Old log shed as coop?

[Gray Ghost]

I live in NE Wisconsin and I am thinking about picking up about a dozen laying hens for egg production. I have 22 acres about 4 of which is grassy or lawn or old farm fields around the house, so space is not an issue.

As a complete chicken novice I have some questions and I appreciate any help which you can give:

1. I have an old log shed about 10' x 14', dirt floor, half attic, peaked roof, a couple old windows. I would think this can be used as a coop with minimum modification. Although the thick log walls provide insulation, the roof isn't insulated so the place would be pretty cold in the winter (we get some very cold weather, below zero at times). I I don't want to insulate and heat the whole structure for just 12 hens so could I just put a heat lamp near the roosts and set it to operate only when the temperature goes below a certain level? What at what temperature should I start to provide heat?

2. The floor is dirt. I have access to lots of coarsely chipped wood (from a landscaper's chipper / shredder). Is this a good floor material? How often will I need to rake it out?

3. I would build a fenced outdoor area for the hens to use in the winter but I would hope in the spring / summer / fall they can free range around my property and eat the abundant grasshoppers etc. Predators (just about every kind you can think of) will be a problem so I might end up keeping them in the pen most of the time. Suggestions on the recommended pen size and materials for sides / top? Are electric fences better so I can move the pen around and rotate the chickens onto fresh grass / ground / bugs once in a while?

4. Any other suggestions you can think of are appreciated!

Gray Ghost

 

[SeralTaooke]

That sounds perfect. Make sure to select a winter-hardy breed or local strain. As far as predators, all I can say is to make sure they are all securely shut in the coop at night and take your chances during the day. There is not much you can do.Electric fencing is for people who have places they don't want their chickens to go, such as the tomato patch Once your hens have settled in, I would consider it safe to let them wander; they will be conservative, at least at first, and as you have enough property I doubt they will bother the neighbors.

 

[sianara]

Sounds like a great set up, lucky you!

As far as the dirt floor goes, my main concern would be tunneling predators which once inside the building can reek havoc and kill all your birds in a very short period of time. Personally, if I was to keep the floor dirt, I would either put a hardware cloth "floor" down and then add sand to the top of it OR attach an 18" hardware cloth skirt around the bottom of the entire perimeter of the building (don't forget the corners). Either solution would use about the same amount of HW cloth.

I live in MA and we also get cold weather. I don't heat any of my coops and my chickens/ducks have all done fine for years. Only had 1 minor case of frostbite on an ameraucana roosters wattles but he was gone the next winter (gave him to a friend) so it's never really been a problem for me. Half my coops are insulated and the other half are not.

One of the most important things to remember is to have adequate ventilation at the top of the coop preferably in the north and south side walls. Easy to do, cut out some small windows (12" square) and cover them securely with harware cloth. They can be left open year round also. Chickens expel alot of CO2 which if not ventilated properly can cause respirtory problems and add to frostbite as well.

 

[teach1rusl]

The logs are great for insulation. It wouldn't take a lot to create a drop down ceiling w/insulation. That would go far in 1) reducing the space for winter and 2) reducing heat loss. My coop is much smaller than yours (6 x 8), but DH created flat panel frames that we stapled heavy duty insulation into for winter time (our roof is gable), creating a removable, drop down ceiling. They're just held up there with wooden brackets screwed into the walls. We do use a heat lamp on really cold nights, and it's so much more efficient since we added the drop down ceiling.

As far as outdoor pen space, 10 x 12 would suffice for 12 birds, although more room is always appreciated. Since you're not sure whether you'll be free ranging or not for sure, I'd go with the largest possible (which of course kind of takes away from the mobile concept). On the plus side, if the run is attached to your cabin, it saves on run materials. My birds are out and about (outside the run) when one of us is out and about, so you could do the "supervised" free ranging.

I do agree with the poster who mentioned adding a wire floor (which then could be covered with bedding). Or you could do a fairly wide skirt of wired around the cabin...

The only other suggestion I have is the use of dropping boards under your roosts. That's something I got from BYC that I just love...has made cleaning so easy for me.

Good luck!

 

[gsim]

Quote:

1. If heat lamp used, go with a string or series of several 75 W instead of one or two really biggies. Safer and more even heat. Set up around 16" above roost pole with reflector and very securely mounted and wire mesh screen over bulbs to prevent chooks from shattering them and burning down the coop. Set to come on at somewhere below zero only.

2. Dirt floor with chips is fine. If you do a properly built poop board and clean it daily,

You will find that your chips should last a whole year and may only need some topping added every 3 to 6 months to keep the coop smelling nice. Without the proper poop board, your litter will get stinky far faster and you will be out there either turning litter or replacing it. Daily cleaning of it will also ensure cleaner air and also dryer air, both vital to poultry health.

