seeking design advise

[jennlynn]

2 boxes are good for 6 hens but in a coop large as you have I would go ahead put more nest boxes in now because keeping chickens is addictive . We started out with 6 now we have almost 40 . Lol

40??!! Haha, chicken math!

 

[jennlynn]

Another thought crossed my mind while I was just out tending my birds.

Have you given any thought to the future, and about how you will expand your flock by adding new chicks/birds?
With that big a space just being built, now would be the time to decide how you might split the coop to accommodate a grow out area for new chicks.

I put 2 people doors into my coop to facilitate a separate area created by a temporary chicken wire wall.
I later added a second pop door and separate run.
It was an excellent plan that has been invaluable many times over the past 2 years......
.....for new chicks to grow out, a rogue cockerel, a broody hen and I even put the wall up for a couple days this fall to pinpoint who was laying a certain egg.

Also, think about where/how you will store your feed and other supplies.

I really like the poop boards, not that fond of sifting them every other day, but the poops go right to a friends compost and the coop is much cleaner overall.

All those things will help determine the layout and location of all the coops gear.

I love the idea of another pop door and I have the space to install another one opposite the existing one--there's room for another run and everything. When I mentioned this to my husband last week, he gave me "the look", haha. So, maybe next year!
I'd like to keep all the supplies in here, too. I'm thinking galvanized trash cans w lids. There are a couple different sizes I want for feed, shavings, DE, etc. I know if I build a shelf to put them under the hens will poop all over it, and if I don't build a shelf they'll poop all over the cans. We have space in another shed in another part of the yard (we're on about 1/2 an acre) but I'd like to keep all the chicken stuff together.
Where do you store all your supplies?

 

[aart]

I love the idea of another pop door and I have the space to install another one opposite the existing one--there's room for another run and everything. When I mentioned this to my husband last week, he gave me "the look", haha. So, maybe next year!
I'd like to keep all the supplies in here, too. I'm thinking galvanized trash cans w lids. There are a couple different sizes I want for feed, shavings, DE, etc. I know if I build a shelf to put them under the hens will poop all over it, and if I don't build a shelf they'll poop all over the cans. We have space in another shed in another part of the yard (we're on about 1/2 an acre) but I'd like to keep all the chicken stuff together.
Where do you store all your supplies?

Check out My Coop page, linked under my avatar.
Coop is built in part of a large shed, so all supplies are in shed but outside of coop.

 

[FridayYet]

Mine too. I have an interior wall that separates the chicken side from my side (which has access to nest boxes and supplies)

 

[Blooie]

Even if you are planning to use Mama Heating Pad for your chicks out in the coop, you'll still need to add more ventilation and the best time to do it is now rather than after you have chickens using the coop full time! I promise, you won't regret it! We've made some modifications to our set-up "after the fact" and it's a lot tougher to do with chickens underfoot and chicken poop ON your foot!

For your climate one of the things I would recommend is going online and googling "parts for older mobile homes." There you should be able to find a mobile home SIDE discharge exhaust fan. It's been the best money we've invested in the coop! We wired it so that we can either just open the cover for passive ventilation or open the cover, flip a switch and have the fan come on for active ventilation. What a difference that made in our coop - in summer the fan runs...in winter (and we get cold here, believe me) we just have the cover open.

Using Mama Heating Pad, your chicks will be just fine, as long as they know how to get under the cave, even if it's cold. So don't let that deter you from adding ventilation in the form of some operable vents in the upper walls or - even better - more windows! Mine sure did great, and they were brooded out in pen in the run with temps in the teens and twenties - with an occasional snow storm tossed in to keep things interesting! @aart is so right about fixing a place during the build to raise these chicks in, and for subsequent batches. If you're like the rest of us, there will indeed be subsequent batches! There may also be times when you need to temporarily house a bird who is injured and if you can do that without totally removing her/him from the flock you are miles ahead when it comes time to re-integrate. Integration of chicks into the flock works very well this way too!

You are starting out with a shell full of potential! With a little adjustment now, it will make a fabulous coop for your new chicks and any more that come along later! I would agree that the roosts should be across the short side opposite the people door - it is safer for them to have room to fly on and off the roosts. You could put your poop board under the roost with your nests hung under that. It will keep poop off them and make sure the nests are lower than the roosts so they aren't as tempted to sleep in them. Or you could put a divider under the roosts and use that area for storage. Use your imagination and try to figure out how the coop will work FOR you once the chickens are added. I'd kill for that much virgin space!

 

[jennlynn]

Thanks SO MUCH for the advice! This definitely has me brainstorming ideas for a roost/poopboard/brooder underneath situation. And that side exhaust fan is a brilliant idea!

 

[Blooie]

Everyone here always has the best suggestions! I'd have to build 10 more coops just to incorporate all of the "Oh, why didn't I think of thats" and the "Holy smokes, that is brilliants" that I've read here! The beauty is you take what will work for you, in your situation, put other great ideas on the back burner in case you need them later, and dismiss the ones that are totally out of the question! But it's nice to have so much information at your fingertips to sort through, isn't it?

We'd love to see more photos of what you come up with as you go, and after the new chicks get here! Remember, over on the Mama Heating Pad thread your membership fees into the Broody Brigade are photos of your new chicks!

 

[jennlynn]

Here it is! All that's left is the poop board installation, but I couldn't wait to post an update. My husband spent the weekend building this brooder/poop board/roost get-up in the coop using reclaimed materials we had from previous projects and I couldn't be happier with it. Thanks again to everyone who made suggestions and shared their knowledge. Three days til the chicks arrive!

 

[FridayYet]

Looks great!

 

[aart]

Here it is! All that's left is the poop board installation, but I couldn't wait to post an update. My husband spent the weekend building this brooder/poop board/roost get-up in the coop using reclaimed materials we had from previous projects and I couldn't be happier with it. Thanks again to everyone who made suggestions and shared their knowledge. Three days til the chicks arrive!

Sweet!!