roost....how high from roof interior

[capebird]

I've seen a couple of posts lately about how far the roost should be
from the back wall.... I've got a similar question. What is the least amount
of headroom the roost needs from the ceiling of the coop.... my coop's ceiling is
slightly less than five feet at the tallest point (then slopes back to about 4.5 feet)
from the floor...
if I place the roost a foot below the ceiling is that enough headroom??
Thanks

 

[Arcnadius]

My highest roost is about a foot from the ceiling and is the favorite spot for my girls, although they are only 7 weeks old so maybe it'll change as they get bigger.

 

[capebird]

Thanks for the reply. I was thinking about making the roost about 12 from the ceiling... the
nest boxes are about 16 inches off the floor..... so the roosts would be a good deal higher than the nest
boxes. Just want to make sure 12 inches of space between the roost and ceiling isn't too close to the ceiling.

 

[TwoCrows]

My roost is about 14 inches from the ceiling and that is where they all want to be. They are only up there to sleep, and they don't mind crouching down up under there either. Yours should be fine

 

[teach1rusl]

Well...I would have said make sure they have about 18 inches of clearance (for LF chickens), but others seem to doing okay with less

If nothing else, I'd go with the 16 inches you mentioned. The roosts don't have to be a LOT higher than the nest box perch, even 6 inches will encourage them to prefer the higher point. Could you do your nest boxes 18" off the floor (keep useable floor space) and the roosts 36 inches???