Roost height question......and another question please!

[donnap1967]

How much 'head room' do I need to leave for my chickens? My roof is slanted to the back and the back is where the roost is going to be. I want to make sure they aren't bumping their heads on the roof and yet I want to make the roosts higher off the ground than two feet lol. So how much space do I need to leave between the roof and roost?

 

[arlee453]

I have a ChickNBarn by Ware Mfg. When I got that thing, the roost is like 12" from the top of the little peaky roof. I though to myself, 'there is NO way a full size chicken is going to roost up there' so I put in two lower roosts.

Of course, where is the favored spot? Up on that top roost - have probably 6 chickens up there now.

I have a big coop that would easily sleep 20 hens on the roosts. I have about 8 that sleep in that coop. All the rest cram into that little chickNbarn. Silly chickens...

Anyway to answer your original question, not as much as you would think.... I'd give them around 18".

 

[donnap1967]

Thank you Arlee!!

 

[CATRAY44]

I have two coops in my run which could each hold up to 3 or 4 standard sized hens ( I have mix of bantys and standards, totaling 5. I am trying to get them to start using the larger of the 2 coops (or better yet, 2 in one and 3 in the other) but they insist in all crowding into the smaller one, . Do you think I will have a problem in the winter with condensation, etc, if I can't get this worked out?

 

[donnap1967]

Just thought of another roost question please help!! .........

Okay so 18" head room....
and how many inches from the back wall? Shall we say "butt room"?

 

[donnap1967]

Anyone?

 

[needmorechickens!]

I am wondering the same thing....I know I have seen on here the distance it should be from the wall, but I can't remember...I'll keep looking.

~Rebecca

 

[needmorechickens!]

I found this in a previous post under coop construction forum...

Okay, I'll take a stab at answering your questions. I'm referencing from Storey's Guide to Raising Chickens.

Roosts should be 2x4s flat side down and should have rounded edges. Allow at least 10 inches space for each regular-sized chicken, 12 inces for larger breeds.

Place the bottom roost 24 inches from the floor and at least 18 inches from the parallel wall, and space them 18 inches apart.

If floor space is limited, step-stair roosts 12 in. apart vertically and horizontally, so chickens can easily hop from lower to higher rungs.

Sounds good to me!

~Rebecca​

 

[donnap1967]

Thanks Rebecca!!!

Sounds good to me!