New Coop questions

Chrisfjr83

In the Brooder
Dec 14, 2021
2
3
11
Cynthiana, KY
So I am in the process of designing a new coop to start building once the winter passes. My plan is to build a metal building with an A-frame roof. Leaving the soffits open for ventilation as well as some roof vents. Size has not been fully settled upon but looking at 20x20 or 20x30 both with 8 foot ceilings. Will have a large run built off of it that is 10 to 12 foot wide and run 30 feet off of building. Run will be covered in sand to allow for good drainage and easy to clean. My biggest question is what type of floor to put inside the coop. Thinking about concrete so I could really clean it out good once a month and disinfect it. Would layer straw or shavings or something on top of concrete to make it softer for the birds. Also thought about a fine gravel that would be very compacted and make it close to concrete look. Also just thought about using just sand. Everyone please give me some insight as to what I should do.
 
No matter what your floor is made of, you should use some type of bedding. For the comfort of the birds. Plus to lessen the chances of the manure being compacted and stuck to the floor. Which you then have to scrape loose. I use corn cob bedding. It doesn’t form a mat, like straw and shavings do. It stays loose and light. Having experience cleaning coops that big. You will want material that is easy gather and load.
 
@Chrisfjr83, your climate, and therefore location, matter a lot. What is appropriate for me in MI won't be good advice for someone in FL. You can add your location to your profile, and then it's always there. Just the state, or country, if you're outside the US, is fine.
No matter what your floor is made of, you should use some type of bedding. For the comfort of the birds. Plus to lessen the chances of the manure being compacted and stuck to the floor.
Yes, very true. You want something soft for the birds to stand/walk on, and for when they jump down from the roost. Sand may work in your climate (not in mine), but gravel is not a good idea. Poop gets down into it, and if it gets wet, it stinks. It also has sharp edges that can cut the birds' feet, which can lead to bumblefoot issues.

Since you're in the planning stage, now is a great time to work out how to ventilate the coop. Figure a square foot of open ventilation per chicken. ("Open" means covered with hardware cloth to keep out predators, BTW.) This is the usual starting point; depending on your climate, you may need more than this. Ventilation works best up high, as both heat and ammonia rise.

You didn't say how many chickens you plan to have, or other birds. For each large fowl chicken, GENERAL minimum space guidelines are 4 sf of space in the coop, 10 sf in the run, 1 linear foot of roost space, and the previously mentioned 1 sf of open ventilation.

More room is almost always better, as it gives you options for brooding, or integration, or dealing with behavioral issues.

There are many helpful threads and articles on building coops and runs that may give you ideas.

And, welcome to BYC!
 
Welcome to BYC.

I'm a great fan of Deep Bedding (dry in the coop), and Deep Litter (moist composting in the run for low maintenance and, when properly in balance with the necessary amount of bedding, space, and ventilation, no odor.

We ended up with a dirt floor in our 16'x16', Open Air coop.

Concrete for a large coop is $$$ unless you're putting a building on an existing slab, but for some management styles it's worth it -- especially if you've got power equipment for moving bedding in and out of a big coop like you're talking about.

The main thing will be VENTILATION. This diagram is from an article on cattle barns, but the principles hold:

natural-ventilation.png
 
@Chrisfjr83, your climate, and therefore location, matter a lot. What is appropriate for me in MI won't be good advice for someone in FL. You can add your location to your profile, and then it's always there. Just the state, or country, if you're outside the US, is fine.

Yes, very true. You want something soft for the birds to stand/walk on, and for when they jump down from the roost. Sand may work in your climate (not in mine), but gravel is not a good idea. Poop gets down into it, and if it gets wet, it stinks. It also has sharp edges that can cut the birds' feet, which can lead to bumblefoot issues.

Since you're in the planning stage, now is a great time to work out how to ventilate the coop. Figure a square foot of open ventilation per chicken. ("Open" means covered with hardware cloth to keep out predators, BTW.) This is the usual starting point; depending on your climate, you may need more than this. Ventilation works best up high, as both heat and ammonia rise.

You didn't say how many chickens you plan to have, or other birds. For each large fowl chicken, GENERAL minimum space guidelines are 4 sf of space in the coop, 10 sf in the run, 1 linear foot of roost space, and the previously mentioned 1 sf of open ventilation.

More room is almost always better, as it gives you options for brooding, or integration, or dealing with behavioral issues.

There are many helpful threads and articles on building coops and runs that may give you ideas.

And, welcome to BYC!
Okay to fill in some of the blanks of the questions you asked. Updated my location on my profile but it’s in central KY.

As to how many birds and these are rough numbers as I’m always adding and subtracting birds. 25 to 30 chickens (mainly all layers), 12 to 16 Guineas, about dozen Turkeys.

Soffits will be open and roughly 4 to 6 inch gap at top will all have hardware cloth for ventilation with roof vents as well. Will also have windows in the coop that can be open or closed with hardware cloth to prevent unwanted critters getting in.
 
Thanks for adding your location.

So... you are going to have a lot of birds! I'm not sure how much room guineas and turkeys need, compared to chickens, so hopefully some who knows will chime in here. There are threads for turkeys and guineas here on BYC, and you may want to post questions there for more targeted advice.

Will also have windows in the coop that can be open or closed with hardware cloth to prevent unwanted critters getting in.
Making your windows top-hinged will give you some added protection from rain. Or plan for large awnings to do the same thing.
 

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom