New Hen House build

[G-Man]

Your Coop is beautiful! My husband is a journeyman Carpenter that has a lot of residential experience prior to working commercial-- so if anyone can appreciate your hardwork and dedication-- I sure can!!!! Viewing your pictures with all the tools is like looking at him work! My taste is more like "cottage" and/or "farm" instead of "new construction"-- though my husband leans towards "new" construction. We are in the planning phases of our coop! We had a complete design drawn up and then-- late last night we decided we are going to completely change the entire concept! I am so anxious.... I don't get my birds until March 20th but I think I would settle for ANYTHING right now!

Anyhow-- I am sure glad I came across your thread today-- though I am sure that we will not be going with automatic waterers and maybe some other amenities because cost is somewhat of a factor for us-- your ideas are wonderful and I will be showing the entire thread to the hubby so that we can brainstorm some more! What did you go with on the floors? Concrete? Tile? or laminate? THANKS again for your dedication to posting pictures!!!

Courtney

Welcome to BYC

And thank you for your kind compliments.

I can appreciate the cottage and farm style coops, they really do have the most character.
The coop floor is a concrete slab that I finished with a couple coats of a high grade sealer.

What breeds and how many chicks did you order?

I understand everyone has a budget to follow... You still have a few months before they would be old enough to figure out how to use them. But I have to say the watering system is the one option I would have a hard time living without. They are a huge time saver.
Best of luck with your coop build, it sounds like you are in very capable hands.

 

[G-Man]

Beautiful!

Thank you

 

[G-Man]

This is our first time raising chickens... and what ever else my husband comes home with

. And this is his first coop. i thought it turned out rather nice!

You should be proud, it looks great! Congratulations on your new coop. And welcome to BYC

 

[G-Man]

It is rather cute!!! Love the reclaimed wood look! :O) That is my kind of style but my husband refuses to use the reclaimed barn wood-- so-- I am thinking about using crackle paint on mine...

The crackle paint sounds like a great idea! What colors are you thinking of?
Definitely post pics of your build and of the painting process.

 

[lolasmom111]

thank you. we really love having chickens... now if we could get rid of the egg eaters we would be ok !

 

[CourtsCacklers]

Welcome to BYC

And thank you for your kind compliments.

I can appreciate the cottage and farm style coops, they really do have the most character.
The coop floor is a concrete slab that I finished with a couple coats of a high grade sealer.

What breeds and how many chicks did you order?

I understand everyone has a budget to follow... You still have a few months before they would be old enough to figure out how to use them. But I have to say the watering system is the one option I would have a hard time living without. They are a huge time saver.
Best of luck with your coop build, it sounds like you are in very capable hands.

Thanks! Concrete is the ideal flooring-- I still don't know what we are going with there--- don't think we will know unitl we actually go shopping. We were going to have a coop up off the ground but now we have decided to go with something that is more of a large shed/small barn style-- that way it will fit into the neighborhood flawlessly and if we decide to sell down the road it could easily be converted into just a shed! We did talk about having a drum of water that gravity feeds the cups for water-- my husband did think that would be nice for me-- especially in the winter and in the snow! However-- I am a stay at home mom with my three little guys and they are going to be our pets so I am not stuck on it either way! My favorite thing to do in the summer is to make my frappe and go out into my backyard and walk the vegetable garden (now I will just get to add chickens to my routine!!!!!) They would be an advantage for when we camp and the neighbors feed and water the animals though! What I enjoyed most about yours is the automatic door! Is that just a pet door that runs on a photocell? Are your chickens using it flawlessly now? I am not sure what color we are going with for sure--yet-- probably something I will have to "test" out before I actually start painting the entire building! I am getting 3 Rhode Island Reds and 3 Silver Laced Wyandottes -- I love the colors and their beauty of both breeds! I was planning on getting some Orpington Buffs but am going to wait another year till my neighbors gets accustomed to me having chickens and stop paying attention anymore! I doubt I will do as well as you documenting the build but once we start-- I will definitely try! Thanks again for your posts-- it really gave me things to think about!

 

[G-Man]

thank you. we really love having chickens... now if we could get rid of the egg eaters we would be ok !

They certainly are a lot of fun to have around.

Personal Message sent in regards to your egg eaters.

 

[G-Man]

Thanks! Concrete is the ideal flooring-- I still don't know what we are going with there--- don't think we will know unitl we actually go shopping. We were going to have a coop up off the ground but now we have decided to go with something that is more of a large shed/small barn style-- that way it will fit into the neighborhood flawlessly and if we decide to sell down the road it could easily be converted into just a shed! We did talk about having a drum of water that gravity feeds the cups for water-- my husband did think that would be nice for me-- especially in the winter and in the snow! However-- I am a stay at home mom with my three little guys and they are going to be our pets so I am not stuck on it either way! My favorite thing to do in the summer is to make my frappe and go out into my backyard and walk the vegetable garden (now I will just get to add chickens to my routine!!!!!) They would be an advantage for when we camp and the neighbors feed and water the animals though! What I enjoyed most about yours is the automatic door! Is that just a pet door that runs on a photocell? Are your chickens using it flawlessly now? I am not sure what color we are going with for sure--yet-- probably something I will have to "test" out before I actually start painting the entire building! I am getting 3 Rhode Island Reds and 3 Silver Laced Wyandottes -- I love the colors and their beauty of both breeds! I was planning on getting some Orpington Buffs but am going to wait another year till my neighbors gets accustomed to me having chickens and stop paying attention anymore! I doubt I will do as well as you documenting the build but once we start-- I will definitely try! Thanks again for your posts-- it really gave me things to think about!

The automatic pop door runs off of a timer and is working great!
The first two nights I started using the door were the only times I had anyone that didn't make it inside and was stuck in the run.
But of course I was there to watch the door drop and nobody spent the night alone.
I made the door myself using the Fleming Outdoor design as my inspiration.
I added a switch connected to an exterior light so I can confirm the door is closed at a glance.

Here are a few links of the build and such. The documentation isn't great but I hope it helps you with your project.

This is the original post I made with a detailed bill of materials:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/628008/automatic-pop-door

This is the minor repair that had to be made a few months back. (the only failure it's had to date)
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...motor-d-20-repair-after-7-months#post_9931218

This should bring you to my profile page with a bunch of pics of the build:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/g/a/6166167/automatic-pop-door/

I love the Silver Laced Wyandottes; they are absolutely stunning!

 

[Panth]

I only have one question...are you single? Lmao. I've always had to build all my own coop stuff because my DBF isn't a handyman at all

 

[mshuntjump]