Rubbermaid coop... finally up! update 9/11/11 post#56

[mmaddie's mom]

I'm not a handy person with wood, hammer & nails

so I have decided that my option for a new coop will have to be a ready made outside storage shed.... looked at several today and, within my price range, I found a steel shed (Arrow, 10x10) and a resin shed (Rubbermaid, 7x7).... the steel one is larger and cheaper, but seemed kinda tinny.... I like the look and feel of the resin one, but, alas, it's smaller.

I would need to do some tweeking... adding a couple of windows and air vents... mounting nesting boxes and perches... I'm thinking that the resin would be easier to cut for these modifications.

I would appreciate your input on which you would choose.... and what modifications you would make?

thanks

 

[patandchickens]

I'm not sure one is really any easier/tougher to modify than the other. They each have their idiosyncrasies but can be worked with.

In Illinois a steel building will need to be insulated (including the underside of the roof) because otherwise you are likely to have severe condensation issues in winter (->humidity->frostbite). It can be done, it isn't difficult, it's just more expense to plan for.

If you could swing doing the full insulation (with something peckproof to cover the insulation, too, of course) then I'd say 10x10 is a lot better than 7x7 -- you do realize that it gives you TWICE the floor space, i.e. can house TWICE AS MANY chickens at a given stocking density? Makes insulation seem worthwhile...

Good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[mmaddie's mom]

Quote:
Thanks Pat

I knew the 10x10 was more space but didn't think about the twice+ thing until you mentioned it and I went "oh, duh... RIGHT!"

 

[mmaddie's mom]

Another question that my DH came up with... can/will a predator actually chew through the Rubbermaid resin? Will I have to wrap wire mesh around the bottom, say, 3 feet?
So much to think about...

 

[rocky41102]

We're thinking about using a rubbermaid roughneck 7' x 7' resin shed from Lowe's but I hadn't thought about predators chewing through it. We have it up now and use it for storage. It's fairly sturdy for resin and it doesn't leak at all. I'd love to hear other opinions though!

 

[ll]

I have been considering a similar idea to yours!
We have an old 8x8 metal shed and have visions of transforming it into chicken housing for 2 hens.
My husband came up with an idea of using that spray foam insulation on the inside of the walls and then covering that with plywood sheets... if anyone thinks that is a good idea let me know?
Other ideas we are considering for it are adding ventilation to the sides, taking off the sliding metal doors to add doors that open outward with windows/screening and adding a couple of plexiglass panels to the roof for more light inside.
Our resin shed has clear panels in it's roof, so we want to steal that idea for our metal shed. The resin/plastic shed we have had for a few years now and I think it would be critter proof for you, but if you have doubts it would be better safe than sorry, wrapping it with hardware cloth would surely make it safer.
Seems like a metal shed could definitely work with tweaking - good luck deciding!

 

[mmaddie's mom]

Quote:
Once we start on this renovation project I would like to keep in touch on here so we can bounce ideas & pics back & forth!

 

[mmaddie's mom]

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spray foam insulation... windows in the doors... good ideas!

Would love to keep in touch and see what you are doing with this idea!

 

[RayMort]

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I think it's a great idea using the spray foam, I'd suggest something with an anti-microbial formula to cut down on mold. I also like the idea of increasing the light with plexiglass, but how will that affect heat-loss? Some great ideas though, thanks for sharing them.

 

[patandchickens]

frankly I suspect it would be cheaper, and certainly simpler, to just use rigid foamboard. The foaming stuff is really more useful for irregular areas and cavities and stuff like that. You should price the two out, anyhow...

Pat