My Coop..built by a pro carpenter!

[Outta Here]

So different dealing with chickens in Arizona. Their indoor coop's roof is total ventilation, and they have two more wire windows. I keep a swamp cooler blowing on them all night in the summer. They love it so much they come in from the shade at midday to nap in front of the cooler, when I move it close enough to lightly ruffle their feathers! If they prefer less airflow, they snooze behind the enclosed part.
Also, with a nighttime coop this small, having it enclosed would be like a coffin! I would have preferred to build deeper but for the bathroom door, which I don't want to move. The problem with a narrow (31") coop is the roost has to be lower. The higher the roost, the more "take-off" space they need, not being helicopters.

 

[Katanahamon]

So different dealing with chickens in Arizona. Their indoor coop's roof is total ventilation, and they have two more wire windows. I keep a swamp cooler blowing on them all night in the summer. They love it so much they come in from the shade at midday to nap in front of the cooler, when I move it close enough to lightly ruffle their feathers! If they prefer less airflow, they snooze behind the enclosed part.
Also, with a nighttime coop this small, having it enclosed would be like a coffin! I would have preferred to build deeper but for the bathroom door, which I don't want to move. The problem with a narrow (31") coop is the roost has to be lower. The higher the roost, the more "take-off" space they need, not being helicopters.
View attachment 2786510

Thanks..I got a portable Honeywell swampy and thought I had to turn it off, when they were smaller they acted afraid of it, last night was the first time I had it on when they were roosting and they didn’t seem to mind, but, I didn’t want to stress them out so I turned it off. It’s so weird how it’s 106 or 107 in summer, then so cold and snowy icy too in winter..I won’t forget to turn it on this afternoon!

 

[Outta Here]

Thanks..I got a portable Honeywell swampy and thought I had to turn it off, when they were smaller they acted afraid of it, last night was the first time I had it on when they were roosting and they didn’t seem to mind, but, I didn’t want to stress them out so I turned it off. It’s so weird how it’s 106 or 107 in summer, then so cold and snowy icy too in winter..I won’t forget to turn it on this afternoon!

Mine is a 500 sq ft Hessaire, but in a large shop it doesn't really lower the surrounding temperature. It lowers the temperature inside the coop about 10 degrees, and I only use it if it's over 85 degrees. At midday they voluntarily come in from free ranging for a couple hour nap--I only turn it on then. Supposed to only use 4 cents an hour. At night I scoot it back further than the picture. But if it's less than 85 degrees, I don't use it at night.
In winter, sometimes it will freeze in the wee hours, but my barn is heavily insulated, so it never gets below about 50 in there. When they were chicks still under a light, during cold weather I would lay a blanket over part of the wire lid.

 

[3KillerBs]

The main problem is quite frankly, most people don't have enough vertical height into their coops to allow for ample ventilation to be added in.

Yes. IMO no coop should ever be smaller than 4'x4'x4'. It's just about impossible to get all the numbers to line up if it's any smaller than that.

 

[Katanahamon]

Yes. IMO no coop should ever be smaller than 4'x4'x4'. It's just about impossible to get all the numbers to line up if it's any smaller than that.

Yes..I wanted a coop I could at least walk around in, and would give enough space that they wouldn’t eat each other from craziness in the winter..! Plus, like I said, future home owners could turn it into a tiny painting, writing, music studio etc.. As long as they don’t play piano..oh yeah..portable keyboards, never mind!

 

[aart]

chickens in Arizona

It’s so weird how it’s 106 or 107 in summer, then so cold and snowy icy too in winter

WOW, where is that?

Here's how to add your general geographical location to your profile.
It's easy to do, and then it's always there!

 

[Katanahamon]

WOW, where is that?

Here's how to add your general geographical location to your profile.
It's easy to do, and then it's always there!
View attachment 2786901

I’m on the east side of Salt Lake City, up closer to the foothills and Mt Olympus, about 4850ft elevation. I measured 107 this summer so far, and 3 degrees last winter..it’s nuts..it’s nice though, grew up in Houston, so, single digit humidity took some getting used to! Here’s the front view looking East today..hazy from smoke and dust..I edited to add winter pics to show contrast..the foliage that grows so fast in summer radically alters the landscape..grapes, hops, all the annual stuff just goes insane..

 

[aart]

east side of Salt Lake City

Great! .... add it to your profile?

 

[Outta Here]

Yes. IMO no coop should ever be smaller than 4'x4'x4'. It's just about impossible to get all the numbers to line up if it's any smaller than that.

But sometimes we have to work with the structures we have. I've raised a dozen chickens in barn areas of 24'x48' but I much prefer the closeness of my tiny indoor coop. I love being able to reach in and pet them on their roosts or when they jump from their roosts to the half wall to greet me.

I love that it takes 5 minutes to get it as clean as my kitchen, even wiping down the roost. But I would never make my chickens actually live in the small indoor coop I built. Since they only come in to hop on the roost, it's not really their "coop"--more like their super-secure, super-ventilated nighttime "roost" area. They also voluntarily come in from free ranging to take midday naps in front of the swamp cooler.
The outside coop is 4x18, and they come and go between the inside and outside one. But I would think them cramped if they had to stay in full time with both sides--They have millions of square foot per chicken to roam all day long, so they are very happy girls. And so am I.