Please evaluate my coop design!

[Redoubt Renee]

Ok, new roost situation. I removed the bottom roosts on each side, I left the top roost where it was and moved the two lower roosts to 16" apart on center. Each roost is over 7 feet long, so at 12" per chicken, that is space for 21 on each side. So the roosts are now higher than the nesting boxes and there is plenty of space for them to get under the roosts and access that space.

 

[mobius]

Do consider vertical panels on doors and openings if the openings are floor level to retain the litter.

Being in Montana (and probably sharing similar climate) I would not recommend sand. Suggest you consider covering floor with rolled vinyl and starting deep litter (you can search the forum, plenty of great posts). It makes for great compost and if you don't garden, your gardening friends would love it.

Think about how you will keep their water from freezing...do you have water to the property?

Other points have been well covered by others as above, although if I had it to do over again, even in this climate, I would build a Woods style coop...also eminently searchable on this forum...and easy to modify size. Tried and true....

 

[Redoubt Renee]

Do consider vertical panels on doors and openings if the openings are floor level to retain the litter.

Being in Montana (and probably sharing similar climate) I would not recommend sand. Suggest you consider covering floor with rolled vinyl and starting deep litter (you can search the forum, plenty of great posts). It makes for great compost and if you don't garden, your gardening friends would love it.

Think about how you will keep their water from freezing...do you have water to the property?

Other points have been well covered by others as above, although if I had it to do over again, even in this climate, I would build a Woods style coop...also eminently searchable on this forum...and easy to modify size. Tried and true....

Water will be rain catchment in 55 gallon food safe drums until I can get a cistern going. Looking into battery operated water heaters. I was thinking the vinyl flooring as a good idea. I'm not opposed to the deep litter concept. How often do you change yours?

I'm thinking that instead of poop boards, I would do something more like this?

 

[mobius]

Water will be rain catchment in 55 gallon food safe drums until I can get a cistern going. Looking into battery operated water heaters. I was thinking the vinyl flooring as a good idea. I'm not opposed to the deep litter concept. How often do you change yours?

I'm thinking that instead of poop boards, I would do something more like this?

I like those poop slings too but with my roosts stretching across the entire coop it was a bit of a wrestling match to clean them. For me. Since I am doing deep bedding, they poop in it (e.g. nitrogen), and I flip the bedding, rake it and add new bedding (it packs down). I only smelled ammonia slightly during our recent thaw and added a little garden lime and new bedding on top. Smell gone.

Changing litter out is a personal preference and depends on how well the composting is going as well...in the coop it will be changed spring and fall....until I change my mind about that. Nice and soft on chicken feet, which sand is not. They hop up and down from boxes or roosts frequently.That being said, the bedding goes in the run at that point anyway. It is doing pretty well. Helps keep the coop warm too if handled right...which helps in the winter. The base now is pine shavings, but I will be collecting grass clipping, yard rakings, pine cones, pine straw and leaves for next winter....

Nice idea about the drums...for catchment...I use an electric powered 250 watt stcok tank heater ina four gallen water bucket with horizonatal nipples I made The heater came with potential to use battery connections. Hasn't missed a trick all winter.

 

[Leigti]

If I was to build a coop over again I would do a woods style coop. I personally like the roosts all at one level and a poop board underneath them. Keeps the floor of the coop clean. I don't have electricity to my coop and it's fine even in this totally crummy winter were having. I would use pine shavings instead of sand. Check out the coops section and get some ideas there. The best modifications are the ones made before you build. I found that out the hard way.

 

[aart]

Climate is North Idaho, forest. At least 2250 sq ft of fenced yard(available anytime but night), flock made up of SL, GL BLR Wyandottes, RIR, Barred Rock, LV and Buff Orpingtons, Black Australorps. Goals are 1) Learning small livestock management, 2) Meat, 3) chicks, 4) eggs, 5)maybe a vanity breed or two later.

Welcome to BYC!
It's good to put your location in your profile, can really help during further discussion and posting.
Helps folks give better answers/suggestions.

So really cold in winter....probably lots of snow.
Somewhere you said you have or will have solar power?
You're probably going to need it to keep water thawed for the birds.

Speaking of water...you said no septic, what about a water source?
Are you going to be living on this piece of land?

No run just free range....
...when there is feet of snow on the ground and cold as h3ll, they probably are going to want to stay inside maybe for days on end.
So keep that in mind when planing your space vs population...think cabin fever, crowded and crabby.
Runs can also become necessary if/when you have predator problem....especially when chicks are present.

Speaking of space...and chicks....you say chicks are a big part of your plan.
I'd strongly suggest that you consider splitting that 20x10 space up into 2 or more sections.
Main flock, chick/broody/isolation/sick bay, and storage for feed and supplies.

You've got a good start on conceptual planning, but need to learn more about building and chickeneering.
Not sure what your background, experience, and skillset is.
Obviously you're pretty good at solid modeling....
...and as an old drafter I can attest that planning/designing with a model can save a ton of mistakes made in lumber.
But one must stay aware that just because you can draw/model it, doesn't mean it can or should be built...haha!

