Running design ideas by you all - 8-10 chickens

[Kidwantschickens]

I'm in Montana too and my plan was to build a run that's 4' tall and 8' long and then 8' across and make them "sections" so that I can move them or extend etc as needed. I'm not sure how safe the bottom is though. We don't have bear in my neighborhood. The biggest concern are fox and dogs. At least you have a good start on the coop!!

 

[3KillerBs]

my plan was to build a run that's 4' tall

If you can make it tall enough to walk into your back will thank you for it.

I made the half-high run mistake with my first coop and then ended up with another 4' structure that I didn't build myself -- which resulted in me getting 10 staples in my scalp: https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/another-reason-to-build-a-full-height-coop-run.1484191/

 

[MadGardener]

Also, I planned on the coop having the windows face the south, along with the tall side of the coop (slant roof). Is this good or bad?

South facing windows under a deep roof overhang are often used in houses for passive solar gain. I'm very impressed how warm my (small) house gets on a sunny day in the 30s. Warm enough not to use the woodstove.

 

[Coldd]

Here’s a quick update. The chicks are ready to go out now, but the shed isn’t quite complete yet.

Here’s the progress so far. 8x8. I drew up some rough plans but it’s kind of been coming together by itself. The run is going to be about 120sq ft. I tried to keep all the wood formaldehyde free, I used as much cedar as I could.

It kind of took on a life of its own. It’s kind of expensive, but I don’t go out/party/have kids. I also am using it as an exercise in framing, as I’d like to build my own small house someday. It’s overbuilt for a coop, but should be sturdy and look nice when complete.

 

[sformel]

You might consider building a coop onto a small trailer, or anything with one axel and two wheels that you could make into a small moveable coop. Then the ladies would have the same, comfortable coop to go into every night. Put a few nests in it and they have a familiar place to lay their eggs.

 

[Coldd]

Hey Sformel, that’s a good idea. I think it might need to wait until the next place we live though. We have that grassy area beyond the fence, but we would need to fence it in first. We’re actually quite close to our neighbors and the current back yard is somewhat smallish.

I hope to move the birds out on Saturday. They are large and ready to go! Door went in today, needs a repaint. Windows set for trim. Roof is on too. Doing the run hopefully by Saturday. Still a lot to do but it’ll be in a place that I can set it aside for a month.

Even though I work in construction, I had a lot to learn about framing. This has been a wonderful way to better learn how structures are put together. There should be enough room for a few more birds if we need them. We had 3 very large hawks fly over the house today and a few eagles in the past week. They cruise the river bottoms and perch in the trees nearby. I picked up some bird netting to cover the run with.

Best wishes.

Also, be sure to measure your boards before assuming they are 8ft, 10ft etc. my 10ft fascia 1x6 were 10’-0”, while my 2x6 rafters were 10’-1/2”…hence the gap. I’ll fix that later.

 

[Coldd]

Chickens are moving in tomorrow. Outside needs painting and run built, but I can make a temporary with t-posts while I wrap up other life obligations.

Looking to hang the feeder near the roosts and upgrade the watered to something they won’t kick their bedding into. The little overhang over their door was an afterthought. Came out kinda Ok. I have leftover roofing materials that I’m going to finish it with. I am sure the girls will be glad to be out. I am leaving the coop uninsulated but it seems pretty we’ll draft stopped. It was very windy yesterday and inside you could barely feel it, just gentle air movement overhead.

They’re out. Time to clean the office where the brooder was. Best wishes.

 

[sformel]

For 10 years now I've been flip-flopping my garden and my adjacent chicken run on an annual basis. This years run was last years garden and vice versa. I normally have 10-15 hens. Each area is 40' x 40'. I have a small coop built on a cart that I can move around. I use electric netting surrounding both areas to protect against foxes, raccoons, and woodchucks. No netting on top. Hawks have not been a problem. Owls are a big problem, and I finally bit the bullet and bought an Omlet light operated door to close at night and open in the morning. This save s me from having to open the coop door early and close it late. And if I forgot, the owls, who apparently are permanently on standby, would walk right into the coop for a midnight buffet. This years garden is always fertilized, relatively weed free, and the gravel rocks are scratched to the top. Best of all, I throw any composting materials into the chicken run. The hens either eat it and poop it out as fertilizer, or scratch it into ready made compost. No muss, no fuss. Works great, best of all worlds.

 

[3KillerBs]

For 10 years now I've been flip-flopping my garden and my adjacent chicken run on an annual basis. This years run was last years garden and vice versa. I normally have 10-15 hens. Each area is 40' x 40'. I have a small coop built on a cart that I can move around. I use electric netting surrounding both areas to protect against foxes, raccoons, and woodchucks. No netting on top. Hawks have not been a problem. Owls are a big problem, and I finally bit the bullet and bought an Omlet light operated door to close at night and open in the morning. This save s me from having to open the coop door early and close it late. And if I forgot, the owls, who apparently are permanently on standby, would walk right into the coop for a midnight buffet. This years garden is always fertilized, relatively weed free, and the gravel rocks are scratched to the top. Best of all, I throw any composting materials into the chicken run. The hens either eat it and poop it out as fertilizer, or scratch it into ready made compost. No muss, no fuss. Works great, best of all worlds.

I've wanted to do that kind of thing, but my land didn't work out right for it.

 

[Penpal]

Seriously, I would buy a unit of electric poultry fencing. You get 120 feet in length, maybe longer. You could use it this summer and better be able to later decide how big the paddocks have to be and how often you have to rotate. You order it and it is done.

Warning, they will scoot through the netting, even if it is hot, at their present size. If you make a run for them with hardware cloth as part of your coop set up you can keep them in it until they are too big too squeeze through the netting (their feathers protect them from the electric current.