Nest box size question

[Redley]

I've looked all over the site for nesting box ideas. All the people in this forum as so ingenious! I'm going to build the typical built wooden box, 2 boxes next to each other, 2 high.
They will be 18 inches off the ground.
I understand that I will only need about 1 box per 4 hens (except if some are going broody), then you will want more boxes.
I will have buff orpingtons, rhode island reds, and barred rocks.
Just attempting to share space for our walk through door with the chickens, the chickens will always win...

** Can the boxes be 10 inches wide or do they have to be 12 inches wide?**
** Can the boxes be 10 inches high or do they have to be 12 inches high?** (I read that a lower coop will discourage the hens from standing up and messing with the eggs)

I'm thinking of having either
(A) 2 side by side boxes, 3 boxes tall = 10"W x 12"H x 12"D (making the overall boxes 20"W x 54"H x 12" D = 6 total boxes)
(B) 2 side by side boxes, 3 boxes tall = 12"W x 12"H x 12"D (making the overall boxes 24"W x 54"H x 12"D = 6 total boxes)
(C) 2 side by side boxes, 3 boxes tall = 12"W x 10"H x 12"D (making the overall boxes 24"W x 48"H x 12"D = 6 total boxes)
(D) 1 box wide, 4 boxes tall - 14"W x 10"H x 12"D (making the overall boxes 14"W x 58"H x 12"D = 4 total boxes)

The doorway to my coop is 44" wide.
The coop is actually an old dog run that has **2** separate sides. I plan to have a chicken door so they can go from one side to the other until the hens get broody, then I'll separate them for the safety of the chicks.

The door opens on the left hand side.
I will be putting the boxes on right side with the back of the boxes facing the door for easy access to eggs (similar to the pic below)

 

[Judy]

The 10" will work but will be a bit crowded if they decide to share a nest, not an unusual occurrence. If I had around 8 chickens I would build one community nest box rather than two and make it about 20" wide. More than 2 could fit in there if they decided they just had to.

If you are thinking of letting broodies hatch chicks, you are probably going to want a nest you can move to a pen built for a broody and her chicks. It is possible to let them hatch in the coop with the rest, but makes for confusion, returning to the wrong nest, egg stealing, and other problems.

Frankly, in your situation I wouldn't build a thing, I would buy one or two open top plastic bins with a cutout in the front, or one or two covered kitty litter boxes. Or build one community nest and buy an open front bin for a broody. I have a 5' X 6' area in my coop penned off with chicken wire for a broody or young chicks, with an open top plastic bin for their nest. My broody and 7 chicks are doing fine in there. When not in use, I prop the door open and it is just part of the coop.

You can always go back and add a divider to a community nest box.

 

[Opa]

I would not recommend a communal nest as they lend themselves to broken eggs and egg eating. Additionally hens prefer laying in darkened areas so several small boxes would be better.

It would be adviseable to move a broody hen and her clutch to a separate enclosure prior to hatching. Hens have been known to kill and eat chicks that aren't theirs.

 

[elmo]

Quote:
I am also a big proponent of using plastic lidded bins as nestboxes. They are very easy to clean. You can simply take them over to the composter and dump out the bedding, hose off, and let dry in the sun. When it's easy to clean the nestboxes you tend to do it more frequently and during summer months when mites are more prevalent, this can be very important. I change the bedding in my boxes every week during the summer and put down some poultry dust in the bottom of the box before I put in the fresh bedding.

Moveable nestboxes can also be a great thing when you have a broody to manage. I just picked up the nestbox with the hen and her eggs inside and moved the whole box to where I wanted to put it. I did this with three different hens last spring, and none of them every moved a muscle off their nests, even though I moved them more than once (to make sure the nest didn't stay in direct sunlight and get too hot). Very convenient.

 

[Redley]

My coop is actually an old dog run that has **2** separate sides. I plan to have a chicken door so they can go from one side to the other until the hens get broody, then I'll separate them for the safety of the chicks.

 

[Judy]

Quote:
Then you'll really want a portable nest box. They DO NOT like to have their nest changed. They have enough trouble dealing with a move, but it goes better if the nest box goes with them. I have had a broody freak out and abandon her eggs altogether when I tried moving her into a new nest in the broody pen. Even when I put the eggs back in her old nest after she freaked, she would have nothing to do with them. Also, in a pinch, you can actually move them nest and eggs and all, after the hatch starts. I've done this twice now, never fazed the hen, I assume because there was already a live chick under her "holding" her to the nest.

 

[kla37]

Since I have "large breed" chickens, I made 2 of the nest boxes 12"X14". The last one had to be 12"X11". Guess which one they all use? The little one. Occasionally I'll find an egg in a big box, but they all prefer the smaller one. One of them has never been used. Go figure. Silly chickens!

 

[Redley]

Quote:
is that 12W x 14H / 12w x 11H or the other way around?

 

[Chicklette 1]

I have 9 hens and I have 8 nesting boxes but I usually find 4 to 6 eggs all in one box and then one on another box here or there but they have never used all the nests so I am going to use some of them for storage. i have tried putting golf balls in some of the ones they do not use but it didn't change anything.