Need coup buying advice

[Cattle dog Mom]

*nods*

The climate of the southeast EATS wood.



My coop was tested in Hurricane Florence and came through bone dry.

It would be possible to make the roof overhangs even larger for more insurance.

Well if it came out of a hurricane dry, I'm thinking it would be fine here. LOL Thank you.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

^^^ that said, it helps to look up your seasonally prevailing winds and orient the coop accordingly. If you get driving rains late spring every year, that's the side to protect the heaviest. Same if you get sideways snow coming off the lake.

and if you are one of the many who see a 180 change in seasonal wind direction over the course of a year, you now have the orientation for the ridgeline of your roof...

 

[Cattle dog Mom]

^^^ that said, it helps to look up your seasonally prevailing winds and orient the coop accordingly. If you get driving rains late spring every year, that's the side to protect the heaviest. Same if you get sideways snow coming off the lake.

and if you are one of the many who see a 180 change in seasonal wind direction over the course of a year, you now have the orientation for the ridgeline of your roof...

I get heavy wind from EVERY direction other than straight from the east. We don't get much rain EVER as I am in the high desert. I live on the "wall"' above a lake. And there is NO protection from the wind. (No trees at all.) Other than I do have a small "hill" with sage brush on it that blocks some of the north wind. BUT when the winter is bad, the snow drifts at the base of the hill. (Can be several feet deep.) First picture is of what is currently my "turkey house". The big hill you see, the base of it is over 1/2 a mile away, so it doesn't effect (lessen) the wind as it is too far away. Second pic shows the smaller hill with sage brush I mentioned.

 

[BleuSaphir]

I wanted to add our member page of small coop are good source of tools to look into for ideas for your own coop build for much less money for a small flock of chickens.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Well they have always worked for me

I'd say Roost & Root makes a pretty good product as far as durability/construction quality, but it's quite expensive for what you get - a shed wouldn't really be that much more costly. Though I don't particularly like the model that's linked due to the fact that the coop section is so narrow. I wish they'd go back to offering the retired mini model I have - it's not perfect but for 3-4 birds it's better than most prefabs and even after dismantling it for parts the pieces have held up well through lots of rain, some flooding, and snow.

 

[3KillerBs]

Well if it came out of a hurricane dry, I'm thinking it would be fine here. LOL Thank you.

I get heavy wind from EVERY direction other than straight from the east.

I've got a similar problem in that I can get storms from any direction. When the coop experienced Hurricane Florence it was set up under trees. Extending the roof a couple more inches might be good insurance given your rather extreme openness to the wind.

If it were me I'd orient the pop door to the lee side so that the chickens would always be able to go out without being blown back in.

 

[AmeliaBedelia]

You could also maybe build a solid wall a few feet away from the coop as a wind-block. Like a rock or earthbag wall. Something super sturdy.

 

[Folly's place]

And plant trees and shrubs! Native plants that can cope with your environment.
Mary

 

[Cattle dog Mom]

You could also maybe build a solid wall a few feet away from the coop as a wind-block. Like a rock or earthbag wall. Something super sturdy.

We don't really have rocks here. And I am NOT buying rocks! LOL (Besides the fact that we DO have rattle snakes. Rock walls are the DEVIL when snakes are involved.) But I do get what you are saying. I have thought of putting it close to an existing building. BUT that would also cause it to NOT cool down well in the summer since it wouldn't get the evening wind in the summer. Which is more of an issue than bad weather in the winter.

 

[Cattle dog Mom]

And plant trees and shrubs! Native plants that can cope with your environment.
Mary

Mary, is that a white Chantecler? (If not, what is it? VERY attractive bird, and I'm not really a fan of white.)