Ok second try, my coop/brooder in the day light alot better pictures.

[catfish]

Ok I borrowed on the A frame design a little and made my own.

Dimensions are 96" long, 40" wide with 8" porch, not sure on the height I know the rafters was 60" till I cut them at an angle to form the V. The siding is 1/4" plywood so painting is a must in the next week.
I roofed it with plastic sheets, known as slip sheets, they're used in warehouses for shipping when they don't want to buy pallets.

Laying boxes to come later.

Front not sure the door is big enough for adult birds yet.

Heres the babies, all 17 of them, 11 and 12 days old.

Heres where I need a little advice, how would you secure the Gull wing doors down to keep storms and coons from getting inside?

I built the roost you can see here, the steps are 10" apart,

The run area is temporary and plan on having an area 50' by 50' enclosed around the chicken house.

I live in a rural area and I collect a few old cars so they're to be seen in the background. But hey its 100% paid for and its mine. haha

So what you you all think?

 

[LynneP]

Hi catfish, nice work- are you planning on keeping 17 adults? I'm thinking it could get tight. Oh and could you explain a little more about the roofing- a great idea in your climate and possibly they could be used as partitions in runs???

About the gull-wing doors, there are several latches at hardware stores that should do the trick, things that r4esemble luggage latches, not sure what they're alled- but if you bring a pic with you I'm sure the staff could help!

 

[catfish]

Quote:
They're a heavy plastic, probably 1/32" or 2mm thick, it is squares a little larger than a pallet.

So its about 41"x52", they're used to ship frozen goods on where you couldn't use a cardboard slip sheet because of moisture.

I may for go the latches and just use tie wire, or else going with hasp and dog clip.

As to the number, once they mature and I can sex them I'm keeping two roosters.

Whats the best size for laying boxes?

 

[catfish]

Gee thanks you all, all the chat about a droppings bin has me thinking.

Now I've got to add a section to the chickie condo a back room and move the roost bad there with a droppings pit. under it.
Glad I hadn't put a door back there like I was planning on yet.

I've been thinking those plastic slip sheets will fit the bill. Add a 4x4 room to the back as a side shed with the floor open with hardware cloth over the droppings hole and a slip sheet under it, and a door that opens right above the screen for raking out.
The slip sheet will collect droppings that make it through the 1/4"holes just grab it and drag it out. No muss or fuss.

It would also give the bird a 4' wide roost. Might good to add a closed shelf there for feed storage too.

 

[Cetawin]

Nest boxes should be about 12" x 12" for adult layers

Looking good so far but you may need more space depending on the number of adults (hens) you have.

 

[debakadeb]

Hi Catfish,

We are just now gathering plans to build our coop so I'm not up on coop-building as of yet. In looking at your's, if you placed wire over the top of the roof doors, that would keep predators out but still allow for ventilation and light for your birds. I am curious..I noticed that you have the food and water at one end -- do you have to climb in to clean the coop?

Deb

 

[catfish]

Quote:
Deb I plan to encircle that area with a fence. The lift up doors will give access tothe laying boxes so I don't need wire there. I'll have ventilation windows in the peak in a couple weeks when the chicks get bigger.

Its only 8 foot long so it should be hard to clean out with a rake and shovel. The doors are big enough you can fairly easily get inside though.

Thanks
Terry

 

[Brian]

Hi Catfish. Looks good, but I am concerned about the lack of ventilation when the door is shut and the roof is closed. You'll need some holes drilled at a minimum. During the hot summer nights, you'll need air flow. Cracking the top would work, but you'll need to keep predators out...so that's an issue. During winter nights, ammonia will build up and lead to respiratory disease in your birds, so, some ventilation will keep your birds healthy.

 

[gumpsgirl]

What about using the same kind of latches (sorry, not good with hardware names!) that you would use on a shed. The kind that you would have to use a padlock with. Hope your following me!!! Then you could just use carabiner in place of a lock. They have all sizes of carabiners at Lowe's. Hope this helps!