My pallet coop - just finished!

[clhedges]

Hi all -
This is my first post. I have learned a lot in the one month I have been a member of this forum. I just finished building a pallet/tin reclamation coop. Based off of a similar design by an individual online.

Front:



Back:



Inside view. Nesting boxes are made out of a twin bed bunk frame from a resale shop:



View of the inside from the rear door. There are roosting bars in each corner:



Coop was made out of about 90% repurposed materials. Notice the curtain rod bar roost in front of the lower bunk. When I find another one at a resale shop, the top bunk will have a similar roost.

I plan to come back later and split the egg-collecting door on the back into 2 parts. That way I won't have the entire bunk area exposed when checking for eggs. I also plan to come back later and build another row of nesting boxes above the top bunk. My chickens are only 2 months old right now, so there is time. I ran out of materials anyway, so will have to spend the summer scrounging around.

The floor is bedded down 6 inches with shavings. Built up a little higher in the corners where the roosts are installed.

Thanks for looking!

 

[MoonShadows]

You did an egg-cellent job!

I see you live in East Texas; I think I might be a bit concerned with summer heat when the sun shines on all that tin. You might want to consider more ventilation.

 

[wekiva bird]

 

[clhedges]

RE ventilation - there are holes everywhere. Except for the roof, all of the panels have the old drill holes where previously nailed/screwed. I do plan, however, to add a screened window to the back door so that there is flow through.

In their present coop, they go underneath the building in the sand during the heat of the day. I left space for them to go underneath this coop as well. They shouldn't be laying eggs until September/October, so they shouldn't be hanging out in the coop during the middle of the day, But I also thought about more ventilation. Will do.

 

[blackswamp]