Thinking outside the box (literally!)

[MyRueCrew]

So we are just beginning to dip our toes in the waters of keeping chickens. Since I convinced my husband we could do it on a shoestring budget, I am trying to use materials we currently have already. I was wondering if it would work to make nesting boxes out of sinks? We have about 8 of bathroom sinks like the one pictured below that are at 16" by 11" and about 5.5" deep.



I know it sounds crazy but if we made them secure, filled them just like a
regular box, do you think it would work? Again, I am currently in the "chicken keeping 101" course here, so please be nice when you reply!! Thanks!

 

[Percheron chick]

Sure you could. One issue I see would be their inability to grab onto the sides to hop in and out. Another would be broken eggs. The surface is so slick they will fling straw out when they settle and they will probably crack a fair amount of eggs just because they can.

CL is your friend when trying to build a cheap coop. I took a book case and made nesting boxes out of that. You can use 5 gal buckets (free in the bakery dept at the grocery store) on their side for nesting boxes. The best CL find for a coop and run is a free swing set with a fort. Convert the fort to the coop and you have the framework for a nice sized run that you can stand up in.

 

[Eggsoteric]

Not sure of your location and what your winters are like but I would think that porcelain might get rather chilly. Also, don't know what type of coop you're looking to build but if weight is a factor, I suspect they'd be quite heavy.

On the other side, bet they'd be easy to keep clean.

 

[ChirpyChicks1]

Previous posters have good points.

How big of a flock are you planning on having? I have 5 (was 6 up till a few days ago) and they were just fine with 2 boxes. They'd never share with each other like some hens do but even when I tried adding a third box they wanted nothing to do with it. They just wait on each other to be done.