Upscaling

[Red-Stars-in-RI]

Keep us posted on your progress. If you're not familiar with Joel Salatin, check him out...his Polyface farm raise pastured chickens - he's even written a few books that may be handy. His big thing is moving the flock often to keep the grass healthy.

Agree with others that going industrial/commercial may be the way to go. Check out Farm-Tek. They make some interesting buildings that are less expensive than a wood/steel structure.

I don't have acreage, but when I was looking for a larger coop, I stumbled up and bought this from someone who DOES have acreage:

 

[NatJ]

I assume a dirt floor is best? My preference is actually to have a solid floor of some sort, but I'm not sure how to clean it out and am concerned that using water to wash floors would rot wood used in construction. Do people really invest in concrete slab and concrete block construction? Maybe I'd lay a slab and use concrete blocks for the first couple feet off the ground...? Debating whether to construct, myself, in this way or buy a prefab building...

For cleaning a solid floor: rake or shovel out the bedding, put in new. (Optional: sweep with a broom before adding the new bedding.)

If the bedding was deep enough, and you kept it dry enough, the floor should be pretty clean.

Some people with wood floors put down a layer of vinyl flooring (the kind you'd use in a cheap house for people, not the expensive stuff). Of course then you have to be more careful with your shovel or rake, to avoid ripping the vinyl, but it's easier to clean than bare wood.

If you have a wood floor, and you want to wash it with disinfectant once every year or so, that will probably not do any harm. Just let it dry thoroughly. But I don't see any point in using disinfectant unless you're removing all old birds and bringing in new ones.

 

[aart]

Yes, starting smaller. I am starting a new farm from scratch. None of it was given to me, infrastructure is dated or nonexistent, and this stuff is EXPEN$IVE!!

If I can make 100 chickens work, then I'll go from there. Start small, put in infrastructure intelligently, and build over time.

What's your proposed product?
Meat? Eggs? Chicks? Started layers?
What's your market(s)?

 

[mml373]

Appreciate all the replies! I think I'm leaning more toward a 20 x 20 building with concrete floor, but I want to use shavings to establish a deep litter type floor on top of that slab. Any issues with this?

Water issues where we live is the main reason I want to go with a slab. Things get wet and stay wet, and a slab gets things up off the ground, provides a barrier to predators, etc. Not to mention I can clean old shavings out once a year, hose down the slab, and start anew with a clean facility once dry. Again, plan is for 100 birds or less in that 20 x 20 space. Studying up on ventilation, etc., as others have posted here.

 

[Red-Stars-in-RI]

@mml373 - if you're building a "deep litter" coop, just remember to design the coop to "work" with a floor that ranges from 6" deep to up to 2 feet. That way, you can add material and deep litter to your hearts content.

This could be as simple as making sure your roosts, nesting boxes, etc. are 2+ feet up the wall. Or it could be fancier. I think Joel Salatin has a setup in his cow barns where he can raise and lower feeders/waterers, etc. several feet to account for the deep litter.

 

[NatJ]

@mml373 - if you're building a "deep litter" coop, just remember to design the coop to "work" with a floor that ranges from 6" deep to up to 2 feet. That way, you can add material and deep litter to your hearts content.

This could be as simple as making sure your roosts, nesting boxes, etc. are 2+ feet up the wall. Or it could be fancier. I think Joel Salatin has a setup in his cow barns where he can raise and lower feeders/waterers, etc. several feet to account for the deep litter.

And something to keep the litter from falling out the door--maybe just a board across the bottom of the door, held by a screw at each end, so you can take it out if you want to clean the coop.