tonbetter
In the Brooder
So when the wife said to get Chickens I jumped at the chance and attempted to do it as cheaply as possible. I ordered the "Ladies" and went to FB marketplace in search of materials using my favorite 4 letter F word... FREE. I lucked out and found someone who was looking to offload a huge crate that was used to ship "airplane parts". My intention was to cut it in half equally however, due to damage, I had to make do with what was salvageable.. Did I mention it was free?
Anywho. I simply removed the bottom of the large piece and turned it over on top of the other to make a large box with an overhang on one end. There was some internal 2x4 structure to the crate that facilitated instant roosting poles. Work Smarter, not harder kids! I had some leftover decking and other Free wood laying around and created a sloping roof to provide some ventilation. I cut in some more ventilation and added a few doors and a nesting box and many days later (lets get real here.. many.. many on again off again days later) the coop was done.
I followed it up by adding a rain barrel to create an automatic watering system.. with 3 gravity cups inside and another 3 cups to be added later outside. All in All. I have about $75 to $85 in materials invested in the coop. I'm confident it will hold at least 12 to 15 of the 19 birds we got from Cackle.. (We ordered 15.. they sent 19. 1 extra for each breed. Buff Orpingtons, Cinnamon Queens, Barred Rocks, and Silver Laced Wyandottes) We will offload the ones that don't fit friends that have their own flocks. We ended up with 1 Rooster that my 10 year old affectionately calls "Pecker". I have informed him that we need to find an alternate name for the rooster... he's uncertain why?!?! Did I mention he is 10... Irony eludes him... In due time my son.. in due time..
Anywho... Let me know what you think.. Just please don't be ugly about it..
PS.. I still need to seal the roof and add the PVC guttering.. Then the Red-Neck Chicken shack will be fully complete.
PSS... the man child next to the coop in the photos is my 13yr old.. who stands almost 6ft tall to provide perspective.. because I didn't do any sort of precise measuring during this build.. I do build other things.. but this was fun to do on the fly..
"Pecker" wondering why I am so close to his ladies..
How it all began....
The angled bottom is removable to access the coop to clean it out and doubles as a poo board that is under the back roost.. a wheelbarrow fits perfectly under the floor.. ask me how I know? (just the way I planned it!) The 4" PVC pipe will be cut in half to make the gutter and routed to the 2" into the rain barrel
Sloped roof with sheet metal and hardware cloth dome over the top between the roof and the inside of the coop.
The access side drops down for quick access to fill the hanging feeder and clean out the water cups if needed. The vent door on top closes with a turn of the wood pieces holding it open on each side.. the wood becomes the lock for the vent door when the weather turns bad.. I will be creating a door for the forward-facing vent as well.
Man Child wondering why he's performing forced labor... (Because I said so!)
Terrible view of the inside showing one of 3 roosting poles and the watering system... and "Pecker" watching my every move...
You know who and a couple of the "Ladies" enjoying the view..
The Temp pen that we used to get them some yard time when not locked up in solitary.. I mean the brooder box..
Anywho. I simply removed the bottom of the large piece and turned it over on top of the other to make a large box with an overhang on one end. There was some internal 2x4 structure to the crate that facilitated instant roosting poles. Work Smarter, not harder kids! I had some leftover decking and other Free wood laying around and created a sloping roof to provide some ventilation. I cut in some more ventilation and added a few doors and a nesting box and many days later (lets get real here.. many.. many on again off again days later) the coop was done.
I followed it up by adding a rain barrel to create an automatic watering system.. with 3 gravity cups inside and another 3 cups to be added later outside. All in All. I have about $75 to $85 in materials invested in the coop. I'm confident it will hold at least 12 to 15 of the 19 birds we got from Cackle.. (We ordered 15.. they sent 19. 1 extra for each breed. Buff Orpingtons, Cinnamon Queens, Barred Rocks, and Silver Laced Wyandottes) We will offload the ones that don't fit friends that have their own flocks. We ended up with 1 Rooster that my 10 year old affectionately calls "Pecker". I have informed him that we need to find an alternate name for the rooster... he's uncertain why?!?! Did I mention he is 10... Irony eludes him... In due time my son.. in due time..
Anywho... Let me know what you think.. Just please don't be ugly about it..
PS.. I still need to seal the roof and add the PVC guttering.. Then the Red-Neck Chicken shack will be fully complete.
PSS... the man child next to the coop in the photos is my 13yr old.. who stands almost 6ft tall to provide perspective.. because I didn't do any sort of precise measuring during this build.. I do build other things.. but this was fun to do on the fly..
"Pecker" wondering why I am so close to his ladies..
How it all began....
The angled bottom is removable to access the coop to clean it out and doubles as a poo board that is under the back roost.. a wheelbarrow fits perfectly under the floor.. ask me how I know? (just the way I planned it!) The 4" PVC pipe will be cut in half to make the gutter and routed to the 2" into the rain barrel
Sloped roof with sheet metal and hardware cloth dome over the top between the roof and the inside of the coop.
The access side drops down for quick access to fill the hanging feeder and clean out the water cups if needed. The vent door on top closes with a turn of the wood pieces holding it open on each side.. the wood becomes the lock for the vent door when the weather turns bad.. I will be creating a door for the forward-facing vent as well.
Man Child wondering why he's performing forced labor... (Because I said so!)
Terrible view of the inside showing one of 3 roosting poles and the watering system... and "Pecker" watching my every move...
You know who and a couple of the "Ladies" enjoying the view..
The Temp pen that we used to get them some yard time when not locked up in solitary.. I mean the brooder box..
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