TSC chicken coop kits.

[Ruralhideaway]

My impression of the TSC kits was also negative. I am working with a carpenter who says for $1500 he can make a coop 5 feet x 8 feet with a small feed room leaving the house for chickens 5 x 5 which would house 12 chickens. Run could be made 6 Feet x 8 feet long which would be 4 square foot of run space per chicken along with the 2 square foot inside for a total of 6 sq ft per chicken. Does that sound correct for 12 chickens and does that price sound resonable?

If basic power tools aren't a problem I'd consider a prefab shed. They are easy enough to add roosts to. Extra ventilation too. Likely cheaper(also more fun in my opinion).

 

[Kiki]

My impression of the TSC kits was also negative. I am working with a carpenter who says for $1500 he can make a coop 5 feet x 8 feet with a small feed room leaving the house for chickens 5 x 5 which would house 12 chickens. Run could be made 6 Feet x 8 feet long which would be 4 square foot of run space per chicken along with the 2 square foot inside for a total of 6 sq ft per chicken. Does that sound correct for 12 chickens and does that price sound resonable?

I can't tell you if that price is reasonable but I can tell you I built a 6 foot by 8 foot coop for a fraction of that price, but I did have some wood on hand already.

 

[Kiki]

5 x 5 is too small for 12 birds.

 

[esme13]

My impression of the TSC kits was also negative. I am working with a carpenter who says for $1500 he can make a coop 5 feet x 8 feet with a small feed room leaving the house for chickens 5 x 5 which would house 12 chickens. Run could be made 6 Feet x 8 feet long which would be 4 square foot of run space per chicken along with the 2 square foot inside for a total of 6 sq ft per chicken. Does that sound correct for 12 chickens and does that price sound resonable?

Good coops are expensive due to the material and labor that goes into it, plus the carpenter needing to make a little something in return. A shed as others have mention would be a great option. And there are better prices that are much more reasonable.

 

[Latestarter]

Greetings and welcome to BYC Jeanette! So glad you joined us. LOVE what you're doing for the historical place and for your nephew! Please DO NOT waste you money on the prefab coops at TSC or online. They are garbage! They will NOT properly house the number they state, and the quality of the materials is very sub standard. Good coops don't HAVE to be very expensive...

The $1500 quoted for the coop (size stated) is also too high unless he's building a chicken mahal. The size stated is too small for 12 chickens. As stated, buying one of those prefab sheds from Home Depot or Lowes and modifying it would be the simplest and probably most cost effective way to go, especially if your nephew has any craftsmanship capability and a few power tools. There is plenty of info and guidance available here in the coops section.

An adult large fowl chicken really needs ~4 square feet/bird INSIDE the coop and ~10 square feet/bird OUTSIDE the coop in the run. You can get a way with a slightly smaller run if the birds will primarily free range. But it IS a minimum if they will be contained within for any prolonged periods.

There's a wealth of info, knowledge and experience shared in the multitude of threads. Browse around and see what interesting stuff you can find. By all means post away when the desire strikes you, especially if you have questions (provide as much detail/info as possible and pictures truly help)... With all the great folks here, generally someone will respond in no time at all. Please make yourself at home!

Oh, if you haven't done so already, PLEASE put at least your general location in your profile. It could be very important if/when you ask for or offer help or advice. You know, climate issues and such. Old folks like me will never remember & look there first. To add it, mouse hover over Account top right and a drop down will appear. Click on Personal Details and scan down. You'll see the spot for Location. Then go to the bottom and save changes. Thanks! Hope you enjoy the site!

Hope you pass on our site to your nephew. Would be great to have him join the fun here as well!

 

[Ruralhideaway]

Michigan is cold enough that the birds will prefer indoors many days in the winter.

4 sq ft per bird indoors. I recently had only 10 x 10 for 19 birds(a large brooder cage took up 32 inches of floor)plus an attached covered 10 x 10 run and that was really a bit tight when they weren't free to use the run.

Climate matters, our cold areas push them indoors. There are problems of all kinds when they are crowded. Seems to me most of the frostbit feet you see are on chickens stuffed together so tightly they are forced outdoors in bad weather.

 

[MrsMistyReal]

Welcome aboard to BYC family gr8 people tons of information loads of fun enjoy shake your tail feathers

 

[AllenK RGV]

I didn't catch your location, but craigslist free wood, or search for wood. Heck we even have an all pallet build in here somewhere under Articles then coops.

Welcome to BYC! Hehe you got a full labor force of kids and grandkids to project manage over! What an awesome opportunity to spend time supervising them!

 

[Plip]

Welcome to BYC! Glad you're here.

Looks like you're getting some good advice. I'm not familiar with those kits specifically, but I would generally be leery of that kind of mass produced product from a big box stores.

 

[Teila]

G’Day from down under Jeanette Welcome!

You have received some great advice to which I can not add much. However, I thought you might also like to check out this really good article:

How Much Room Do Chickens Need