Pawhut Coops - good or bad?

[i-love-my-honey]

I have been researching coops for my soon to be flock (6 chickens, 5 full size and one bantam). I read that I need at least 8 sq ft. per bird in a run (I cannot allow them to roam because they will be "stealth" chickens. I found this coop on eBay and was wondering what advice I could get about how I would need to modify it to make it secure, warm in the winter, yet cool in the summer (Oklahoma temps range from 100+ in the summer to 0 in the winter).

Alternatively, does anyone know of specific plans for one of these that has the raised house and two nesting boxes? (I will be moving it daily for the closest 'free range' effect I can get, so it cannot be too heavy...)

I like that it is 12' long and almost 4' wide.

 

[jetdog]

Add hardware cloth on all vents as I'm sure it doesn'tcome it,you might want to add a couple of wheels to the coop end for easier moving, add a aprin of hardware cloth around the entire run to keep out digging critters I'm not sure how sturdy it will be you might have add some srcews here and there to snug everything tight.

 

[Diggidy]

Bad.

I had a smaller one purchased from amazon. While the vents and run were covered in hardware cloth the grade of wood is pretty terrible. Additionally, it said it could hold 4-5 birds and 3 were filling it up before they were fully grown. I sold it and built one from scratch. Check craigslist.

I need to posts some pictures.

 

[i-love-my-honey]

Thanks so much. Decisions, decisions...

 

[Countrypunk92]

these coops you find at TSC or a CO-OP are cheaply made and the ones I have seen, If I were to trip and place my body weight on it, it would come crashing down... they are also too small... the biggest ones, that say 5-6 might be for BANTAMS and still might be pushing it.
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Watch out for craigslist, Unless you are buying from the builder, you can introduce all kinds of diseases to your birds if not cleaned properly..
I you buy a used tractor, I would thoroughly clean it, and leave sitting for a month or two before actually putting birds in.

Merry Christmas!