Planning to build a Prince Woods style open air coop and have questions

[Vossgardener]

Hi! We are just planning our coop and have decided on a 6x10 Woods open air coop. The plans in Prince Wood's book is not clear on how the interior is constructed. If the nests are in the middle, how do the chickens get in? Does anyone have pictures of the interior of their coop of this style?

 

[aart]

@JackE @Ted Brown @Howard E
@jthornton has a clear copy of the book he can link.

 

[Ted Brown]

I strongly recommend increasing the size to 8' by 12'. The references to a 6' by 10' coop in Woods' book are for use as a brooder not as a principal coop. Also make the heights of walls in line with the 10' by 16' diagrams, your back will thank you.

Look at the chapter on the Woods KD, diagrams therein make interior layout absolutely clear. The pop door is on one side or the other at the bottom front.

My nest box (copy of @aart 's see her article) is opposite the door and in front of and lower than the roosts that are across the back.

Sounds like you have a copy of the book if not let me know and I will link it in. Also very happy to answer any questions.

 

[jthornton]

Here you go The Modern Fresh Air Poultry House by Prince T. Woods.

JT

 

[Vossgardener]

I strongly recommend increasing the size to 8' by 12'. The references to a 6' by 10' coop in Woods' book are for use as a brooder not as a principal coop. Also make the heights of walls in line with the 10' by 16' diagrams, your back will thank you.

Look at the chapter on the Woods KD, diagrams therein make interior layout absolutely clear. The pop door is on one side or the other at the bottom front.

My nest box (copy of @aart 's see her article) is opposite the door and in front of and lower than the roosts that are across the back.

Sounds like you have a copy of the book if not let me know and I will link it in. Also very happy to answer any questions.

View attachment 2067297

Thank you for your answer. My husband and I were discussing changing to 8x12 and then saw your comments and that cemented it for us! I do still have questions about the interior layout on the diagram -

In this diagram, do the nests sit on the floor, as in your coop? Are they raised up so the chickens can go under it? To clarify, is there a barrier in front of the roost (in this case the nests) or is it mostly open front to back? I think I may have a preconceived idea that is stopping me from seeing this clearly.
Also, do you use a board under your roosts for cleaning and do you have a door on the back to make cleaninf easier?
Thank you in advance,
Melissa

 

[Vossgardener]

Here you go The Modern Fresh Air Poultry House by Prince T. Woods.

JT

Thank you, JT! I do have a pdf file of this book, but am having a little trouble deciphering the layout of the nests, as explained in the other post (are the nests raised? etc).
I so much appreciate your help,
Melissa

 

[Ted Brown]

Melissa,

My nest box is not on the floor, it is raised probably 12" but because I use deep bedding there is only about 6" of clearance underneath. Too small for mature birds but awesome when integrating chicks into the flock as it gives them a place to escape. Another reason to maintain the wall heights per the 10' by 16' KD coop diagrams.

Your diagram above is NOT what you should be looking at, go to the 10' by 16' KD section for the correct diagrams. My roosts are along the back wall, my nests are along a side wall. In the picture I posted the roosts are on the right hand side.

My roosts have a drop board 12" underneath, drop board is 30" off the floor, everything open except when I use the space underneath for a brooder (a great idea for early integration but another discussion). The heights were a second iteration (early version were lower) and the difference it made on my back for daily cleaning of the droppings was immense!!! Yet another reason to maintain the 10' by 16' wall heights!!!!

My coop has no openings other than the person door, the pop door and the windows. I like that I have to go into the coop to feed, collect eggs, sit and interact. You end up intimate with the smells, the flock, the reality of what you have embarked on.

 

[aart]

In this diagram, do the nests sit on the floor, as in your coop? Are they raised up so the chickens can go under it? To clarify, is there a barrier in front of the roost (in this case the nests) or is it mostly open front to back?

Too bad the elevation does not show the heights of the roosts, board and nests.
When I was looking at the Woods book a few years ago, there was some missing info.
As an old drafter, it was very frustrating.

 

[Ted Brown]

Too bad the elevation does not show the heights of the roosts, board and nests.
When I was looking at the Woods book a few years ago, there was some missing info.
As an old drafter, it was very frustrating.

The book is all over the place on this.

However, in the section on the Woods KD I can say with confidence that all necessary construction detail exists; most of it is in the diagrams the rest can be found in the text that describes individual panel builds. I cannot speak with authority on the other coop styles Woods describes as I have not studied them the way I have the KD section.

Sometimes relevant related information exists elsewhere. A good example of this was the recent thread where the lady wanted to have an attached "shed" for use as storage and external access to the nests. Turns out that Woods had provided for such a construct but it was contained in another chapter that strung multiple 10' by 16' coops together to house some 200 birds.

I can understand @aart 's frustrations but suggest that a very thorough read (study) of the book will provide all the information needed to do the build. AND one always has the good folks on BYC to bounce questions/ideas off and from personal experience I can say members step up.

 

[aart]

However, in the section on the Woods KD I can say with confidence that all necessary construction detail exists

So, I've heard...but I just get a bit confused by words, wants complete drawings.
If I was going to build one, I'd hammer down on the words and make them into better drawings