OverEz large coop have enough space on roosting bars?

[rosemarythyme]

I am fretting now, not sure what to do. If I make various directions of boards then there is going to be poo all over where they walk. I really didnt want to clean the coop out more than once a week. Especially since in winter here it can get negative 20- I had hoped to just let their poo pile up for a week or two and change ALL the bedding as needed. If I have bars going the opposite direction wont that be an issue and Ill need to do a cleaning daily? I didnt want to use sand. I sure didnt realize that this "HOLDS 15 chickens" coop really only holds 6 because it should only have one roosting bar.

If you're doing deep bedding the point is that it doesn't really matter where they poop, since you're cleaning it out entirely every few weeks. Having a removable roost doesn't change that.

If you're doing poop boards under the roosts (which someone else suggested and I assume is where the sand comes in?) then yes you'd need to spot clean regularly since that's the point of using the boards.

 

[Magnolia76]

This idea could work actually, though you would have to put in a bit extra time. You could use the sandbox method for poop catchment. Nail some boards together in the proper dimensions to sit under the roost bar that would be placed just above the nest boxes. Maybe about 2ft wide, and as long as the coop. Then fill it with sand. Each morning you will have to come scoop the poop off the top of the sand, but it will keep things clean and give the birds more space.
You might want to do the same for the other perch as well for ease of cleaning. I bet that could work.

I agree with adding more ventilation. You should have at least one ft of ventilation per bird, so adding some more holes on the far wall above the roots is a good idea.

I am rereading your post now that I am on a PC and not my tiny phones screen. So you are suggesting make two long roosts, one where it is on the left and one over between the door and the roosting boxes... which is a good idea and Im going to do it. I may make just a removable roost on the mandoor side so I can pull it out. I had just relented to the fact that I was going to have to remove all of the bedding way more often since they would be walking under where they roost. I am HOPING I only need to do it weekly at the most. This concept of a poop board is interesting. In your opinion how high up can a full grown bird jump to get onto their roost as this whole set up might need to be high so they have a place to walk around. Sand seems like a good idea but google is saying its a breeding ground for bacteria and not good in cold climates, but lots use it so I dont know.

 

[Weeg]

Sand seems like a good idea but google is saying its a breeding ground for bacteria and not good in cold climates, but lots use it so I dont know.

Since the sand is in the coop and will stay dry, it can be used as bedding without a problem. Sand works the best when scooped off regularly though. It would only take a few moments to scoop the poop off the top of the sand with a cat litter scoop each morning. You'll have to collect eggs anyway, so I don't think that it would take a lot of work. You wont have to "clean" or "replace" andy bedding, simply scoop off the top, toss, and done.

I'm glad you found an idea that will work for you. Interested to see updated photos.

 

[rosemarythyme]

In your opinion how high up can a full grown bird jump to get onto their roost as this whole set up might need to be high so they have a place to walk around.

Getting UP isn't the issue. It's getting down. Birds need at least as much space in front of a roost to land as the roost is tall (i.e. roost is 24" tall, you want 24" or more of landing space in front).

 

[NatJ]

if I spread the bars out I’m gonna need to clean under them daily.

Just toss some fresh bedding on top of the poop-- much faster and easier.
As it gets deeper, the chickens will scratch it around, and the poop will tend to get mixed in, so you will not have to add more as often.

The main reason to remove dropings frequently is to control odors (no-one likes a stinky coop, and the ammonia can be bad for the chickens to breathe.) Whether the droppings are on one side of the coop or the other side of the coop will have no effect on that. (Ways to control the smell: remove the droppings, or have lots of bedding compared to the amount of droppings, or have the droppings dry out very fast, or have the droppings freeze solid.)

when it’s super cold I didn’t want to be out there scooping the litter.

The colder it gets, the less cleaning you need to do. Droppings that are frozen solid can be left that way until spring, if you want. They do not stink, and do not stick to chicken feet.

If you do let the bedding pile up deep, you might want to put a temporary board across the bottom of the door, so the bedding does not fall out every time the door opens. At cleaning time, take that board out so you can easily scoop all the bedding out.

 

[Magnolia76]

Well I (think) I modified this coop kit (it makes me so irritated the more poor design and build issues I found) so that it can have enough roosting space for my 11 chickens. They are 5.5 weeks and will be moving in this weekend. I only plan to keep food and water in it for a few days until they are adjusted and can come and go to the run. I just hope they can jump on the roosts and off w/out any problems when they are full size.

 

[ck_in_mn]

Well I (think) I modified this coop kit (it makes me so irritated the more poor design and build issues I found) so that it can have enough roosting space for my 11 chickens. They are 5.5 weeks and will be moving in this weekend. I only plan to keep food and water in it for a few days until they are adjusted and can come and go to the run. I just hope they can jump on the roosts and off w/out any problems when they are full size.

Wow, that looks amazing.

I suddenly have some of the same concerns as you. We decided a few months ago to start keeping chickens. We've got a lot of projects taking our time, so we decided against building a coop from scratch and bought the medium OverEZ. We were finally able to put it together last weekend, and are ready to get out chicks outside in the next couple weeks. I figured that this coop would be better than the cheapie pre-built kits, and maybe it is, but it still seems lacking compared to a true custom build. I guess I should have done more homework. I'm worried that his won't be big enough for our eight girls, particularly since we went for larger breeds, Brahmas and Orpingtons. We'll be building a nice large run with more than 10sqft per bird, but it seems like the coop itself might be too small.

@Magnolia76 your chicks are a couple weeks older than ours, I'd love to hear more about your experiences as they move in to their new home.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Well I (think) I modified this coop kit (it makes me so irritated the more poor design and build issues I found) so that it can have enough roosting space for my 11 chickens. They are 5.5 weeks and will be moving in this weekend. I only plan to keep food and water in it for a few days until they are adjusted and can come and go to the run. I just hope they can jump on the roosts and off w/ouit any problems when they are full size.

Is that roost in the middle removable (for your access)? If so, really good job on finagling that.

Don't know if there'll be issues with landing space but the roost is about as low as you can get and still be higher than nests, so hope for the best.

 

[Magnolia76]

Is that roost in the middle removable (for your access)? If so, really good job on finagling that.

Don't know if there'll be issues with landing space but the roost is about as low as you can get and still be higher than nests, so hope for the best.

Yes I can lift both out. It’s 19” clearance under. Is that enough?

 

[rosemarythyme]

Yes I can lift both out. It’s 19” clearance under. Is that enough?

Sounds good - hope it works out well for you and your flock.