Plain ol' coop

[MonkeyZero]

hi

I have made a coop about 3-4 ft. tall and 4 ft tall for 1 roo and 1 pullet. It is simple. 4 sides, 4 roosts, 1 enterance, with a screen flap, with a huge coop and water and food. its simple. no windows, not lights. is this gonna be ok for the cali. winter? usually get as low as 30 deg. and frost.

 

[picklespickles]

i don't live in california, but i think it gets colder here. i would say that would be fine. is it tall enough for you to walk into to clean out or so you sort of lean in? will they be in there all the time, or part time?

 

[mlheran]

As long as it keeps all the rain and wind out they should be fine. You might consider adding a window of some sort (even a plastic cuttingboard) so that the hen will lay naturally. Oh, and be sure to have some kind of ventillation -a few holes (or gaps) under the protected roofline should do it. You'd be amazed at the amount of moisture just one chicken breathes out in an enclosed space!

 

[MonkeyZero]

i can open the top and clean. i have nests too. the screen door gives in air.
the have the run so they can go in.

 

[MonkeyZero]

oh yeah, the floor is cement.

 

[Wooden_Pony]

oh yeah, the floor is cement.

Do you not put anything on the cement floor for them? Like straw or pine shavings?​

 

[MonkeyZero]

i have nothing there. do i need a substrate>

 

[Wooden_Pony]

Quote:
I would put pine shavings on the floor inside of their house that also helps keep them warm. I live in the South Bay Area CA and I alway put a nice THICK layer of shavings down for my girls, I find that if they get to cold they will sleep in the shavings.

You also have to make sure the shavings do not get wet, the floor of their house should be ABOVE grade so that water cannot get into the house and mold your shavings.

 

[MonkeyZero]

i did have pine shavings, once, but it was hard to clean.

 

[Mulemom]

somebody here uses a drop cloth or tarp. they used plastic covered cup hooks in the sides of the coop and hooked the tarp to those so is stayed put. Then at cleaning time they just rolled the tarp up and dumped the shavings in the compost pile.