Open air coop design

Laurenj915

In the Brooder
5 Years
Jan 9, 2015
15
1
24
Hi, i am new here and had a few questions about designing my coop. You guys seem to have a ton of knowledge about coops. :)

We are in South Florida and it is hot so I would like to have an open air coop. Is there any advantage in having the run all on one side of the coop or split On each side of the coop? I was thinking it is more visually appealing split and chickens getting picked on can get away.

Also,if my run and coop and everything is secure and preditor proof do I need to have a door between the coop and run? Can it just be an open walkway?

Here are my two layouts. The green is hardware cloth and the blue is the only walled area. There will be a roof on the coop and possibly the run. Any suggestions would be awesome. I have been reading these boards like crazy trying to learn everything I can. Thank you!

700

700
 
With a little bit of redesign, the first one can have the run split to allow some rotation of the run. Let them use one side for a few weeks then switch them over to the other side. This would give the vegetation time to recover and regrow.
 
Ok, I hadn't thought of that. Thank you.

I was thinking we would just use the run when we were gone for the day or there are preditors around. Hmmm, so much to consider
 
Which way is south? You might want to situate the coop to provide some shading in the run.
How easy is it to get to the nest box, clean the coop and rake the run?
How easy is it to get to the feeders?
Even for a fully secured run, it is nice to have a coop door to close it if you need to temporarily contain or separate the chickens to inside the coop.
Nothing grows inside my run with the deep litter method.
 
Which way is south? You might want to situate the coop to provide some shading in the run.
How easy is it to get to the nest box, clean the coop and rake the run?
How easy is it to get to the feeders?
Even for a fully secured run, it is nice to have a coop door to close it if you need to temporarily contain or separate the chickens to inside the coop. 
Nothing grows inside my run with the deep litter method.


I do think I have to find a way to make some shade in the runs. I can't change the direction but the open side faces West. That means a ton of afternoon sun. i was thinking of using sand in the runs. We are in the subtropics and it rains alot in the summer. I think sand will dry fast as it doesn't hold water.

it does make sense that I might want to close the coop temporarily at some point. Thank you
 

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