my husband and I built our first tractor from re-claimed barn wood (barn was demolished) Here are some pictures! We move it with the lawn tractor - my husband designed the hitch system. We built it out of reused material - even the axle and wheels. Only new things were hardware, wire and screws etc. We didn't really do any research first but everything seems to work out well. We now have a clean-water system that hangs in the coop vs the small water you see in the first picture when we first got our adolescent hens 
Inside 'coop' area showing nesting boxes
view of inside 'coop' area from opposite side - you can see perch and back door which lets the chickens out if we choose.
When we started this project we had NO lawn due to the previous renters not maintaining the large trees or weeds. Most of the property was covered in blackberries. We would move the tractor, and seed and water behind the hens where they had turned the soil for us. Our lawn looked like a quilt-patchwork for the first season of no/poor grass, tilled soil where the chickens just were, new baby grass growing, and LUSH grass. This year it all grew in so beautiful with no weeds, and healthy grass! Chicken power!
My next project is to build a stationary coop, and hopefully expand my flock and hopefully start raising our own chicks for butcher. I love all the great posts about coops its giving me lots of ideas!!
Inside 'coop' area showing nesting boxes
view of inside 'coop' area from opposite side - you can see perch and back door which lets the chickens out if we choose.
When we started this project we had NO lawn due to the previous renters not maintaining the large trees or weeds. Most of the property was covered in blackberries. We would move the tractor, and seed and water behind the hens where they had turned the soil for us. Our lawn looked like a quilt-patchwork for the first season of no/poor grass, tilled soil where the chickens just were, new baby grass growing, and LUSH grass. This year it all grew in so beautiful with no weeds, and healthy grass! Chicken power!
My next project is to build a stationary coop, and hopefully expand my flock and hopefully start raising our own chicks for butcher. I love all the great posts about coops its giving me lots of ideas!!
