Simple Coop Design [Updated 7/29/2010]

[ChickaBea]

So I wanted to design and build my own coop. I don't need anything fancy. Just easy to clean and safe for the chickens.

I plan on having six chickens. Apparently chickens share boxes. I did not know this when I drew these. My previous chickens were spoiled indeed!

I also plan on having linoleum on the floors inside and hardware cloth instead of chicken wire as many posters have suggested. (thanks guys!)

I don't have the final dimensions yet, so these are just VERY preliminary sketches.

This is my preliminary penned coop design:

Here is a penned rendition of the inner parts:

Chicken doodles to finish.

I changed goody2230's Google Sketchup design to fit my needs.

Materials: 6 roofing panels, 3 rolls of hardware cloth, 4x4s for the foundation, blocks and ground gravel for the foundation, 2x2s for the frame, roofing brackets, gate latches, spring for the door, 5 OSB boards, wood stain, barn red paint, sand and hay.

I am sure I'll need more things than listed, but I'll deal with that when it's time. Just gonna go with the flow!

Any tips or suggestions?

 

[rancher hicks]

Two things to say.

One use plywood between the inside of the coop and the metal, cuz things will get hot.

Two you need dimensions. How big of a coop do you plan to build?

Other than that it looks good.

Wishing you happy coop building

Rancher

 

[sunflowerenvy]

how many chickens do you want?
how big is the coop? coop size 4ft per bird
how big is the run? run size 10 ft per bird unless u let them free range most of the day
are u going to free range them too?
size of the nest box 10inch by 14inches and 3 to 4 hen will used one box

try to used hardware cloth instead of chicken wire to keep out the predators.
also is the chicken run be able for a grown up human to walk inside for easy cleaning

do u cold winter there in San Diego? so the water freezes over
if it does u might want to keep the water n food inside the coop

for your rooster have 2x4 wide end up so they can rooster on it and keep there feet warm in the winter

for the floor put down linoleum or tile square
to put on the floor
pine shaving or hay
r u going to used a deep method 4in to 6in or 3inch method of shaving on floor.
you might want to have a slide out borad so u could just lift it up so u could clean out the floor

 

[ChickaBea]

Quote:
It's just a rough sketch, but I was planning on using plywood between the coop and the metal. I was also going to paint the corrugated metal white.

I'm still doing all the measurements I'll need for the final design, so I'm not sure yet, dimension-wise. I will probably post later along with material costs.

 

[chickerdoodle]

Nice idea! Its similar type to ours except our pop door opens in the front and the run is also covered with a gabled roof.
Your chicken doodles are so adorable!

I have a few questions and suggestions:
What are the dimensions?
How many chickens are you getting?
Six nest boxes is a lot--enough for 18-24 hens!
Where are the roosts?

Vinyl flooring is a great idea. We have it and it is so easy to clean!! I also see you wrote chicken wire --are you using that for the entire coop?
Just an FYI--chicken wire will keep the chickens in but not predators out. 1/2" by 1/2" hardware cloth is anti predator--or you can use welded wire if they are closed up tight in the coop at night.

Don't forget to take lots of pictures!

 

[ChickaBea]

Quote:
I'm planning on having 6 chickens at a time. Things don't usually go according to plan, but at MOST I only need/want 6. So I will need to factor that into the dimensions for my final rendering.

I plan on leaving them in the coop/run for the majority of the day, but letting them out into my fenced garden while I do gardening. I also plan on setting up some kind of chicken perch bars set up so they can climb around, as well as a mirror and some other toys so they don't go stir crazy or get bored.

I didn't know hens shared boxes. When I had chickens in northern California they each had their own and the "momma" hen had her own box away from the others. I probably won't have roosters, though. Just layers.

I will try the hardwire cloth, thanks for that tip. And the run will be tall enough for me to get in and clean it. I also plan on putting linoleum on the floors of the coop for easy cleaning. The slide out tray seems like a good idea... I'll have to ask my dad to help me on that one, though.

The weather never gets freezing here, but some winter mornings we get frost. It also rains in the winter, so I'll have to allow for drainage.

Thank you for all the info.

 

[ChickaBea]

Quote:
Thanks chickerdoodle!

Like I said on the other two posts, I don't have the final dimensions yet... Maybe this weekend. I plan on getting 6 chickens and I didn't know they could share a box! All my previous chickens all had their own! Spoiled, I know!

I read a lot of the other coop threads and tried to take the best from each, until I came up with what I wanted. Like the linoleum and hardware cloth.

 

[Yay Chicks!]

Looks good. One thing I like about my run is that it is covered, so that if there is a big rain, the run is still dry. Now, I know you don't get the rain down there that we do, but it happens..

 

[ChickaBea]

Yay Chicks! :

Looks good. One thing I like about my run is that it is covered, so that if there is a big rain, the run is still dry. Now, I know you don't get the rain down there that we do, but it happens..

I suppose I can always put a tarp over the top when I notice it start to drizzle. We rarely get 'cold' rain. Mostly the air is still pretty warm when it rains.

Thanks for the tip!​

 

[33yardbirds]

OK, we see the rough sketch, now show us the scaled architectural drawings

......................... Nice design though. Good Luck.