Nesting boxes

[hummust]

What do you think of diy nesting boxes and where do you put them?

 

[DobieLover]

They should be placed lower than the roosts.
They should be sized so the hens can stand up in them when they lay the egg and have a lip in the front to retain nesting material.
They should be positioned so you don't have to stoop too far to collect the eggs.
One box per 4-5 hens works well.
Bump out boxes can be used to save space inside the coop and if you go that route, they should be a drop down back, not a raised lid for access.

 

[3KillerBs]

Welcome to BYC. Where, in general, are you?

Because I'm in the Steamy Southeast of the US in North Carolina my nests are vented.

 

[RubelliteRose]

What do you think of diy nesting boxes and where do you put them?

Nest boxes are easy to make. We have 3 nest boxes made of wood and 3 that are dish pans, but they can be made from many materials
Where you put them can depend upon what size coop you have. We have boxes attached to the outside of our small coop to save space. Agree that they should have the drop down back.

Our big coop has self standing boxes that can be taken out for cleaning or moved into the garage if we have flooding from a hurricane.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Nothing wrong with DIY nest boxes! Mine are free standing too, so for cleanouts I just tip them over. The roof is hinged and the weight of it holds the boxes firmly in place the rest of the time.

 

[saysfaa]

They should be placed lower than the roosts.
They should be sized so the hens can stand up in them when they lay the egg and have a lip in the front to retain nesting material.
They should be positioned so you don't have to stoop too far to collect the eggs.
One box per 4-5 hens works well.
Bump out boxes can be used to save space inside the coop and if you go that route, they should be a drop down back, not a raised lid for access.

This.
Adding that the one box per 4-5 hens works well in you have more than 4-5 hens. If you don't, then two is good.

Not having to stoop is very important to me but isn't to everyone. Well, at least not until they have an injury or want to ask an elderly neighbor to collect the eggs. Either way, think through all the motions you will be doing to gather the eggs or any of the chores. Squeezing, crawling, stepping over, etc, that are barely noticed the first time you do them can get old pretty fast when you do them often. Or in a driving rain.