Need help w/ building recycled coop

[alexysmommy]

Hi everyone! I am new at this, have spent HOURS reading this site. I am working on my coop this weekend and could use a little help. I dug through my parents old barn, and got some things from a chicken coop in there. DH brought home a HUGE shipping crate from work 4 ft X 8 feet. I just am not sure how I should put the rest of this together. I plan on leaving the front top open, and getting wire (recycled, much thicker than chicen wire) to cover it, and make a drop board to cover it in winter. I boarded the sides up. The inside of the box is insulated...I was thinking of putting linoleum down and doing the DLM.

I am not sure what to do with this stuff I pulled from the barn. I want to make sure I dont have to rip this apart later because I screwed up LOL Any help?

This wire is what I will be using for the run, I'm going to replace the boards on it.

I have recycled plywood and shingles leftover from our house to do the roof. We are going to be moving this away from the house with the tractor today. I pulled some cement pillars out of the barn to put this up on.

I'm not sure what to do with these, I know I can use them somehow, just not sure.

Thank you for any help you can give me! Oh an btw, I will be getting 10 girls for in here. I am really excited!

 

[Chickensman97]

Those boxes that you are unsure of can be easily made into nesting boxes and that coop looks like it would be big enough. just make sure to predator prof it, that's the hardest part.

 

[alexysmommy]

Is this big enough for 10? I want to make sure I am not overcrowding them.

 

[ADozenGirlz]

We bought a pre-fab chicken coop from Horizon Structures (pic below) and it is 4'x6' and is advertised for up to 15 chickens, so I would think yours is plenty big enough for 10. Have fun and keep us posted on the finished product!

 

[gsim]

alexysmommy[b :

]Is this big enough for 10? [/b]I want to make sure I am not overcrowding them.

No it is not big enough for 10 chooks. Minimum rule of thumb for healthy indoor space is 4 sq ft/chook and that assumes a height of 6 ft because the cubic volume of air for them to breathe is a factor as important as floor space. I would not put more than 5 or 6 in that box due to the lack of height/air volume. I would do continuous ventilation all around the top of such a low coop to insure air quality. Also, cut it open and do a bumpout nest box to keep the available floor space maxed out. Do roof overhang to allow for covering the hinged area of the next box bumpout to prevent rainwater leakage. In your place, if I was using that box, I would set it two ft off of t;he ground and would make small home made roof trusses to put a gabled roof on for additional height and more cubic feet of air inside the coop. Do continuous soffit ventilation slot full length and do two really big triangular gable vents too. Even better, just leave the entire gable ends both open and cover with hardware cloth to keep predators out. That will help keep the air healthier and dryer inside the coop. Do a good 8" to 10" of overhang at gables too for keeping rain out of coop

 

[alexysmommy]

TY for the help everyone! I can definetely use the advice. We got a lot done today. Thank goodness for the tractor. Still SO much left to do, but it is coming along. The nest boxes are attatched along the back, but I havn't really started working on that part yet. The box on the end will just be extra space for them. Will get a temp roof on it tonight and then call it a day. Tomorrow we'll get it in the ground good and tight and add some supports.

My kiddos, 16, 5, 4, and 1. They are excited

From the porch

`

 

[ADozenGirlz]

Wow, it's coming along beautifully! What a lovely location to be a chicken, lucky them!!

 

[grandmaof5]

Quote:
From what I've read on here, I thought that 4' x6' would be big enough for 6 standard breed hens. I know some people don't adhere to this, but I think I'd err on the side of caution. Never crowd them and avoid the problems that go with overcrowding.

At least that is what I understand. But as I don't have my coop even built yet, what do I know? *shrugs

 

[alexysmommy]

Quote:
No it is not big enough for 10 chooks. Minimum rule of thumb for healthy indoor space is 4 sq ft/chook and that assumes a height of 6 ft because the cubic volume of air for them to breathe is a factor as important as floor space.

I measured today, and it is 45 square feet. without the added box. It is 5 foot high, so no not as tall, but def over the suggested sq. foot/per bird. I will def make sure it is well ventilated. If it is too many birds I will def take some out.

 

[ADozenGirlz]

Quote:
From what I've read on here, I thought that 4' x6' would be big enough for 6 standard breed hens. I know some people don't adhere to this, but I think I'd err on the side of caution. Never crowd them and avoid the problems that go with overcrowding.

At least that is what I understand. But as I don't have my coop even built yet, what do I know? *shrugs

My chickens are so NOT crowded in our 4x6 coop by any stretch of the imagination. Perhaps if they were in there 24/7 it would get a little boring but not crowded. However they only sleep and lay eggs in there, the rest of their time is spent in their spacious run or free ranging (only if I'm supervising!).

Here's the link to the manufacturer's specs for our coop:
http://www.horizonstructures.com/coop.asp