Shed conversion part 1

[moniquem]

Cleaned out the shed this morning.......it was a lot more messy than I thought! Good news is the shed does not leak and the walls are pretty solid.

The rocks I plan on re-using in garden so am keeping those. Dirt floor that I will clean up a bit.

Question: Does anyone have any suggestion on how to keep critters from digging into/under coop? In one of the photos you can spot daylight creeping through in one of the corners of the shed (upper left hand side). I do have a guy coming out to help me with the construction phase of this thing tomorrow.



All comments suggestions welcome as I am a newbie chicken keeper....actually I don't have any yet but plan on purchasing some in February

 

[henless]

If you put a 2' wire apron around the outside of your coop, that should keep most critters out. Attach it to the bottom of your coop and anchor the wire down. I used 1x2" green welded garden wire for my apron. I anchored it down with metal tent stakes.

 

[blackdog043]

It looks good since you cleaned it out, from your original post!
Like henless said, you will need to put a wire apron around the whole shed. I would put 1/2 x 1/2 x 24 inch hardware cloth up the wall about 6 inches and out along the ground 18 inches. To fasten the hwc to the shed wall, I would use a 1 x 3 and screw through it and the hwc. Sandwiching the hwc between the 1 x 3 and shed wall. You can hold the hwc to the ground with landscape pins. The best prices for hardware cloth can be found on amazon or walmart.com
You might want to dig some of that dirt out of the floor, that looks dirty. The chickens will dig and eat some of it eventually. Not knowing what it is could pose a hazard to them.

 

[aart]

So that board in back is attached?
How does the roof look?
Looks like some water damage near the window on the left.
Any rot on the bottoms of walls?
Do not see the 'daylight' you mention.
Pics of outside?

Ditto the apron to deter diggers.
Good examples of installation, tho I'd not recommend 1/2" HC...go with 14ga 1x2 or 1x1, will hold up much longer and is easier to lay flat.
http://www.backyardchickens.com/t/1110498/wire-around-coop#post_17093528
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/new-coop-project.1169916/page-2#post-18481208

 

[moniquem]

So that board in back is attached?
How does the roof look?
Looks like some water damage near the window on the left.
Any rot on the bottoms of walls?
Do not see the 'daylight' you mention.
Pics of outside?

Roof looks okay, apparently. No water damage under that window, but I do plan on replacing that window for a larger one anyway. There is a little wood rot on the bottom

Attached are some photos of the outside where I plan to add a run.



So question: I had a contractor guy come and give me an estimate for these things..

Cleaning up the floor and trying to fix any rotted wood at the bottom
framing the inside of shed for coop, about 10' wide and 8' deep
adding 2 windows, door to run and 2 ramps
outdoor run about 6'x12' that will include screen door

Estimate for labor and supplies was 1500-1800. Does this sound reasonable? Below are some of the ideas I gave him for inspiration

 

[jthornton]

Make sure you read the Ventilation and space link in arrt's signature.

@arrt you need to add your height information to your signature.

Reading about roost height discussions and watching my chickens fly up and down on things I've observed that chickens like turkeys can fly vertical on the way up but fly at a 45° on the way down and need 2-3 steps to decelerate after landing or they smack into things so when your laying out things like roosts and nest boxes keep that in mind.

JT

 

[Cryss]

Make sure you read the Ventilation and space link in arrt's signature.

@arrt you need to add your height information to your signature.

Reading about roost height discussions and watching my chickens fly up and down on things I've observed that chickens like turkeys can fly vertical on the way up but fly at a 45° on the way down and need 2-3 steps to decelerate after landing or they smack into things so when your laying out things like roosts and nest boxes keep that in mind.

JT

Excellent point! Hope I remember it next year when I hopefully build a bigger coop.

 

[aart]

Estimate for labor and supplies was 1500-1800. Does this sound reasonable?

Hard to know if it's reasonable without knowing the exact plan and materials to be used...but it's probably pretty close, labor is expensive. Hopefully the guy is recommended from someone you trust.
Are the materials listed, especially the run mesh...
....chicken wire or 1/2HC or 14g 2x4?
Windows and doors could be pricey too.
My coop materials, (including hinges, latches, screws, washers) cost about $600, run was about $450.
Do you plan on building out the interior yourself...nest, roosts,etc?

Make sure you read the Ventilation and space link in arrt's signature.
@arrt you need to add your height information to your signature....JT

You mean this:
Here's my theory on the 'stack up' aspect to coop design:

Bottom of pop door is best about 8" above floor so bedding doesn't get dragged out of coop.

Nice to have bottom of nests about 18" above bedding to allow use of that floor space under them(doesn't count if your nests are mounted on outside of coop).

Roosts are best about 12" higher than nests so birds won't roost(sleep) in nests and poop in them, if you use poop boards under roosts it will also 'stretch' your floor space.

Upper venting works best as high as possible above roosts so no strong drafts hit roosts in winter...and hot/moist air and ammonia can rise and exit coop.

Too much text for a siggy, would have to put it in an an article then link it.
I should redo my siggy tho, that ventilation link is not as good as this one:
http://www.backyardchickens.com/t/1048597/ventilated-but-free-of-drafts

 

[jthornton]

@aart yep that info.

JT

 

[aart]

@aart yep that info.

JT

Made article, added link to siggy.......had to remove my fav quote tho