Request for General Feedback

[Shmeganigans]

Hello everyone! Just looking for general feedback on a coop I built for our 4 Olive Eggers. First-time chicken mom, and we started the coop build on extremely limited time and money, so a lot of “this is what we have available”.

Recent weather has allowed for true waterproof testing, and I’m happy to say it passed! However, we are in Ohio so I do worry about when winter comes around.

They’re 10 weeks old, and in the next few weeks we’ll be adding nesting boxes to the back section of the coop, but right now they put themselves to bed promptly at sundown and pretty much just stay on the perches. It’s built between our shed and the fence, roughly 5ft x 5ft.

Any and all thoughts are appreciated! I just want to make sure we’ve got a happy home for them.

 

[DobieLover]

Unfortunately due to the height of that coop you're going to have an exceedingly difficult time getting proper ventilation in there for your winter weather. And I'm sure you already know that it is not predator-proof. The chicken wire and the lattice will be easily torn apart by any number of predators. As soon as you can afford to do so I would get 1/2" hardware cloth very securely attached to all the openings in the coop.
Cleaning it is also going to be difficult.

 

[Kiki]

Unfortunately due to the height of that coop you're going to have an exceedingly difficult time getting proper ventilation in there for your winter weather. And I'm sure you already know that it is not predator-proof. The chicken wire and the lattice will be easily torn apart by any number of predators. As soon as you can afford to do so I would get 1/2" hardware cloth very securely attached to all the openings in the coop.
Cleaning it is also going to be difficult.

X2 on everything said here.

 

[nuthatched]

Unfortunately due to the height of that coop you're going to have an exceedingly difficult time getting proper ventilation in there for your winter weather. And I'm sure you already know that it is not predator-proof. The chicken wire and the lattice will be easily torn apart by any number of predators. As soon as you can afford to do so I would get 1/2" hardware cloth very securely attached to all the openings in the coop.
Cleaning it is also going to be difficult.

X3
Plus, the cracks between the board need to be covered, maybe board and batten. Would just take a few 1x2s. Roosts really shouldn't be in line with the ventilation. It's a good design, it just needs a bit of adjustment.

 

[Shmeganigans]

Unfortunately due to the height of that coop you're going to have an exceedingly difficult time getting proper ventilation in there for your winter weather. And I'm sure you already know that it is not predator-proof. The chicken wire and the lattice will be easily torn apart by any number of predators. As soon as you can afford to do so I would get 1/2" hardware cloth very securely attached to all the openings in the coop.
Cleaning it is also going to be difficult.

Thank you for the feedback/advice. Regarding your statement about proper ventilation during the winter, do you have any recommendations? Are you talking height inside of the coop, or just that it is elevated off the ground?
Thanks again!

 

[CaliforniaMountainChicks]

I’d definitely replace the chicken wire with 1/2 inch, 19 gauge hardware cloth since any nighttime predator can tear through it like tissue paper. Minks, rats, and weasels can fit through it too. Cover any gaps larger than a half inch with it too!

 

[3KillerBs]

Thank you for the feedback/advice. Regarding your statement about proper ventilation during the winter, do you have any recommendations? Are you talking height inside of the coop, or just that it is elevated off the ground?
Thanks again!

Welcome to BYC.

They're talking about height inside the coop. The ventilation needs to be above the birds' heads when they're sitting on the roost.

Here's my article on ventilation: https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/repecka-illustrates-coop-ventilation.77659/

Could we get more photos of the entire coop from different angles to see what you have to work with so we can make better suggestions?

 

[Kiki]

Oh man…1/2”?! Good point on the other rodent issues. I’m actually in the city and they’re in a fully fenced back yard, so the worst land predators I worry about are skunks, but it seems I underestimated the security needs

Raccoons, opossum and rats don't care if you live in the city.

 

[Shmeganigans]

Raccoons, opossum and rats don't care if you live in the city.

Of course…I was just under the impression that the hardware cloth was more for larger predators such as coyotes. Not sure what the heck chicken wire really amounts to
Additionally, we have a dog so that helps keep most critters away. However, some of the smaller pesty ones could certainly cause trouble squeezing in and making a home of the coop!

 

[Kiki]

Of course…I was just under the impression that the hardware cloth was more for larger predators such as coyotes. Not sure what the heck chicken wire really amounts to
Additionally, we have a dog so that helps keep most critters away. However, some of the smaller pesty ones could certainly cause trouble squeezing in and making a home of the coop!

Chicken wire won't keep any of these out.