3. Bare minimum is 10 sq ft/chook. I did 80 sq ft/chook for mine and to do over, would make even bigger. I did 2x4 welded wire set in cement to stop digging preds. I also electrified mine and installed 4 courses of hot wire around perimeter and gate. I would not trust the portable elec fences to keep mine safe from preds. For fresh wild greens you can either toss in grass and weed clippings 3 or 4 times a week as I do (they gobble them up) or free range them. The moving about can only be done practically by building and using a chicken tractor, which is another subject. Also do a complete course of hardware cloth mesh 1/2' all around for the bottom two or three ft fastened to your 6'tall 2 x 4 mesh. This will protect from coons reaching thru to dismember your chooks and will keep your chooks heads inside of the run so that a fox, dog, or coyote cannot snatch off their heads. (Read predator section of BYC)

4. Add 3 sq ft of louvered ventilation to each gable end at the peak of the gables. Or do smaller vents and do a turbine vent in the top center of roof.

Take long breaks, short puffs, laugh a lot, and work safely. AND do not underestimate predators.

Gerry

 

[catdaddy66]

Got any pics of the shed? That would be so

!!!

 

[Gray Ghost]

Picture of old log building which will be used as chicken coop can be viewed HERE: http://www.flickr.com/photos/37474630@N04/4356025591/

Do I really need a hardware cloth "flange" on the ground around the coop given that the walls are already 12 inches thick? Certainly I need to make sure predators can't dig under the door.

I am planning to build the outdoor run on the side and use the window as the entrance / exit from the coop to the run. I have pretty much unlimited space for the run but I think I will build a relatively compact permanent run and then let them free range as much as possible.

What's the best wire for the vertical sides of the outdoor run? Chicken wire or welded fence wire (the latter is a lot more expensive). I understand the need for hardware cloth along the bottom of the run.

GG

 

[CityChook]

Welcome from Minneapolis! That log shed is beautiful. I'm jealous.

Roof: Does the roof leak? I'd still insulate the roof. I'm sure the logs are sufficient for the walls. I think most of your heat goes out the roof anyways, so that's where I'd focus the insulation.

Heat: I only heat over the roost as well. I don't bother with a thermocube to keep it above freezing inside -- it's not possible in our climate. And 12 birds won't be enough to heat a space that size, so electricity/heat and electricity/water heater are probably going to be a must.

Floor: Dirt is fine. Make sure it will stay dry. Chipped wood would probably be fine, especially if it's free. It won't be cheap to "bed" a shed of that size. I'd say go for it as long as the chips aren't too big.

Cleaning: I only clean out my coop twice a year. And I probably wouldn't have to do even that, but I'm a little OCD that way. The shavings on the floor will dry out the poo and keep it smell-free as long as you install appropriate ventilation. Check out patandchicken's page. She has lots of great information. Remember, you can always close up "too much" ventilation. It's really important.

Ranging: I like to free range my girls as much as possible. But with preds, you will have losses. Just do it with full knowledge.

Run: For their run, I recommend a roof to keep the bulk of snow out (it will still blow in unless you seal up the walls -- I'm doing that next winter), but it won't be as bad. Also, when it rains, they can still go outside. Build it as bomb proof as you can so that snow/ice-load won't make it collapse mid-season. Recommended size is 10 sq. ft. per bird. I'd double that if you can afford to. You'll feel much less guilty about leaving them in their run if it's sizable. Having shade is preferable. For materials, hardware wire is necessary for the lower portion (to keep raccoons from reaching in and grabbing the chickens through the wire) -- If you can afford it, put it all over. If you can't, 2x4 fencing wire would probably work for a less expensive top half. I don't have experience with hot wire, so will leave that info to the next BYCer.

Digging: I'd recommend burying wire about the perimeter of the coop. No beastie is going through those walls, but they can easily go under them. What is the foundation? How deep does it go?

 

[pascopol]

Quote:
Nice shed!

For only 12 hens I would insulate (hay bales is a cheap option) portion of it for them to roost at night, and make it really predator proof. Then I would let them use rest of the shed as a run during the day.

In my opinion that looks like the most economical and practical way to go.

 

[EweSheep]

To save the dirt floor, you can put down horse rubber mats to keep chickens from dust bathing holes in it.

You can make a hardware wire "skirt" around the perimeter of the cabin and if you can get a large amount of stones, it is doable!

From the Lincoln's New Salem, their coop house had never had anything of predators except for concrete or brick foundation and it never gave them a problem.