New coop in progress

[divermike]

Hello all, last night I put together the first of 4 trusses I am making for the roof of my new coop. I am using metal studs, and that is because I was a commercial carpenter for years, and am familiar with the quick and easy way they go together. I should have some pics soon, question? how many of you use the two door method on your roosting nest section? By that I mean, the front folds down, and the top folds up. Is it necessary? I see most of them where just the top access is available, is it worth the extra work to have the front openable as well? I will be forging the hinges and latches etc, as my other hobby is a blacksmith.

 

[Dread Pirate Roberts]

I don't quite follow you on the 2-door method, but you certainly will want to have easy access to the entire inside of the coop. Sometimes, for a variety of reasons, you might need to reach in at night and snag somebody off the roost.

Or some crazy girl might lay an egg in the far corner.

It sounds like you're a stud at building stuff. I can't wait to see pictures.

 

[teach1rusl]

Are you JUST talking about nest box access? Since you'll have access to clean them from the inside (and they really don't get dirty...I've found ONE small accidental dropping in one box only), you should only need a moveable top to reach inside for the eggs. Looking forward to pics...

 

[pacetruckguy]

Me too, get that camera fired up.

 

[Shelly_WNC]

Looking forward to pics of your truss building .... I will be building my roof/truss this week (once it stops snowing on this 'arctic mountain'). I am no carpenter and would love some good ideas.

 

[divermike]

Thanks folks, yes I was talking about access to the nesting area, I saw a plan where the front dropped down, as well as the top up, so you could get in to clean and get eggs. The nest box is going to stick out the back of the roosting section, and it wouldn't be that big of a deal to have both open, if I plan it right. I might even put wheels on it, if I get really motivated, that would make relocating a bunch easier. I'm ordering some black sexlinks soon, and probably just 5 to start with. The coop will be 30 inches deep, by 36 inches tall, by 6 feet wide, with a pen in front, total area 6'X8' with shade cloth and a roof. This site has really been a big help!!

 

[divermike]

well I uploaded 2 truss pics to show you guys, but could not figure out how to import them here. this is a different forum layout than I am used to.

 

[pacetruckguy]

Just make the top of the nest boxes open. As someone else stated the nest boxes don't get dirty, and you just need to get the eggs out. If the front dropped down and there is a chicken in there, you would freak her out and she might escape. There is no reason for the front to open. You can look at my coop on my home page if you like. Good luck building and keep asking questions. John

 

[pacetruckguy]

Just Highlight the uploaded pictures, copy, and paste.

 

[divermike]

I tried the copy and paste thing, would not work, is there a way to get pics in your post from your files?