New here building a new coop in TX - money saving tips?

[elmo]

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Not only that, but unless this coop is completely inside a predator proof run (covered with hardware cloth, for example), the floor of the coop becomes a security risk. Chicken wire only keeps chickens in, not predators out. I've read about people who keep birds in raised wire bottom pens coming out in the morning to find that a predator has bitten off the feet of their birds, too. Yikes!

 

[lauriruth]

Neighbor!!!
i'm in North SA, just down the road from you! you're going to love this adventure!

 

[Dread Pirate Roberts]

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Maybe you missed this part of my post:

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If I think it becomes an issue in the future, then I can easily put a solid floor in there. I left the interior floor perfectly square for that reason. Alternatively, I could simply lay a 6-8" wide board down the middle of the floor and they would use that as a runway. I know the wire "looks" bad, but in actual practice, the girls are not square dancing in there.

 

[Dread Pirate Roberts]

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Not only that, but unless this coop is completely inside a predator proof run (covered with hardware cloth, for example), the floor of the coop becomes a security risk. Chicken wire only keeps chickens in, not predators out. I've read about people who keep birds in raised wire bottom pens coming out in the morning to find that a predator has bitten off the feet of their birds, too. Yikes!

I guess you missed this part of my post:

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[BoerneChickens]

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Hello neighbor! I am so exited to get started - I am hoping to go buy coop building supplies this weekend.

For anyone interested, I did find another potential source of inexpensive building supplies - Habitat for Humanity has a thing called a "ReStore" - they sell left over building supplies from their projects - the one in Austin has lumber, reclaimed and new windows, doors - a whole variety of things. I am hoping to go check it out Saturday and see what kinds of things they have. They seem to have them in most states so anyone interested maybe google it and look in your state/town and see what you find. The proceeds go to a good cause and you might get a good deal too

 

[Keene's coop]

i di craig's list and i got ALL of my wood for free and got it pretty fast. also check local constuction sites for housing.

 

[BoerneChickens]

Keene's coop :

i di craig's list and i got ALL of my wood for free and got it pretty fast. also check local constuction sites for housing.

Wow! Free is hard to beat! I checked Craig's list and did find that I can get some of the lumber my plan requires at a discounted price vs Home Depot - but I haven't found free yet - although there was one where if I tore down a barn and hauled it away I could have the wood - but that's a little more than I can manage

I will keep checking though!​

 

[2txmedics]

craigslist is good for alot of items....I did my main coop out of old privacy fence that Hurricane Ike broke down....here it is

 

[Tala]

Check out my open-air coop (might work in TX, dunno your area though) https://www.backyardchickens.com/web/viewblog.php?id=27985-open-air-design-coop the most expensive part was the gate/door

Know anybody with a scrap yard? (metal recycling) they might have sheets of slightly rusty tin lying around they would sell on the cheap or something like that. Lots of my materials came on the cheap from Shaw Recycling down the road from here.