Need Advice on Fixing up Old Chicken Coop

[Alison24201]

Hi Everyone,

We purchased our home with an existing coop....fast forward 11 years and 2 kids later we are contemplating getting some chickens this spring. I would love some advice on our existing coop and ideas to ensure it's functional/safe for our chickens. The coop hasn't been touched (or even looked at) for well over 15 years. I cleaned out all the spiders and I'm working on getting rid of ants that seem to keep coming back. The size of the coop is 7ft x 4ft, with a 7ft by 4ft storage area on the other side. Vinyl is on the floor, under the roost bars, and in the nesting boxes. I suppose this is for an easier clean-up? We are planning on putting down pine or hemp on-top of the vinyl.
I'm a little worried the nesting boxes and roost bars are too high, although the previous home owner did have chickens so perhaps they are ok. Also slightly concerned about ventilation. It does have a cupola on top, and ventilation through to the storage area, but no other exterior windows/vents. We live in the rainy PNW so moisture is a concern 9 months of the year. Additionally one of the roost bars is splitting; it has several splinters coming off. I don't know if this will be an issue for the chickens, I'm guessing I should probably replace the bar (?). We were planning on 6-8 chickens, is this too many for the size of our coop?

Any thoughts on how we can improve and get our coop ready for spring is greatly appreciated!

 

[aart]

Yeah, roosts are a bit high for that small a coop.
And way too many nests.
I wouldn't put more than 6 birds in there.

Pics of the outside would help too.
Is there any ventilation?

Do you plan on having a run?

Probably more questions for you later.
But, for now...Welcome to BYC! @Alison24201
Where in this world are you located?
Climate, and time of year, is almost always a factor.
Please add your general geographical location to your profile.
It's easy to do, and then it's always there!

 

[rosemarythyme]

x2 on photos outside.

A cupola is great, but yes I'd want to add more ventilation if that's all it has. But I'll wait until we get more photos to see where a good spot to add on might be.

Are the nest box doors behind each nest fully functional? I'd almost want to knock out the nests and then lower the roosts so they sit just above the shelf the nests rest on, and then drop the nests under that (and you'd only need 2, maybe 3 nests, for the number of birds), but if the access hatches behind the nests are functional you might not want to loose that access, unless you don't mind going inside to fetch eggs?

6-8 birds should do fine in there as long as you have enough roost space and ventilation available.

 

[alinas2010]

Hi Everyone,

We purchased our home with an existing coop....fast forward 11 years and 2 kids later we are contemplating getting some chickens this spring. I would love some advice on our existing coop and ideas to ensure it's functional/safe for our chickens. The coop hasn't been touched (or even looked at) for well over 15 years. I cleaned out all the spiders and I'm working on getting rid of ants that seem to keep coming back. The size of the coop is 7ft x 4ft, with a 7ft by 4ft storage area on the other side. Vinyl is on the floor, under the roost bars, and in the nesting boxes. I suppose this is for an easier clean-up? We are planning on putting down pine or hemp on-top of the vinyl.
I'm a little worried the nesting boxes and roost bars are too high, although the previous home owner did have chickens so perhaps they are ok. Also slightly concerned about ventilation. It does have a cupola on top, and ventilation through to the storage area, but no other exterior windows/vents. We live in the rainy PNW so moisture is a concern 9 months of the year. Additionally one of the roost bars is splitting; it has several splinters coming off. I don't know if this will be an issue for the chickens, I'm guessing I should probably replace the bar (?). We were planning on 6-8 chickens, is this too many for the size of our coop?

Any thoughts on how we can improve and get our coop ready for spring is greatly appreciated!

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Welcome to this wonderful site! You’ll find information about almost anything you’d ever want to know about chickens (and other fowl) here!

Agree with what others say about lowering the roost bars and moving the nests lower. But I think I’d leave the floor of the nest boxes in the current spot to make a sort of poop shelf to catch droppings from the roost bars. Hope that makes sense. I love our poop shelf, it helps make clean up so easy!

 

[aart]

Also slightly concerned about ventilation. It does have a cupola on top, and ventilation through to the storage area, but no other exterior windows/vents. We live in the rainy PNW

Oops. Sorry I missed these.

 

[Ted Brown]

Absolutely need outside pics of coop & run area! Whom ever built that coop invested a lot of time and care, deconstructing will also be a chore.

If the coop works properly why change?

1. IMHO first focus on ventilation. You should have 1 sq. ft. per bird, with no drafts ruffling feathers in the winter.
2. Access for cleaning? Is it easy?
3. Inspect for predator access to coop. Holes, cracks incl. doors & windows?
4. You will need a run area. What do you have, is it predator proof?

If you have these then get either of pine shavings or hemp (better but usually a lot more expensive) and some ready to lay hens from your local feed source. Start enjoying fresh eggs!

A couple with two young kids have enough on their plates.

 

[Egghead_Jr]

Passive ventilation is large but if you make smart vent choices you will have convection which pushes the same air through much smaller holes. No drafts that way and coop air is cleaned.

