food and water are accessed from this end under the coop:
The backside of the progressing run:
A close-up of the picture frame window - thanks Barg for the great idea!:
An end view of the run, showing how the food and water are accessed from inside the run by walking under the plank to the coop (yet to be added):
Finally, this past Monday the 16th my son and I drove 50 miles to adopt our three new hens (the sun has gone away this week):
Another end view, showing the plank, and my son on his stool:
Ginger, Clucks, and Giggles enjoy some cantaloupe:
As stated in another thread, our buff colored girl Ginger was only with us one night. She was a very loud morning girl, and we live so close to the neighbors that I thought her surprisingly loud morning demeanor would be too stressful to both me and the neighbors, so she went to live with someone who had a lot more space to work with. Clucks and Giggles, our two Black Australorp crosses (crossed with either RIR's or Americaunas - we don't know which), are much quieter, and will fit better into our specific situation.
Here they enjoy their first time out of the run after 6 days "cooped up":
Giggles roaming around:
Clucks taking a dirt bath while Giggles watches:
The more or less finished coop and run, showing how I can remove one or more roof panels for easier access to the run:
Thanks for the opportunity to participate. Any feedback and ideas are appreciated, as well as any input on Clucks and Giggles. Specifically, any idea on which cross they look like more, BA+RIR or BA+Am.?
-Dave
. 
For your setup, I would recommend pine shavings for the inside areas on the wood floor. As for your sand run. I don't have any experience with it. If it's dampness is a problem, you could always put straw or shavings down and rake it out into your compost bin when it gets too dirty. Straw does have a tendency to mold though which is its drawback for being cheaper than pine shavings.
