prefab barn

[trudyg]

I'm thinking of getting one of those pre-fab barns that they haul over to your house. I am looking at an 8 X 12 for 4 hens and a rooster, thinking that I'll have room for roosts, nest boxes, food/water stations, food/equipment storage and an isolation pen. My first question: how do I treat/finish the inside walls and floor so it's easy to keep clean and pest free? I think paint it all to seal, then linoleum on the floor? or use epoxy paint on the floor? Second quesion: they put them one block high--should I go up another block so they can peck around underneath it or would that make a big mess that would be hard to keep clean? Question 3: if I make a 1" wire screen door (and leave the attached door open during warm weather) how much more ventilation should I add?

We went looking yesterday, it was 95 out and the inside of the barns we looked at were not uncomfortable at all. I would need to add a pop door and, possible, a hatch to access nest boxes, but what else? I'm thinking a pan under the roost with sand & pdz, then hay/bedding on the floor. My water station is horizontal nipples, so not too much concern over drips. I'm just trying to cover all my bases--DH thinks I should let the builder do all this extra stuff but I think that would make the price too high.

 

[BYCforlife]

I'm thinking of getting one of those pre-fab barns that they haul over to your house. I am looking at an 8 X 12 for 4 hens and a rooster, thinking that I'll have room for roosts, nest boxes, food/water stations, food/equipment storage and an isolation pen. My first question: how do I treat/finish the inside walls and floor so it's easy to keep clean and pest free? I think paint it all to seal, then linoleum on the floor? or use epoxy paint on the floor? Second quesion: they put them one block high--should I go up another block so they can peck around underneath it or would that make a big mess that would be hard to keep clean? Question 3: if I make a 1" wire screen door (and leave the attached door open during warm weather) how much more ventilation should I add?

We went looking yesterday, it was 95 out and the inside of the barns we looked at were not uncomfortable at all. I would need to add a pop door and, possible, a hatch to access nest boxes, but what else? I'm thinking a pan under the roost with sand & pdz, then hay/bedding on the floor. My water station is horizontal nipples, so not too much concern over drips. I'm just trying to cover all my bases--DH thinks I should let the builder do all this extra stuff but I think that would make the price too high.

I painted my walls, but that didn't work too well. I think linoleum would be a good idea. If you have a vent on 2 sides of the coop you should be good.

 

[aart]

I'm thinking of getting one of those pre-fab barns that they haul over to your house. I am looking at an 8 X 12 for 4 hens and a rooster, thinking that I'll have room for roosts, nest boxes, food/water stations, food/equipment storage and an isolation pen. My first question: how do I treat/finish the inside walls and floor so it's easy to keep clean and pest free? I think paint it all to seal, then linoleum on the floor? or use epoxy paint on the floor? Second quesion: they put them one block high--should I go up another block so they can peck around underneath it or would that make a big mess that would be hard to keep clean? Question 3: if I make a 1" wire screen door (and leave the attached door open during warm weather) how much more ventilation should I add?

We went looking yesterday, it was 95 out and the inside of the barns we looked at were not uncomfortable at all. I would need to add a pop door and, possible, a hatch to access nest boxes, but what else? I'm thinking a pan under the roost with sand & pdz, then hay/bedding on the floor. My water station is horizontal nipples, so not too much concern over drips. I'm just trying to cover all my bases--DH thinks I should let the builder do all this extra stuff but I think that would make the price too high.

Excellent idea!
Painting would depend on how clean you really need to keep it...but an exterior grade high gloss paint would be best for being able to clean. Prep work for painting might depend on the surface of the wood inside the shed, ie:what kind of wood and how smooth the surface is.
For floor, single sheet if heavy duty foam backed vinyl is what I used, it had held up well, but there are a lot of inferior grades of vinyl, so get a good one if you go that route. Many folks have used BlackJack57 roofing compound on floors with good results. Again floor material and condition might sway your choice here.

Raising shed. I like my raised shed, it gives deep shade and stays dry(after some run off issues were resolved) under there for almost year round dust bathing. BUT keep in mind that you may have to get under there to retrieve ill, injured, or broody birds, get eggs that may be laid under there, etc. I fenced of just 3-4' back from edge of coop as part of run so I don't have to crawl too far, my shed is on piers about 24-30" off the ground. A coop raised just a foot or less off the ground can harbor critters you don't want living there...rats, mice, skunks, etc.

You don't give your location so I don't know what your climate is but ventilation can be very variable depending on location and micro climate of your site. The more ventilation the better IMO, making it adjustable is a good thing, but experience of standing in coop during normal and severe weather conditions should give you an idea if you'll need to add or modify vent openings. Open eaves protected from weather and top hinged windows that can be left open all summer long are good choices.
http://www.backyardchickens.com/t/1048597/ventilated-but-free-of-drafts

If you're not handy and have tools maybe hiring it out would work.
Planning and designing how you want it before you start building is imperative, especially if someone else is building it.