What Am I Missing Here?

[calista]

I'm with the prevailing wisdom that you should haunt CL, Freecycle, your neighborhood dumpsters, etc. to build a coop on the cheap if your budget can't afford it otherwise -- just makes sense!

However, if you COULD afford it, what do you think is a reasonable cost to house 16 chickens?

Would you pay what this ad is asking? I think I must be missing something in the description or picture.

http://seattle.craigslist.org/kit/grd/1938307985.html

 

[TigerLilly]

Wow! I love my chickens, but I don't know that I'd be spending that much money on a coop. I'm with you on trying to find the materials for free (or at the very least, CHEEP)!
We have an ad in our area from someone who builds/sells coops, and nice ones at that. I'll have to see if I can find it & post it.

 

[Imp]

Wow! For a $1000, I'd want the chickens, delivery and feed for a year.

Imp- Can you tell I think it's kind of steep.

 

[TigerLilly]

Here we go--this place even has 3 different models!

http://tampa.craigslist.org/hil/grd/1921769011.html

Here ya go, Imp, complete with chickens & answers to all your questions (no food, sorry), for a lot less than the OP's coop!
http://tampa.craigslist.org/hil/grd/1914906427.html

Ok, now ya'll got me looking for coops on CL, but I can't afford any of them...check this ad out:
http://sarasota.craigslist.org/grd/1936363686.html

 

[Imp]

Thanks tigerlilly, I'm on it. Think they'll deliver to Seattle from Tampa?

Imp

 

[TigerLilly]

Hey, they got boats, don't they?

This is too funny...and it comes with food!
http://orlando.craigslist.org/grd/1931684132.html

 

[MissJenny]

On purpose I did not keep track of costs on my coop, but I wouldn't be the least surprised if mine ran in the $1000 neighborhood. I did not want to know. Much as I am a big fan of begging, borrowing and dumpster diving, my builder (boyfriend) expected materials he knew what to do with. As it turns out my coop is thoroughly insulated, including the floor, the nest boxes and doors. It has two new windows, five vents and a secure pop door. The run will be 8' x 16', filled with gravel and sand. It measures 4' x 8' and will house only 5 hens. A bunch of coops we see on here cost triple what this guy is asking. If that coop is insulated and vented it is worth every bit of a grand. Price out exterior sheds... this looks pretty good to me.

Jenny

 

[littlefork]

I think We've spent at least that much on gas running back and forth to the hardware store while building our 12'x12' coop this summer, and we haven't even started on the run. If it were closer I'd be calling and setting up delivery!

 

[kickinchicken]

I agree. $1,000 is not alot for a well insulated, well built coop. Those coops are new. New materials, new hardware. This stuff isn't cheap. I am "almost" done building my 4x8 coop and I am sure it has cost me well over $1,000 in new materials.

Stupid chickens!

I have spent every available moment building this coop. We have had a horrible summer in Rhode Island this year.

Too hot or rain. If I could go back to May 1st, I would have ordered a 8x8 coop and had it delivered!

 

[elmo]

The problem I see with every or nearly every prebuilt coop I've ever looked at is inadequate ventilation. It's a drag to spend $1,000 plus for a coop just to have to get out a reciprocating saw and cut vents in it; it's never as easy to retrofit something as it is to build it the way you want properly from the start. The rule of thumb I look for is 1 square foot of vent space per chicken.

And the other thing that bugs me about prebuilt coops is the manufacturer's suggestion about how many chickens their coop will hold. One of those listings above suggested an 8' by 6' coop could hold 40 chickens! Well, sure, but they don't mention you'd probably need to have them all debeaked. That's barely over 1 square foot per bird.

I've built two coops and runs myself. I just got done with my third and final coop (seriously!). I hired a contractor to build according to my specifications. I'm thrilled with the way it turned out. The builder had the right tools and experience to build the coop properly, and since this one is shed size, I didn't feel comfortable tackling something so big on my own.

To save some money, and also because I enjoy puttering around with things like this, I had the builder do the hard stuff (the foundation, framing, siding, roofing, etc.), and I'm handling the finish out myself (insulation, hardware cloth on windows and vents, painting, etc.). I did a price comparison between my custom coop and a comparable Tuff Shed in my area. The custom coop was about the same as the Tuff Shed even though the materials used in my coop were superior, and I know the workmanship is, too, because I've looked at those Tuff Sheds at the home improvement stores.