Nest boxes - interior vs exterior

[3CrazyChicks]

I am building a coop and have designed it with the nest boxes inside. I see quite a few designs with them hanging out, so just wondering if there are particular advantages to one that hangs outside the coop. We live in Missouri, so we have some harsh winters but also have some brutal summers.

 

[darkbaysfordays]

I built mine with them external. It's personal preference but I figured it gives more floor space to the coop and has an external door to remove eggs easier

 

[aart]

I am building a coop and have designed it with the nest boxes inside. I see quite a few designs with them hanging out, so just wondering if there are particular advantages to one that hangs outside the coop. We live in Missouri, so we have some harsh winters but also have some brutal summers.

Usually it's to leave more space in small coops....and be able to collect eggs more easily in same. More cons to external nests than pros, IMO.

 

[3KillerBs]

External nests will allow chicken-poop-averse family members to collect eggs when I'm at work.

Not that I'm really crazy about the idea of having to find my chicken shoes in order to go inside multiple times a day instead of just checking nests as I walk by. (I'm frequently barefoot in my yard).

 

[blackdog043]

The only advantage for exterior, you don't have to go in the coop. I personally like going inside the coop. It's 8 x 12, so plenty of room. The nest boxes are raised 18 inches from the floor, so no floor space is lost.

 

[rosemarythyme]

I wanted internal boxes so I could collect eggs with a roof over my head, instead of fumbling with flipping open an external hatch in the rain. As mine are sitting on the floor, I made the coop bigger to compensate for the space being eaten up by the nests.

 

[neo71665]

Mine are outside so I don't have to go in the coop to get eggs. I have it set up so I don't even have to go in to fill the feeder or water.

It gets old cleaning chicken crap off your boots everyday gathering eggs.

 

[aart]

I have the best of both worlds.
Out of the weather and don't have to go into the coop.

 

[amk122284]

Mine are internal BUT the back opens for exterior access vs the exterior protruding boxes where the top opens

 

[FeltonFunnyFarm]

I am building a coop and have designed it with the nest boxes inside. I see quite a few designs with them hanging out, so just wondering if there are particular advantages to one that hangs outside the coop. We live in Missouri, so we have some harsh winters but also have some brutal summers.

I am currently working on a new, expanded walk-in coop. I am putting mine on an interior wall. I think it is personal preference.