Newbie chick shed and WIR build

[Haphazard_Hannah]

For siding our goose/duck coop we used T-111. We're so excited for you!

Sadly T-111 isn’t a thing over here. The closest we have is plywood which isn’t great for exterior work unless you get marine ply (for boat repairs) but that is very expensive.

 

[Haphazard_Hannah]

PS Honestly, we would highly recommend you go full walk in height in the coop. Our chicken coop is up off the ground but not tall and it's difficult to clean. MUCH easier to clean a coop you can walk into. We painted both coops inside with a very good satin paint---multiple coats. This made it much easier to clean. If you leave the inside bare ply you will discover that poop, etc. is almost impossible to get off. Here is inside chicken coop:

View attachment 2367584

View attachment 2367585

View attachment 2367586

View attachment 2367587

It’s beautiful!

 

[Haphazard_Hannah]

Hi Hannah, Here a pitched roof comes in many forms. It just means angled somehow. What we have and what you are showing is sometimes called a shed roof or a lean to roof. Where the roof is pitched to a point in the center forming a triangle is called a gable.

We call a single sloped roof a pent roof. And one with two slopes that meet in the middle an apex

 

[Haphazard_Hannah]

I can't think of any reason to have glass in the chicken coop windows.

Hardware cloth secured over the frame allows both light and air and you can use a top-hinged shutter to keep out the rain and to, if necessary, close it.

It’s far too windy over here to be able to leave it gaping open all year round. I get that the ventilation needs to be open so that’s nice an high but permenantly open windows - or holes - lower down will make it really drafty here in the UK. Everything is drafty here...

 

[Haphazard_Hannah]

Sorry for the lack of an update yesterday - I’ve developed a cough... so I’ve been tucked up in the warm instead of out digging. I think it’s just a cold as it’s eased a bit now but it was pretty bad on Saturday evening so I registered for a COVID test which is arriving today and I’m self isolating just to be on the safe side. At least I can still work from home.

I think it’s ‘a go’ on the half height coop. I’d love to have a full height coop but materials over here are taxed pretty high so it’s just not financially viable. Although, if I can design it right, I might be able to extend it upward at a later date... now that sounds challenging and fun! Love a design challenge!

Now I just need to wait forpayday so I can order the materials and get cracking. Hopefully this cold will have cleared up by then

 

[3KillerBs]

Sorry to hear that. Hope it is just a cold.

 

[countryladyNH]

Hope you get well soon! Keep posting---We're all interested in your build!

 

[Haphazard_Hannah]

Thank you!

 

[Haphazard_Hannah]

There is actually one thing you guys might be able to help me with in the meantime if you’re game?

I need a name for my coop/run. I’m really focussed on it being a retirement home so have a little think about any chicken retirement pins you can come up with - I’m drawing a blank at the moment but maybe that’s because I’m feeling under weather.

My husband and I have quite a dark sense of humour so it’s impossible to offend us - go wild!

 

[Haphazard_Hannah]

So I spoke to the British Hen Welfare Trust today to finish my registration for rehoming ex-commercial chickens and went through the set up I’m planning - they were tinned at the size of my planned coop and said that they go by 1sqft per bird - vastly different than the 4sqft everyone seems to be referring to. I asked them about this and they said that the hens I’ll be getting have been caged together tightly for the first 18 months of life that they actually thrive better when not overwhelmed with space in the coop. They apparently feel safer when they have less coop space, however any extra space would be better used as outdoor run space where they recommend 1 square metre per bird.

what do you reckon to this guys? Based on this my coop is going to be big enough for 24 birds! I don’t want it to be so spacious that it’s cold and drafty as there’s not enough body heat, but I only want 8 birds max - I don’t want chicken maths to even be an option! I now have a little devil on my shoulder saying ‘think of all the chickens you could save!’ Oh god. It’s going to happen, isn’t it.