Space question....plus design help

[Fred's Hens]

Here's a close up.

Design features. Our barn has open eves, intentional for "breathing". Full ventilation at the roof line. Chickens expire a lot of vapor and vapor (humidity) is the cause of frostbite and ammonia gas buildup is a very bad thing.

The barn has two sides, as you can see. The floor plan is flexible, allowing for up to 6 pens of 8x6 or any combination of sizes. Flocks are not static, You might need a small pen for grow out, or a large pen for your main laying flock. You might need a small to medium pen for isolation of incoming birds, or a breeding area one day. I wanted the flexibility. The lofts hold off season waterers, brooding equipment, etc. The main loft can hold 12 bales of straw, my principle bedding material.

I can "let out" groups of birds as I wish. I don't want to be stuck where I cannot let out to pen or range those sub-flocks that wouldn't get along together.

The right side, as viewed, is 8' tall, elevating with a 5/12 pitch up to about 11" high. The left portion, as viewed, is 10' tall, elevating at 5/12 pitch up to a height of about 13 or 14 feet, if memory serves.

Hope this give you some design ideas.

 

[SteveBaz]

Quote:
Keep in mind the slope is all for snow removal, rain and most important so the flack doesn't get comfortable on the roof to hang out on. I would in PA if you get a lot ofr snow in your area use a metal roof that will help with keeping it clear and clean. One of the most important things when building is head clearance. Make sure you have a ton of head room on both sides to work in there out of the weather and such. I would do a steeper slope of more than you planned. I you use 8' studs and then put air blocks in and in and top plate it will be higher than 8' which is good.

 

[Grog]

Alright what all this tells me is..... I have no idea what I am doin. I dont have the tools or ability to build much, plus the other major hurdle is cash. My current flock is 25 and I have 24 peeps atm. Plus 2 turkies.

I need a simple design with a materials list. My coop just went from 8x16 with a 8'-4' slope to 16x20 with a 10/12'-5 foot slope. This is too much for me to build as I am alone in the building and my minimal skills.

Frusterating.

 

[ECBW]

Quote:
44 total feet of roost space for 60 full sized hens isn't going to be enough in my opinion. They need at least a foot each just to perch let alone getting up and down without causing a huge commotion.

I would suggest more footage for the roost, maybe 50 minimum. They will try to sqeeze as many as possible into the highest roost, then the next, and so on. In my coop, the top roost density is 8"/bird, then 10"/ bird, the lowest roost is 3'/ bird.

You might not need that many nests too. Maybe 12 would do. I often find a clutch of 6 eggs in a nest while others are empty.

Are you doing this for money? hobby? Because 60 chickens are a lot of birds.

 

[Grog]

its a hobby/money. I have a place that sells a few of my eggs and they want to sell chicks in the spring. and yes 60 is getting huge. we just seem to keep growin.

 

[ECBW]

Quote:
How about 2 8x16s and keep two separate flocks.

I ended up 2 smaller coops because of I used 3-R material and dimensions are rather constricted. By having 2 smaller ones offer flexibility. One is the main coop, the other is hotel / jail / hospital / grow out pen...

 

[thedeacon]

You will be sorry if you put 60 birds in this small of space. 20 may be closer.

 

[SteveBaz]

Quote:
WoW that's a huge amount of growing. Full time work. Cleaning , water, food, eggs and delivering. My father said never mix hobbies with work bc it becomes all work. He is right and wrong with chickens. They are great to have around. All a point of view. 20 years of working chickens might change your mind!!

 

[Grog]

lol it just kinda exploded on me. We went from 6 to 60 in 3 years Some of the upcoming batch will be meat tho. I dont need 12 roos.

 

[rpchris]

Quote:
If you are getting serious about raising that many chickens then you probably want a structure that is well built and will last for many years. Getting the structure framed and roofed properly is the hardest part. You could probably do the siding and finish work yourself. Do you know anyone who can help? I know I love to swing a hammer and accept when asked. Any brothers, father-in-laws, cousins, neighbors, co-worker you could bribe with a pizza and a beer in exchange for some framing help?