Our Little Coop In Progress!

[TheYLWFlock]

Hey guys! Thanks for your info, that made me feel better! We have come up with a way to prop the roof open to let in light and ventilate it during the day, then close it at night. Could that work?

rosemarythyme, if that doesn’t end up working, we would probably cut some openings and cover them like you did.

Brigitt, it’s kind of hard to see, but we have pressure treated wood lifting the plywood bottom off of the ground so it doesn’t get all moldy, etc. We are going to nail/screw the run the the coop and do hardware cloth on the top, sides and underground. We will have locks on the door into the run and on the liftable roof.

Hopefully this will be able to work for the girls? Please let me know anything else I can improve on!

 

[TheYLWFlock]

Oh yeah, Brigitt, here is how they get out. We still need to add a door, but that will be happening along with our soon to happen additions on the weekend!

 

[Duckstail]

U spent $500 and 25 hours making that? You should have just bought one from tsc. Not trying to be rude but one should definitely know what they are capable of, and for $500 u definitely could have bought a much more useful coop.

Im trying to give you constructive criticism, id build a gazebo style roof over that so water doesn't gobthgo the door when it rains!

 

[Duckstail]

Your chicken run is not structurally strong. The only support you have is from those L-shaped brackets.

You might try sistering a piece of wood to the back. It's hard for me to explain. Do a little research online or go to Home Depot and ask someone to give you a little help on how to make a little more structurally sound.

100% that will not last weight and long term!! We got to be careful with these small animals something that would fall on our foot and give us a scratch will crush them dead.

Update with pictures please!

 

[Soon2BChixMom]

Oh well, I wish we had known this before we invested $550 and 25+ hours of work... we can’t exactly go and spend a bunch of money on a new coop, and our shed is used for our garden, lawnmower, etc. I had read that they need 4 square feet per bird inside, and 10 out in the run. I want the best for my chickens, but it looks like I can’t give them that... what should I do?

18 sq feet should be plenty for 4 chickens and the 40 sq ft run is exactly enough for 4 chickens. I would take the advice for adding ventilation and/or windows.
How does it open and where do the chickens enter and leave? Plus, I would love to see the inside.
Never mind, I see it now, it was a few posts down. But, if you get a chance to post the inside, that would be great. I am building my coop right now and haven't figured out the inside yet.

 

[Soon2BChixMom]

U spent $500 and 25 hours making that? You should have just bought one from tsc. Not trying to be rude but one should definitely know what they are capable of, and for $500 u definitely could have bought a much more useful coop.

Im trying to give you constructive criticism, id build a gazebo style roof over that so water doesn't gobthgo the door when it rains!

There are better ways to deliver constructive criticism.

 

[Duckstail]

There are better ways to deliver constructive criticism.

My fault. Im working on it. Working a decade on wall st makes one vedy critical with no sugar coating.
No offense builder!!

Point is, good start, but u got a long way to go!!

 

[IdyllwildAcres]

If you close it up at night, the propped up roof you will be closing in the humidity that needs to escape and your birds may get frostbite.
I am not sure what the answer is hopefully someone comes up with a solution. The lawnmower could go in the garage....?

Gary

 

[TheYLWFlock]

Thanks everyone!

Duckstail, we should have been wiser when spending the money, but in our area, wood is really expensive and coops are overpriced and not so nice. We don’t have TSC... We do have additional nails and screws supporting it along with the L brackets. We are also going to be adding some other wood to make it more stable.

Soon2BChixMom, here’s some advice for building your coop... make it better than mine.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Hey guys! Thanks for your info, that made me feel better! We have come up with a way to prop the roof open to let in light and ventilate it during the day, then close it at night. Could that work?

It's more important to have some form of ventilation at night especially in colder climates, as moisture plus cold leads to frostbite. How cold does it get in your area during winter? The tricky thing with a smaller coop is to be able to provide ventilation while not exposing the birds to drafts of cold air.