I'm not done yet, but I thought I'd post some pictures of my progress:
This is the girls in their new coop about 15 min after we moved them there. Eight huddled in a corner and the one most adventurous one out looking around. The walls are vinyl (so is the floor under the pine shavings), and the "ledge" is the support for the nest boxes that have yet to be built. I thought in the mean time, they could roost on the bars, since they probably can't get up to what will be the permanent roost at about 3-1/2 feet (it's not put in yet). The food and water are out of sight in the picture, but they do have it!!
This is a view of the back, where you can see the nest box access, and the "egg shelf." I'm pretty proud to have thought of that!
Somewhere to rest the basket while collecting eggs. I'm also happy I thought to add the bar under the nest boxes, so when they swing open (they open down), they won't smack against the side of the coop. I stuck some rubber weatherstripping onto it so it will make a soft thud.
The roof isn't finished yet. It's going to be a living roof, which is why it's made out of T&G 2x6's instead of something easier and cheaper. It will get sides, a pond liner, and lots of dirt on top, and eventually some sort of ground cover and a few flowers. I made the overhang big so we might be somewhat protected while collecting eggs.
You can see by the area of dead grass around the bottom that I buried a skirt of hardware cloth. It will make more sense once the run is added.
Here is the front. It will have a deck and steps (for me - the chickens will have a ramp!), but in the meantime, I'm using a step-stool. No sign of the run yet, but it will exist someday (hopefully soon!). Maybe I can talk DH into digging the holes for the posts this weekend! His excuse has been that it's been too hot. Well, he's right, it has been miserably hot recently. It's hard to tell, but the chickens will be able to play around under the coop. It's hard to see, but between the concrete corners, there's about 1-1/2 feet of height under there.
So, no windows, but a door with a screen (you can't tell in the picture, but I covered the whole window area with hardware cloth - that was a chore!). And a foot of ventilation all around the top of the walls. I hope it's not too much during the winter but if it is, I'll cover some of them up. Maybe cover up the sides and leave the front and back open.
As for the color, it was just pure luck that there was such a vibrant color in the "defective" section at Menards. $5 for a gallon of paint isn't bad! The brown and cream around the nest box covers were also $5 a gallon, at Ace. I looked at Home Depot, but they hardly had anything to choose from. Happy with the blue, though!
What I'm not happy with is that the nest boxes are on the opposite wall from the door. I'm not happy about that because the door is practically all window. When I was designing the coop, the door was solid, but then when we looked for a door, this storm door seemed perfect. It opens out, is fairly weather-resistant, and I can open up the window for more ventilation. But ss it is, the nest boxes won't seem very cozy and private. I think I'll cover up the window for now, since it's getting cooler so I won't need to open up the window. Then hopefully some time this winter, the hens will start to lay, and by the time it's so hot that I need the extra ventilation, they'll be used to laying in the nest boxes. At least that's how it works in my mind!
I'll keep plugging away while the kids are at school, and hopefully soon we'll have a run for them (the chickens, not the kids - although now that I think of it....). We're planning for it to be about 8' x 16', attached to the coop, and covered in hardware cloth.
This is the girls in their new coop about 15 min after we moved them there. Eight huddled in a corner and the one most adventurous one out looking around. The walls are vinyl (so is the floor under the pine shavings), and the "ledge" is the support for the nest boxes that have yet to be built. I thought in the mean time, they could roost on the bars, since they probably can't get up to what will be the permanent roost at about 3-1/2 feet (it's not put in yet). The food and water are out of sight in the picture, but they do have it!!
This is a view of the back, where you can see the nest box access, and the "egg shelf." I'm pretty proud to have thought of that!
The roof isn't finished yet. It's going to be a living roof, which is why it's made out of T&G 2x6's instead of something easier and cheaper. It will get sides, a pond liner, and lots of dirt on top, and eventually some sort of ground cover and a few flowers. I made the overhang big so we might be somewhat protected while collecting eggs.
You can see by the area of dead grass around the bottom that I buried a skirt of hardware cloth. It will make more sense once the run is added.
Here is the front. It will have a deck and steps (for me - the chickens will have a ramp!), but in the meantime, I'm using a step-stool. No sign of the run yet, but it will exist someday (hopefully soon!). Maybe I can talk DH into digging the holes for the posts this weekend! His excuse has been that it's been too hot. Well, he's right, it has been miserably hot recently. It's hard to tell, but the chickens will be able to play around under the coop. It's hard to see, but between the concrete corners, there's about 1-1/2 feet of height under there.
So, no windows, but a door with a screen (you can't tell in the picture, but I covered the whole window area with hardware cloth - that was a chore!). And a foot of ventilation all around the top of the walls. I hope it's not too much during the winter but if it is, I'll cover some of them up. Maybe cover up the sides and leave the front and back open.
As for the color, it was just pure luck that there was such a vibrant color in the "defective" section at Menards. $5 for a gallon of paint isn't bad! The brown and cream around the nest box covers were also $5 a gallon, at Ace. I looked at Home Depot, but they hardly had anything to choose from. Happy with the blue, though!
What I'm not happy with is that the nest boxes are on the opposite wall from the door. I'm not happy about that because the door is practically all window. When I was designing the coop, the door was solid, but then when we looked for a door, this storm door seemed perfect. It opens out, is fairly weather-resistant, and I can open up the window for more ventilation. But ss it is, the nest boxes won't seem very cozy and private. I think I'll cover up the window for now, since it's getting cooler so I won't need to open up the window. Then hopefully some time this winter, the hens will start to lay, and by the time it's so hot that I need the extra ventilation, they'll be used to laying in the nest boxes. At least that's how it works in my mind!
I'll keep plugging away while the kids are at school, and hopefully soon we'll have a run for them (the chickens, not the kids - although now that I think of it....). We're planning for it to be about 8' x 16', attached to the coop, and covered in hardware cloth.
