My new 10x12 coop build unveiled!!

[Tre3hugger]

I have been working on this shed for a couple months and finally finished it last week! So this past week I have been doing the fun part, designing the inside. This is what I came up with.


Inside view from human door

Exterior: I went with a gambrel roof barn style shed with an 80 sq ft storage loft. This is to house my laying flock of 9 hens, 20 pullets yet to lay, and 2 roosters.

I left the two gables open for ventilation up high, and added one window to the door.

For bedding i used about 2/3 pine shavings, 1/3 pine straw and leaves and stuff I gathered from around my property. Hopefully this makes the litter a bit more ready to compost in the spring. For my main roost I sourced two large branches from my woods. They are 12 inches apart at their closest and 12 inches from the back wall. They are about 3 1/2 ft off the ground. I added a 2x4 flat side up a little lower for a step up, and an option for my larger birds.

You can also see the nest box in that picture. It is the HenGear medium rollaway reversible nest box. I only have 10 girls laying right now so I wanted to see if they like ti before I dropped the dough on another one. I will add another one if they like it before spring. The bottom of the box is 18in off the ground so as not to take up floor space.

For feed I went with two 17.5 lb capacity hangers. Filled up that is about 3-4 days of food. I made some nipple waterers out of buckets that my birds are currently acclimating to.

The ladder will be removed once the door is added.

All that is left to do is cut in the door, and add the birds! This has been a huge undertaking for me and I am proud and excited with the outcome. Hope the birds will be too!

Tips and observations welcome. Thanks for looking!

 

[KarynVA]

Congrats on finishing your coop! Looks good; nice and big and airy.

 

[Tre3hugger]

Congrats on finishing your coop! Looks good; nice and big and airy.

Thank you!!

I just cut in the door. I made it the size for an Ador automatic. Should be getting that before we are covered in snow. Looking forward to sleeping in, but until then I will be opening and closing the door for them morning and night. Going to start moving in my younger batch in a little while.

 

[LadiesAndJane]

I have nothing to add, I think your coop looks awesome! Congratulations

 

[Tre3hugger]

I have nothing to add, I think your coop looks awesome! Congratulations

Truly appreciate the encouragement! I never truly believe my stuff is good until people tell me. I owe much to this forum for ideas and knowledge.

 

[Vickischics]

I think you did a nice job.
The top ventilation area that was left open needs hardware cloth to keep animals from climbing/flying inside causing havoc. Don't leave any part exposed/open to the outside.
The roosts need to 2x4's. Chickens don't sit on perches like caged tweetie birds, they like to sit on their feet to keep them warm. Sand the sharp edges to round them a little.
Plus, the weight of the birds and movement will break the stick.
With a multi level roosts, the lower pecking order birds will not be permitted to roost higher. Try to keep the playing field level. They will sort out their spot.

The nesting box is nice. But, to save money, you can build a box or use 5 gal buckets. You should have enough for each bird otherwise they will climb on eachother/ pile up on eachother to lay. When they need to lay, they can't wait for someone else to be done.
I see your getting an Auto door. You will need to make sure your water doesn't freeze.
Thats it for now.
Good job on all your hard work.

 

[NewBoots]

@Vickischics had good suggestions, and your coop is lovely. @aart is a great one for helpful suggestions too. Is there a divided off human only side for storage? My girls love to rush into the human side of my coop like naughty kids, but it works nicely when I need to catch or examine one during the day.

I was so excited to see how my girls liked their new home, I'm sure you are too. Be sure to post more pictures when they get to see it.

 

[Tre3hugger]

I think you did a nice job.
The top ventilation area that was left open needs hardware cloth to keep animals from climbing/flying inside causing havoc. Don't leave any part exposed/open to the outside.
The roosts need to 2x4's. Chickens don't sit on perches like caged tweetie birds, they like to sit on their feet to keep them warm. Sand the sharp edges to round them a little.
Plus, the weight of the birds and movement will break the stick.
With a multi level roosts, the lower pecking order birds will not be permitted to roost higher. Try to keep the playing field level. They will sort out their spot.

The nesting box is nice. But, to save money, you can build a box or use 5 gal buckets. You should have enough for each bird otherwise they will climb on eachother/ pile up on eachother to lay. When they need to lay, they can't wait for someone else to be done.
I see your getting an Auto door. You will need to make sure your water doesn't freeze.
Thats it for now.
Good job on all your hard work.

Thank you very much for your suggestions!

The vent area is covered with 1/2in HWC. Reinforced with 2x4s. Hard to see in the pic I guess.

I have seen suggestions ranging from a nesting box for every 3-6 birds, but every one! Nope, sorry. This box I got is rated for 20 birds. So I cut that that number in half and have 9 layers I hope to use it. I cant imagine having 27, 1'x1' nesting boxes in there when all my girls start laying. They will need to share. If my girls like this one, I will add another for the youngins. I like the galvanized, rollout design. Money well spent since I will be selling lots of these eggs and do not want to waste time washing the box or the eggs.

The roosts I have are almost as thick as the 2x4's, and quite sturdy. The 2x4 is intended as a step mostly up to the logs, but also a place for lower ranking birds to sleep off the ground without getting pestered or pooped on.

Also I plan to get a heated water base in the next month or two, plugged into a thermocube on an extension cord. That should keep the water thawed but just in case I made a couple of the waterers so I can rotate out as needed.

I truly appreciate your input. I will be monitoring closely for the things you said will be an issue and adjust accordingly if need be.

 

[Tre3hugger]

@Vickischics had good suggestions, and your coop is lovely. @aart is a great one for helpful suggestions too. Is there a divided off human only side for storage? My girls love to rush into the human side of my coop like naughty kids, but it works nicely when I need to catch or examine one during the day.

I was so excited to see how my girls liked their new home, I'm sure you are too. Be sure to post more pictures when they get to see it.

Thank you!

I plan to block off the loft up top for storage if need be. I will just keep the food in a big metal garbage can in the corner. My current coop, which will be empty soon, is my new 8x4 brooder/broody breaker/grow out pen. Wanted to utilize all this floor space for chicken math! lol

 

[Tre3hugger]

Forgot to add it will all be surrounded by 100' of electric netting