 

[Penpal]

I would take down the nest boxes on the long wall. That is where I would have the roost. Depending on the birds, 18" or 24" off the ground. If you have very heavy birds, like Brahmas, you might have to go as low as 6". The roost that is already there is set so the chickens sit on the narrow end. You don't want that. You want them resting on the 3 1/2 inch side.

The other nest boxes I would set on the floor, other wise the chickens are likely to roost in the nest boxes and make a poopy mess. However, this would mean that you would loose the doors to collect eggs, so you would have to create new doorways for the boxes. You might want to first see if they will use the roost instead of the boxes before putting them down.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Hi, welcome to the forum. Glad you joined.

Vinyl is on the floor, under the roost bars, and in the nesting boxes. I suppose this is for an easier clean-up? We are planning on putting down pine or hemp on-top of the vinyl.

Vinyl can make clean-up easier. Some people like to try to keep the coop clean enough to eat off of but I'm not one of those though I like the nests really clean. Definitely an advantage with easier clean-up with vinyl.

To me a big reason would be to keep the wood dry. You don't want poop to accumulate enough to stay wet anyway but if you have bedding on the floor it may get wet and rot the wood floor. My coop floor is dirt so that is not an issue but for a wooden floor I think vinyl is a great idea.

I'm a little worried the nesting boxes and roost bars are too high, although the previous home owner did have chickens so perhaps they are ok.

I don't know how that coop functioned for the previous owner or what breeds of chickens they had. I personally don't have a problem with nests or roosts up higher. Some people like nests really low down, with my bad back I like not having to bend over really low to remove eggs or clean nests. If you have big birds like Brahmas or Jersey Giants or birds that can't fly like Silkies or Frizzles the roosts or even nests may be high but for most normal chickens those should be OK.

One thing to consider though is that they need to be able to spread their wings and fly up and down. Going up should not be a big problem in that coop but they need a certain amount of floor space to land without banging into things. You might consider putting your feeder and waterer under the nests to leave more open floor space.

Also slightly concerned about ventilation. It does have a cupola on top, and ventilation through to the storage area, but no other exterior windows/vents.

There is a big difference in how efficient different ventilation methods are. A cupola is usually very efficient since warm air rises and carries moisture with it. Ventilation has two functions. One is to remove excess moisture from the coop. Moisture can come from their breathing, their poop, waterers, and any leaks from rain. If it gets below freezing extra moisture can contribute to frostbite. And it can rot wood.

When poop rots, composts, breaks down, or decomposes (whichever word you want to use) it creates ammonia. Ammonia is a poisonous gas and can kill. But it is also lighter than air. As long as you have a hole in the coop over the chickens heads when on the roost it should not be a problem. With your cupola you are in great shape as far as ammonia.

I can't see the ventilation to that other room and I don't know how well that room is vented. You may be fine as far as ventilation to remove moisture or maybe you aren't. I'd be encouraged that it held chickens before but you might want to watch moisture levels.

Additionally one of the roost bars is splitting; it has several splinters coming off. I don't know if this will be an issue for the chickens, I'm guessing I should probably replace the bar

Yes, you should. If a chicken gets a splinter it can cause Bumblefoot. That's an infection and can cause issues.

We were planning on 6-8 chickens, is this too many for the size of our coop?

To me that's at the maximum. I'd suggest closer to 6 than to 8. The tighter they are packed the more poop they drop in a smaller area. That means more work for you. That's important to me but maybe not so much for others.

Another issue is that the tighter you pack them the more likely you are to have behavioral issues. Think of keeping a bunch of 5 year olds in a small room for a long time. They may get rowdy. If they have a larger play area they may get along better. Chickens are much the same way.

As you go along things happen. It helps to have flexibility to deal with issues that might pop up. To me the tighter you pack them the harder you have to work, the more behavioral issues you are likely to have, and the less flexibility you have to deal with issues. You will be happier if you don't overcrowd them.

Any thoughts on how we can improve and get our coop ready for spring is greatly appreciated!

For six to eight hens you only need 2 nests. It will not hurt to leave the others in there but you will need nest bedding in all of them, but you will create more room for you to work in there if you take some out. Since they are so high off of the floor it won't make any difference to the chickens.

The old roost debate. Some people are convinced the roosts need to be flat. Others think a 2x4 on edge like yours is best. Many think they have to be round like a tree branch. People can have pretty strong opinions about this and all have reasons to back up their thinking. I've experimented with different things. Another member of the forum tried a lot of different things. From experimentation and what I've seen people care about this a lot more than the chickens. The only conclusion I've come to is to avoid fairly small perches. A 2x4 on edge is find but if you get much below 1" thick it can be problematic. If you take them down you can put them back any way you want but I would not take them down just to change them. But remember what I said about Bumblefoot above. I'd take the sharp edge off of a corner (I use sandpaper) to avoid splinters.

I think you've lucked into something pretty good though I'm not sure how it worked before. I'd change very little unless I actually saw a problem.

 

[Egghead_Jr]

1 -1/2 inch roost is fine. People use branches. I use 2x2 lumber for shorter roosts. A 2x4 can be oriented either direction, it holds more weight with the depth vertical. For some reason some folks insist it be flat to protect the feet? Personally I don't get that as birds have enough down to cover their feet either orientation.