 

[Redoubt Renee]

Quote:

There will be covered areas for snow prevention, I'm just not going to do a run like one might understand it here, so it will serve the same purpose as a run, but you wouldn't recognize it as a run.

Not living on the property, but there are power poles and houses close by, so I figure I can probably get a simple setup for power. I'm wanting this property to be a parking space for an RV eventually, for storage, not living, so getting limited power to the site would be big plus. I don't want to have to rely on solar, especially during the winter...in a forest....

If I have to go totally off grid for power and warm water, I'm interested in trying out a pain mound setup around a water barrel. To answer your question, I'm setting up a cistern and rain water catchment.

I wouldn't say chicks are a big part of the plan, I'm just more interested in hatching than egg collection. We are average egg eaters, but the size of the flock I'm probably going to end up with will far exceed what my family will eat. Never having to buy eggs again is a perk, but not the driving motivator for me. Mostly what drives me is a desire to learn what I think everyone should know, and that is how to produce your own food. My grandma was a poor Norwegian immigrant farmer's daughter in the Dakotas during the great depression and I feel like she had more useful life skills than I do That's not to say I'm a slob, I'm a professional seamstress and grew up on an acreage with horses and I had Nigerian goats for 6 months before I had to give them up when I found out I was pregnant(I kept them until 7 months along, just couldn't deal with the little escape artists). I'll be doing goats again and adding the chickens. I just like to plan, plan, plan and then jumping in and start flailing.

I've been looking into the Woods design and I've split it up into two coops now, one for layers and one for pullets/chicks/rotation. I'm less worried about the framing design than I am about the whole functionality of it. My FIL has a construction background and I'll take my final plan to him and let him modify it to fit normal construction practices without losing the basic shape. I'm wanting to nail down the guts and the function, I'll worry about the bones later.

Oh, and I have a design degree from EWU, but it was graphic design. I took two hand drafting classes and a CAD class(top of the class, beat all the boys , and that is the only facet of my degree I'm still using. I taught myself 3D modeling to make replica props to compliment my sewing skills. Thanks for commenting on my post, I'm getting there

 

[mobius]

Fantastic you are looking at the Woods for two coops because I think you will def need that for the hatching/chicks/pullets, what a great idea...even if you build one big one and split it down the middle....or even a third...the little ones don't need that much room....read up on flock integration before you build...I am sure you can come up with a design that will work very well...

What a wonderful orientation of wanting to learn the old ways...my chickens have taught me a great deal (as have the great folks on this forum, my go-to for all things chicken) and i go as organically and self-sustained as possible...with the land you have for example, you might be able to seed some crops for them to eat, or seed fodder for them and goats (especially if you can somewhat divvy it up, like with moveable fencing....).

My grandparents (and parents) were Czechs from Nebraska....similar...farmers...grandma had chickens I would gather the eggs and they designated a banty roo as mine, all mine, lol. I was very little, under five....

The winter can be an issue...I had to think long and hard too. Now my chickens are happily walking on snow after a few months...the dogs break trail for them....but they won't go where it is deeper than 2-3 inches (or not packed down). I scatter straw for them to walk on and they do, or they scatter it where they want to go, amazingly...

Look forward to seeing your ideas!

Really one of the best things I did was get winter-hardy birds. They are doing wonderfully!

Do think about a couple good broody hen breeds for hatching, they will do all the work for you...put them in the chick pen with broody nests maybe just for that so the others don't bother them...just a thought...

Wouldn't it be nice to have like a camping/picnic area or firepit area on your land to rest and relax and enjoy your animals!

 

[Redoubt Renee]

Really one of the best things I did was get winter-hardy birds. They are doing wonderfully!

Do think about a couple good broody hen breeds for hatching, they will do all the work for you...put them in the chick pen with broody nests maybe just for that so the others don't bother them...just a thought...

I plan on putting a call out on craigslist once I have the coop ready to go to see if there are any broody hens available for sale, some ladies ready to retire but still babysit(do hens still go broody if they start to lay less?). I think most of the breeds I want are pretty hardy, wyandottes, australorps, orpingtons.

The mistake I made with goats was letting myself get too excited and getting my heart set on a goat I saw a photo of before I was truly ready to go. I don't want to make that mistake with chickens, even though they might prove to be easier to keep. I want to get everything in place and ready to go this time with less "flying by the seat of my pants". I'm working through my "education" like a college class. I already passed Goats 101: how to keep three goats alive over 7 months. Next up chickens 101 and goats 102.

 

[Redoubt Renee]

Ok, second try. Taking the advice to check out the Woods design, I can instantly see why it is a favorite, you can practically feel the air movement in this one, having a clear draw of colder air in the front, warming and exiting upward. With my lot running long North to South, having two of these not side by side, but in front and behind would be my orientation. The size is 8' x 12'ish, so with two I have a total of 192 sq ft, with 42 feet of roost and 8 nesting boxes. I have put doors for the chickens on both sides, I'm not sure how I want them just yet. The human door is still small, but I think it will work. I kept my idea of having the front and back panels on hinges for easy litter cleaning. I can already tell that compared to my old design that this has less air volume to warm. I would probably add more little windows on the sides and maybe a skylight on the front roof.