Our Coop - A few questions

[MichiganWoods]

Hello all!

My family and I are completely new to raising chickens, but I've been reading through three different books and asking local folk a ton of questions about all of this.

We had a Tuffshed put up on our property for our future chickens. Here are the specs.

Dimensions: 8'x12' (9' tall)
Base: Raised 8" above the ground on top of a metal frame base. Base is resting on top of an asphalt pad.
Internally: 4 Electrical Outlets, 1 light switch controling the 36" ceiling fan with three bulbs (180 watts max).
Vents: 2 wall vents covered with screen to prevent bugs from coming in, placed high above door level on the north and south walls. 1 ceiling skylight/vent.
Windows: (2) 2'x2' windows with sliding glass panes that latch/lock shut, but when open allow ventillation through screens. The windows are centered along the top part of the walls to the east and west.
Misc: Floor and walls to be painted with epoxy normally used on garage floors to help repel moisture and to help with clean-up.
Run:Currently 8'x12', but being expanded to 24'x36'.
Pending: 6 custom wooden rear roll-out nest boxes, roosts and dropping pits.


Question #1: Does anyone have some good guesses as to how many chickens max we could comfortably house?

Question #2: What would be the ideal bedding for no to very minimal dust, maximum moisture absorbtion, fast compost time and good to use for the deep litter method? I did order a 50lb bag of food grade DE to help with this process.

Question #3: Is there anything we're missing for in the coop that's not already listed?

I think I've gone overboard, but I'm having a blast and the chickens aren't even here yet! My family thought it was hillarious when I explained I looked as though I was having seizures while using my new hand saw for the first time.

Thanks!

 

[Omran]

HI
You can have up to25 birds in that coop
use pine shaving for bedding
make sure you have roost and nesting boxes
You are ready to go
please post Pictures for us
Thank you
Omran

 

[Chicabee19]

hi and

!

Wow, you really have a nice setup there! Omran is right about the # you can have.

I can't think of anything you are missing except waterers and feeders.

Of course you're going to have to post pics or everyone will be unhappy!

 

[speckledhen]

Just wanted to add that if you have bantams, you can have almost twice as many birds as you can with standard sizes. Welcome to BYC.

 

[MichiganWoods]

Thank you Orman, Chicabee and SpeckledHen!

I will get some pictures ready to post next week.

I do actually have a 5 gallon galvanized feeder and a 3 gallon galvanized waterer which are currently dangling at chicken shoulder height (or there about! I'll adjust when I get the birdies) from some heavy duty chain linked to some 2x4 beams I've attached across the length of the coop. Will I need to get extras of those with 25 chickens?

SpeckledHen, I will probably steer away from bantams because I really am wanting to produce a lot of nice large to extra large eggs. I'm hoping I can find some Easter Eggers locally soon. My 4-year-old and 7-year-old are looking forward to the blue/green/brownish pink eggs.

 

[momofdrew]

Quote:
Yes I have only 4 birds but have 2 feeders and 3 waterers that are smaller than yours but we dont have fights over space...Pecking order means top birds get to eat and drink first

Pam

 

[speckledhen]

I'm not much of a bantam person myself. Only one of my 53 birds is a bantam. Just wanted to mention that if some or all are smaller birds, you can have more.

 

[MichiganWoods]

Pam, thank you for that response. I'll make sure to get a few extra of both the feeders and waterers.


SpeckledHen, that's a lot of chickens!

 

[CoyoteMagic]

Quote:
I would suggest that you put up some hardware cloth on the inside of your windows. Raccoons and other critters will go right through your screens.

 

[MichiganWoods]

If I've got leftovers from my galvanized 1" chicken wire, would that be a possible substitute to install over the windows?

What's the difference between hardware cloth and chicken wire?


By the way, here is the outside of my coop. It doesn't show the sectioned off run, which I've been working on since I snapped this photo, or the chicken-door (it's on the other side).