Off the ground coop or walk in coop?

[CKfarm22]

Hey y’all, i’m wondering what you guys prefer, A walk in coop or a coop that is off the ground? Right now we have one that about 2 feet off the ground, but we’re thinking of building a new one this winter.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Walk in, all the way. Being able to work fully upright is a blessing when you have a bad back, and a bonus - the higher walls of a walk in make it easier to add ventilation and increasse air volume overall inside the coop.

 

[Chookchicken]

Both work well for different people. If you have problems with bending I’d recommend a walk in coop since it doesn’t require you to bend as much. Off the ground coops are safer from predators since the can’t dig under it. If you know how to build a walk in coop safely and properly then you can make it just as safe. It also depends on your chickens. If you have to house a lot of chickens then a walk in coop would be better since I’d be more stable when trying to house lots of chickens. If your only trying to house a few chickens then I’d say an off the ground coop would work better. Both coops are similar to maintain. With an off the ground coop you can add a poop tray to collect the poop. With a walk in coop adding a poop tray would be a lot harder. Most of the time people use a hose and sweeper/broom to get the poop out of their coop. It really depends on what your look for, and what you and your chickens need.

 

[CKfarm22]

Both work well for different people. If you have problems with bending I’d recommend a walk in coop since it doesn’t require you to bend as much. Off the ground coops are safer from predators since the can’t dig under it. If you know how to build a walk in coop safely and properly then you can make it just as safe. It also depends on your chickens. If you have to house a lot of chickens then a walk in coop would be better since I’d be more stable when trying to house lots of chickens. If your only trying to house a few chickens then I’d say an off the ground coop would work better. Both coops are similar to maintain. With an off the ground coop you can add a poop tray to collect the poop. With a walk in coop adding a poop tray would be a lot harder. Most of the time people use a hose and sweeper/broom to get the poop out of their coop. It really depends on what your look for, and what you and your chickens need.

Right now i have an off the ground coop, but i want a bigger one, incase we add more chickens. I’m thinking an off the ground bigger coop but not sure :/

 

[rosemarythyme]

With an off the ground coop you can add a poop tray to collect the poop. With a walk in coop adding a poop tray would be a lot harder. Most of the time people use a hose and sweeper/broom to get the poop out of their coop. It really depends on what your look for, and what you and your chickens need.

I think you have it reversed. Shorter height coops sometimes don't have the clearance to put in poop boards, as the roost needs to sit a few inches over that, whereas walk in height definitely does.

I don't happen to have poop boards but I can still stand upright to sift poop out from under the roost area, so good enough for me for the time being.

I really recommend against using a hose or any wet cleaning inside most coops. Keeping the interior dry should be the goal most of the time.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Right now i have an off the ground coop, but i want a bigger one, incase we add more chickens. I’m thinking an off the ground bigger coop but not sure :/

How big are you thinking? One thing to keep in mind is any open space under an elevated coop, you need to be able to access. Can you/will you be able to reach or crawl under the entire coop if needed?

 

[Chookchicken]

I think you have it reversed. Shorter height coops sometimes don't have the clearance to put in poop boards, as the roost needs to sit a few inches over that, whereas walk in height definitely does.

I don't happen to have poop boards but I can still stand upright to sift poop out from under the roost area, so good enough for me for the time being.

I really recommend against using a hose or any wet cleaning inside most coops. Keeping the interior dry should be the goal most of the time.

Thank you for letting me know

 

[CKfarm22]

I think you have it reversed. Shorter height coops sometimes don't have the clearance to put in poop boards, as the roost needs to sit a few inches over that, whereas walk in height definitely does.

I don't happen to have poop boards but I can still stand upright to sift poop out from under the roost area, so good enough for me for the time being.

I really recommend against using a hose or any wet cleaning inside most coops. Keeping the interior dry should be the goal most of the time.

I don’t have poop boards either, we just take the litter out and put fresh in, mostly every week. The problem i’m having is the coop we have now, getting to the waterer and feeder is very difficult, we literally have to climb inside the coop to grab it so we can clean it. I’ve drew up some plans for a walk in coop, but i wanted to jump on here and see what other people have to say!

 

[CKfarm22]

How big are you thinking? One thing to keep in mind is any open space under an elevated coop, you need to be able to access. Can you/will you be able to reach or crawl under the entire coop if needed?

It’s about 2-3 feet off the ground. I’m short, so i can crawl under the coop if need be. But sometimes i can’t reach all the way so depending on what i need to go under there for, we sometimes need to use a small rake. Our coop right now is about 4ftx5ft. I’m thinking about a 6 ft length x 5 ft width.

 

[rosemarythyme]

It’s about 2-3 feet off the ground. I’m short, so i can crawl under the coop if need be. But sometimes i can’t reach all the way so depending on what i need to go under there for, we sometimes need to use a small rake

Something to consider then, because I've seen some folks plan pretty large elevated coops... until they realize they could be stuck crawling through poop and mud to reach an injured or broody bird hiding under the coop, as there's no easy way to reach under a coop 10' in or more.