Nest box and roost questions

[keegen456]

So we are almost done building our chicken coop. I wasn't there the other day and the people helping build the coop ended up building the area for the nest boxes on the floor of the coop. The whole coop is raised up on cinder blocks so we won't have to bend down to get the eggs but will the chicken do ok with the nesting boxes that low in the coop? How many roosting bars do we need for 18 chickens? I was planning on building 2 roosting bars, each 7 feet long, one on each side of the coop with a poop board under each one. Should I also do a roosting bar over the nesting boxes with a poop board under it as well? The nesting boxes stick out the back of the coop so are flush against the wall.

 

[Ridgerunner]

How you position the nest boxes in the coop has a lot more to do with your comfort and convenience that the chickens. In general, the chickens don’t care, people do.

One thing to watch for if they are pretty low. The chickens might scratch bedding and poop into the nests. If your lip or the sides are high enough this is probably not going to be a problem. It just depends on how they are made and positioned. Consider the height of the bedding when you are looking at this.

For 18 chickens 14’ of roosts should be plenty. That’s 9” per chicken. It won’t hurt a thing to put in another one if you wish. You never know where they will actually sleep and I like to give more space than the bare minimum you need when it’s practical. Whatever you do they will probably all try to squeeze on one. Probably.

Extra space gives you more flexibility in case you want to add more chickens later or if you have a problem. Some chickens can be brutes on the roosts, especially if you are integrating younger chickens. Having extra space gives the ones being picked on some room to get away from the brutes.

 

[keegen456]

Would it be ok to put a poop board and roost over the nest boxes? The wall that the nest boxes are attached to is 6 feet high.

 

[Ridgerunner]

If you can keep the poop out of the nests and be able to access the nests without getting your hair poopy, no problem. I have a roost over my nests and use the top of them as a droppings board. It’s lower than the main roosts so the only time it gets use is when I’m integrating younger birds and they want to avoid the bullies on the main roosts.