some pics of my coops, PIC Heavy

[muddstopper]

My wife called my first attemp at a coop The Outhouse

So I built another one

And then decided to build another one.

And since I needed a brooder for chicks

And since I dont like fooling with nasty feeders I added a built in one

And since it isnt always full and only a few chicks might be in it at a time I added a divider to cut the brooder in half

And of course a automatic water, The white pipe is 3inch pvc and the plastic tube runs to a homemade plexiglass water trough thats hard to see in the pic

And you have to have a pic of the birds so heres my black Australope Roo, the girls are camera shy and hideing under the coop

The Outhouse I move with my tractor and is built on landscape timbers and a old 6x10 dog kennel. The others are built using 4x4 pressuretreat and Masonite hardboard sideingand 2x4 weld wire They are much lighter than the Outhouse and can be moved around with a large riding lawnMower. They are still heavy, but I am planning on adding wheels to make moveing a lot easier.

 

[muddstopper]

I plan on adding some windows, but I ran out of time last week.
After posting the pics. I also noticed I left off some of the trim. What the heck, I was in a hurry.
Anyways, the Outhouse has 27 welsummer and cocoo marans chicks. There is one roo and three hens in the second coop and one roo and 4 hens in the last one. The coops are 4x4x6ft high with a 2ft high crawl space and 4x12 runs. The Outhouse is 4x6x7high with a 6x10 dog kennel. All runs are covered in wire, a last minute addition last Sunday when I just happened to see one roo and one hen running around outside their pen. Good thing I saw them before the dog did

 

[SimplyForties]

Great job - that's quite a collection! I think you should cut a half-moon shape in the outhouse - go with the theme - you could cover it with hardware cloth and it would add some ventilation!

 

[RuffTuffCreampuff]

They are all great, but I love the Outhouse! I second the half moon cut out..lol

Pam

 

[muddstopper]

You two sound just like my wife. She suggested the Half moon as well.

 

[SimplyForties]

Great minds!

 

[chicks4kids]

Wow- 3 coops!! Wanna come to my house and build one!!??!!

Those look great--keep it up

--you may have an extra form of income--those are really nice--all of them!! Definitely happy chickens in there!!

 

[muddstopper]

I have to build at least two more for the chicks as they will quickly outgrow the Outhouse and I want to keep the breeds seperate. Each one I build I find something I wish I had did different. One example is in the size of the two barn shaped ones. The first I built the coop 4x4 sq. I found this to be a mistake when it came time to cover the roof. By the time you add the thickness of the sideing and then the trim, a 4ft wide sheet of plywood wouldnt give any over hang or even completley cover the roof. The second one I built the coop 48in x 43.5in. This way a 4ft wide piece of plywood would cover and give a 1in overhang on the gable ends. This saved having to purchase another sheet of plywood, plus gave leftover for the bottom and dividers of the nest boxes.

Also on the first one, I built the human door to fit from top of run to bottom of the 4x4 skid. This worked fine on the concrete floor of my garage, but on uneven ground the door drags the ground and is hard to get open. The second one I built the door to fit between the 2x4 at the top of the run and the 4x4 at the bottom. No problem getting this door open now. Also build the door with a sloppy fit. The coop flexes as you move it and a good tight fitting door might not open or close in every spot you move the coop to.

I also think on the next one I am going to use 2x3s and just double them for the skids. With 4x4s, I spent more time notching them like Legos to fit them together than i did doing all the rest of the hammering and sawing. 4x4 pressure treat are about a $1 per ft. 2x3x8s are about $1.69 each.

I also plan on putting the wire on the run before I put the sideing on the coop. I just think its easier to do it that way. I also like the vinyl lattice panels at the bottom of the coop. It provides some shade and helps prevent rain water from blowing in the feeders. It cheaper to buy the lattace in 2x8sheets than it is to buy 4x8sheets also. Less sawing and easier to work with, but put the hardware cloth on under the Lattace because the vinyl can break in cold weather.

On the first barncoop, I built one nest box on each side, that screws up roosting space. On the second one I built one 3hole nest box on just one side. I feel this is more functionable.

I chose the barn roof shape because it allows more height inside the coop. I can actually standup inside it.

By the time I get the other two built, I should have perfected the plan a little better and might offer a few for sale. My buddy built the brooder box and said he would built some for sale if anybody is interested. He built mine out of scrap material so I dont know what he would ask in price if he has to purchase material. I need to get a pic of the coop he built and post it. Waldrof Astorian Hotel is a dump compared to his coop. He is quite the craftsman