What's the reasoning for nesting boxes usually sticking out?

[lazy gardener]

Minimum recommendation is for 4 s.f. in coop per bird, and that's open floor space. While folks can and do run their space tighter, it sets them up for all sorts of behavioral problems. Do a thread search, and you'll see lots of threads from folks who are having issues with aggression that can be as sublime as the underdog not being allowed to come off the perch to eat, leading up to more overt aggression including feather picking, brutal bullying which can culminate in cannibalizing.

 

[lissalischicks]

Good idea for making it bigger than you need for now. I started with 4 because I never thought I would get more but now I have 8..... I don't know what happened but the chickens just multiplied. Honestly I would LOOOOOVE to get more but space is an issue.

My boxes stick out but we didn't make it more space reasons. We made it that way for convenience. Just a funny side note about nesting boxes... you can have 50 of them but there are favorites. You will see all your chickens fighting over the same box!! It's quite comical

 

[Mimi13]

Welcome to BYC. As you can see, there are all kinds of great information out there just at the asking. I hope you enjoy your time at BYC and with your sweet chicks.

I agree with @lazy gardener. Make it BIGGER than you think you’ll ever need. I am in the process of building my “dream” coop, if there is such a thing. I’m certain I’ll want something bigger and better after I’m done. My first coop was a purchased, prefab piece of junk that I had to completely reconfigure to suit the actual needs of the birds. In my new coop I will have two rows of 4 nest boxes (8 total) that will actually jut out into the storage portion of the coop. On the top of them will be a shelf that I can utilize in the storage section and the access doors will open from the back of the boxes.

One thing you might want to consider is keeping your feed and water outside your coop in the run. The added moisture from the water might be harmful to your birds (a definite in colder weather resulting in frostbite) and the feed might be an attractant for rodents. No bueno!

You are doing the right thing in researching everything ahead of time. I certainly wish I had known a bit more about coops before I got my first chicks. Good luck with your feather babies and welcome again.

 

[speedy2020]

Well if you make a roll out nest box you can collect the clean eggs from the outside.

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JT

What material that you used in the last photo (door mat)? I will move my coop this year and plan to build a removable roll out nest box.

 

[Ol Grey Mare]

Unless you raise them up 18 inches off the floor like mine, then they have room to go under them, so no lost floor space. It also depends on your coop size, it just may work out better to have them stick out, on a smaller coop.
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The preservation of space is not only about floor space......consideration must also include potential loss of space in the interior with regards to the flock keeper moving around inside the space as well.
Less of an issue in large interior spaces for sure. I've had large, wide interior spaces with interior hung boxes, narrow spaces with interior mounted boxes (raised so the birds had full floor space) that combined with the protrusion of a poop board on the opposite wall made for little space for me to move around in. .my current coop is narrow so I opted for extetior hung boxes based on the frustrations in that last one.

 

[gpeled]

To close the loop - what I ended up doing is extending as much as could within the limited space, the bottom of the coop in both sides, as well as making the nesting box stick to the side. That gave me a bit more space. Images attached.

Chicks are now 3.5 weeks old and awaiting to go into the coop!

 

[Peppercorngal]

Some folks don't want to have to "go into" the coop to collect eggs. A nest box with a top you can open works well for that. It creates more room in the coop as well. You don't have to worry about the cold really, so you can decide what will work best for you. I elected to have my nesting boxes inside my coop. I enter through a real exterior steel door to collect my eggs. It is also protection from predators in my area.

 

[jthornton]

What material that you used in the last photo (door mat)? I will move my coop this year and plan to build a removable roll out nest box.

I found that at Home Depot in the carpet area IIRC it was 3' x 5'. It's like you see at some stores by the door. The chickens don't care, I had it out once when I thought they were done for the day and when I came back there were 2 eggs on the bottom wood floor.

JT

 

[BantyChooks]

To close the loop - what I ended up doing is extending as much as could within the limited space, the bottom of the coop in both sides, as well as making the nesting box stick to the side. That gave me a bit more space. Images attached.

Chicks are now 3.5 weeks old and awaiting to go into the coop!View attachment 1303832 View attachment 1303833 View attachment 1303834

Nice job!