Starting Over :(

[Mom2Munchkins]

Last April, I bought an ice fishing shed from someone on CL, and had it delivered to my house with hopes of turning it into a chicken coop. Over a couple months, it was transformed, and I moved the chickens I had raised from chicks in around June. I took pictures to document the transformation, and was extremely proud of myself. Well, the chickens started laying weeks later, and I even had my first broody sitting on eggs that were to hatch around September 5th. Well, on August 28th, Hurricane Irene hit, and we were flooded really bad. My house, garage, chicken coop, and everything was actually swept away by the water. My house came to rest in the middle of the road, about a quarter of a mile away from where it sat. It had to be bulldozed before the road was opened, so all I was left with was a pile of rubble on the side of the road. The garage and chicken coop went further down the road, but I did find the coop, on it's side, and broken in a revine. None of my chickens survived. We just moved into a new house, and I am determined to have chickens again. So on to my question.... I am looking for any advice to build a large, well built coop. As cheaply as possible... If anyone has any plans they could forward to me, ect ect. I have searched online for plans and I havne't really found anything that is free. My hope is to build a good size shed, and just make the inside nice for the chickens, and have a large outdoor run. We are just trying to start over, and want chickens to be a part of that ASAP!

I appreciate any feedback!


Here is the picture if the shed when it was delivered



After some work, it was chicken ready!


Their nesting boxes



After being completely submerged in 15 feet of water and being swept over 1/4 mile.

 

[ChickenPrnces]

My hubby is currently building my next house! It cost us about 200 for the supplies which are only plywood, 2 x 4's, a 4 x 4, and a lot of chicken wire! The house is 8' long by 8' deep.The run is 16' long by 16' deep by ' high! The run is just 2 x 4's attached to make a big box and completely chicken wired, the house has plywood floors, walls and roof. 4 x 4 cut into 1' lengths for legs! Super simple and realy looks awesome! My duck house and run are built the same way and look awesome!

 

[ScottM]

I've seen more than a few coops built using pallets, which can be found for free. You might also seek out a habitat for humanity restore if your town has one. Or even a local freecycle group might be able to offer materials.

 

[crystal195655]

omg....you poor thing you and your family have really been through a rough time. You know what they say, what doesn't kill us only makes us stronger. God Bless You! I think if we ever do build another coop, it will start with a pre made shed, fully assembled and then go from there. once we were already half way done with our coop, we found out that we could buy a 4X8 shed for far less than what we had already spent to build ours. All you have to do is add the roost, nesting boxes and a pop door and you are done...and maybe a window or two if the shed you buy doesn't come with windows. Good Luck to you

 

[Knock Kneed Hen]

You ought to check CL for shipping crates. Easy to convert.

 

[mtdream33]

I have no free plans to share, I don't even have my coop built yet. However, I wanted to express my sympathy for losing your entire house, garage, and chicken coop. You don't even sound sorry for yourself! I would be devastated, as I'm sure you are/were, but I might whine a lot more that you..which honestly, you didn't whine, so I'm going to say it again, I'm sorry and I hope you find some plans that suit you.

Here's hoping your insurance might help you pay for the replacement of your coop! A sincere "good luck" to you.

 

[Mom2Munchkins]

I have no free plans to share, I don't even have my coop built yet. However, I wanted to express my sympathy for losing your entire house, garage, and chicken coop. You don't even sound sorry for yourself! I would be devastated, as I'm sure you are/were, but I might whine a lot more that you..which honestly, you didn't whine, so I'm going to say it again, I'm sorry and I hope you find some plans that suit you.

Here's hoping your insurance might help you pay for the replacement of your coop! A sincere "good luck" to you.

Thank you so much!! This has been the hardest thing I have ever dealt with in my life! My family and I had to start over with nothing but the clothes on our backs. Truly devastating... And I wish I could say there was insurance money. We did not have flood insurance. So building a coop is really the last thing I should be spending money on right now, but I am trying to do it as cheaply as possible, and I honestly feel like I NEED the chickens! They make me feel at home, and relaxed. I appreciate your encouragement!!

 

[ChickenPrnces]

WOW!!!! This probably means nothing, since it's already gone, but you did an amazing job on that shed! Those chickens were lucky babies to have such a beautiful home! I have complete faith that no matter where you find the supplies you will do just as awesome on this new one!!!!

 

[b737drvr]

If you can find "Building Chicken Coops for Dummies" at your library, they have several plans (and building material lists) at the end of the book. I have been reading it for several days and am getting lots of good ideas for my first chicken coop and run. The suggestion about trying to find materials at a local recycle/freecycle center is a good idea as well. I picked up several assorted 2x4's and 2x6's for a dollar a board at my local recycle center. I am very sorry for your loss and hope things will be back to normal as much as they can be very soon. Please post some pictures when you do eventually get your coop up and running. God Bless.

 

[Ole rooster]

I'll have to go along with the job you did on the one that got away. That was really neat.

Are you wanting to build on skids again or on a more permanent foundation?