Tips on building a cheapo coop and run?

[8 Chicks 1967]

 

[speedy2020]

Did you see that I recommended your thread on using cattle panels, LG? I love going to that thread and seeing comments and new posts, even if I don't always comment myself!

Do you have a link to the hog wire coop setup? I am going to move coop to the new setup next spring. I do have an option to replace with the free 4'x8' hog wire coop setup, but not sure yet.

 

[Bogtown Chick]

Thanks for the responses everyone! I think it's cool how much of a DIY adventure chickens really are. Have any of you had any experience with plastic corrugated roofing. From what I can see, it's a lot more expensive, but I'm fine with looking for the cheapest I can get as long as it keeps rain and snow out of the run while letting natural light in. We would probably go with a regular run fenced with hardware cloth on the sides and roof, but then maybe put up corrugated roofing at a slight slope. Another question: How important is having a shield against the wind? It's not like wind is a serious problem, but especially in winter it can make the cold unbearable.

Chickens are not fans of wind. And they like Wisconsin winter wind even less. Lol. That’s where construction plastic and lath comes in handy for your run just that one ‘favorite’ season.

I call my town dump: The town mall! I brought home a hardwood night stand this summer. It was thrown on the town dump burn pile because it had a little cigarette burn on the top. Hubby painted it white, put new knob on the drawer, and it made the perfect completion for our guest bedroom. My neighbor brought home a ride on lawn mower. It needed a new starter. Hubby doesn't want to take me to the dump with him b/c I like to go shopping too much.

Omg we could be shopping buddies. I love dumps and recycle centers. I will say that working with new is easier than piece mealing and pulling old nails. But much less satisfying . Lol.

 

[lazy gardener]

Eventually, I want to pick up enough storm panels to frame up a glass green house.

 

[dheltzel]

Lowes has good deal on white corrugated roofing 75% off going on now. I purchased 6 sheets and plan to upgrade next spring. It rain so much here that make the run so muddy and stink.

I took advantage of that too. Got 25, 12' long white panels for about $6 each. Cheapest roofing I ever found. I used 1 so far, this will keep me in roofing material for years.

 

[beela]

We built our 8×7 coop with an 8ft tall 8ft ×16ft enclosed run for just about $300ish by deconstructing an old deck and helping my step Mom clean out my Dad's hoard in their garage. We got free siding, some wood architectural shingles, paint, tar paper (from cleaning my mom's shed ) and vinyl lattice all for free from cleaning out those spaces. We bought the framing for the run and the wire brand new, but since then I have found really good deals on fencing on Craigslist. Which is where we got our small (6x3x4h) coop for free, we just had to take it down and haul it away for the lady who was selling her house. We reworked the coop for our set up and our only cost on that one was a $2 quart of oops paint from the hardware store. I bartered with my Dad for some more shingles and some hardware cloth (I owe him 3 chickens from this batch I'm brooding and help building his own free coop) it was really important to me that the coop and run look nice because we are in the suburbs, and I like fancy things. lol But we were able to accomplish that on a small budget.

 

[Boonie Stomper]

Almost free is my favorite. It involves a bit of time and fuel plus stowing your finds. Until you put them to use or barter them for needed materials. Taking advantage of the time spent driving by enjoying the scenery and stops for exploring nature, the newscast and radio fill the gap between leaving with an empty vehicle and returning with all sorts of potentially usable coop and other BYC items:
Various coop items such as discarded doors and windows racks wood pallets good nest box possibilities buckets hoses feed dishes sawdust hay...
Other items include produce stand discards dog food bird seed chicken wire grit sand mollusk shells milk crates...
A bit of discarded pipe framing and loads of other hardware all in the best interests of the environment can be spared the landfill and put to good use. Be creative!

 

[LeeAnn Toler]

Hey! I have been looking around on here for a while at all the different coops people have built, but have been shocked by the prices. THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS!!! 500+ is way out of our price range. I don't really know if I'm being unreasonable with what I want, but I'm looking for some tips on how to get away with an aesthetically pleasing, good quality coop on the cheap. We have all the tools we need, plus a bit more, but no hidden stash of wood. Any tips, ideas, or other info would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

And here's a bit of my Pinterest inspiration:
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Yes I think that is too much too. I'm trying to get ideas too.

 

[BuffOrps416]

At the beginning of this thread there was talk of a using pallets, and I found this http://www.homegrown.org/forum/topics/pallet-wood-chicken-coop-101

Here are some other designs from the website where I got the first thing: http://thepoultryguide.com/10-free-pallet-chicken-coop-plans-you-can-build-in-a-weekend/

 

[CapricornFarm]

Eventually, I want to pick up enough storm panels to frame up a glass green house.

Me too! They sell them cheap at the Restore if you can't find free ones.