Our coop. Any thoughts?

[craftymama86]

My DH designed and built this coop. We have 4 young hens and 10 chicks. Obviously we'll need another coop but does anyone have any thoughts or concerns we should be aware of?

Nest box view

Inside

 

[TigerLilly]

Very cute--I especially like the nest box area.
Only suggestion would be to build way bigger than you think you need!

 

[kla37]

Looks really nice! Good job! Love those nest boxes.

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

I like your coop! The following is meant with utmost kindness:

Your heat lamp looks to be closer than 18-24 inches to the roost bar- hard to tell from the picture. If it is closer than that, I believe it would be a fire risk. In addition, it might get the wood that it is clamped to too hot.

Also, it should be hung (NOT clamped) TWO different ways, in case one fails.

You might be able to get away with a 100 watt bulb or two (that's what I do when the chicks are able to handle it), then wean them to 60 watts eventually. Those heat lamps are really hot.

What a wonderful place for your little guys! I especially like that it is on wheels.

 

[mulewagon]

Is that run made of chickenwire and PVC pipe? A dog could smash right through that. And at night lots of things could get in - does the coop close tightly?

You'll want to use metal pipe and hardware cloth on the next run...

 

[craftymama86]

Quote:
I will have to measure to see how close it is to the roost bar. I'm not really comfortable having a light like that in this size coop to begin with but I'm sure there is something we can do with it. I'll mention it to my DH to hang the light. I'll also look into the different wattage. Thank you.

 

[craftymama86]

Quote:
Lol, yes, it is made of PVC pipe and chicken wire. After putting a lot of energy into putting it together I've already told my hubby we're making the next one with wood, lol. It was a real pain in the rear attaching the wire to the pipe. So, hardware cloth instead of chicken wire? What would one use chicken wire for? The coop closes VERY tightly. Almost too tight, it's can be hard unlatching it but I guess that could be a good thing. We do need to add a handle to the nest box door, it's a pain trying to open without one. Thank you for your input.

 

[Matt A NC]

Quote:
Chicken Wire is only for keeping chickens in. It does nothing as far as keep predators out. Dogs, coons, and several others can go through it with very little effort.

Matt