Need recommendations for the right nesting boxes

[Happy Life Farm]

Hi my name is Thomas and I’m new in the chicken “business” so I have a question about nesting boxes.
Which size would you recommend as nesting boxes for larger chickens.
Right now the most of our 12 chickens (age around 6 months) ignore the “boxes” in our chicken coop (build out of 4x2s in the size of 10”x15”).
Could it be that they are to big to be cozy or need they more privacy to lay the eggs in the nesting boxes?
I tried ceramic eggs but this doesn’t work.

Greetings Thomas

 

[DobieLover]

Hi my name is Thomas and I’m new in the chicken “business” so I have a question about nesting boxes.
Which size would you recommend as nesting boxes for larger chickens.
Right now the most of our 12 chickens (age around 6 months) ignore the “boxes” in our chicken coop (build out of 4x2s in the size of 10”x15”).
Could it be that they are to big to be cozy or need they more privacy to lay the eggs in the nesting boxes?
I tried ceramic eggs but this doesn’t work.

Greetings Thomas

Hi Thomas. Can you post pictures of your boxes?

 

[Happy Life Farm]

…the first two pictures are made three and two month ago, so the chickens ar now larger.

 

[A_Fowl_Guy]

I use old milk crates that I bought from an old dairy farmer. They work great. The hens take a minute to get used to the boxes.

 

[21hens-incharge]

They don't have that nest box feel. They are more of a ground frame than a nest.

Here is a picture of mine. The nests measure 13 inches wide and 15 inches deep. There are 6 nests in this bay.

 

[Happy Life Farm]

The wood frames comes with the chicken coop which we bought.
Now I like to build real nesting boxes for the chickens.

 

[rosemarythyme]

It might help if you build around the boxes more so they're a little more enclosed. I personally like boxes on the bigger side (mine are 15" cubed overall, 14.5" internally), so I wouldn't go smaller than what you already have.

 

[wamtazlady]

Chickens like a sense of privacy when they lay. They also like the boxes to be darker than the rest of the coop.

 

[DobieLover]

…the first two pictures are made three and two month ago, so the chickens ar now larger.

Thomas,
You could do something as simple as dropping curtains across the front of the boxes in the short term until you build what you want.
But @wamtazlady is correct. Chickens like secluded places to lay. The curtains will help provide that to the girls.

 

[Happy Life Farm]

Today I worked on new nesting boxes for our chickens.
I keep them 15” wide but rais the depth from 10” to also 15” and installed partitions, now each nesting box have more privacy.
I will make a picture tomorrow how they fit in the chicken coop.

@edit
The top is closed by the access flap from the chicken coop.