Recent content by dvsmith

Mini update today (more rain) Cap blocks are in place. Right now, the blocks and caps are dry stacked. I’m debating whether to use mortar to set the caps, use construction adhesive, or just leave them as is. I will be attaching a pressure treated sill plate using tapcon screws. The dilemma...

It took a few days for the impromptu swimming pool to turn back into a trench and for me to move, tamp and level 1.5 tons of gravel, but the blocks are in place, level and square. Just in time for another inch of rain to fall last night. The girls have been watching my progress from a mini-run.

Progress has been slow thanks to a week of heavy storms, but I have the footers dug out now. The grade falls 12 inches from the high corner to the lowest. Tomorrow, gravel will be delivered. Soooo sore

Trenching out, the foundation is going slowly, due to more pressing needs at home, some warm weather, and other excavators on site. Most of the materials for the coop arrived yesterday. I had been hoping to use some reclaimed or repurposed lumber, but at least in my area it seems...

I love this design and well-documented build. It's serving as inspiration for mine.

Site prep, day one

Thanks for the feedback! The nesting box door is a vertical drop front (I just didn't model the non-opening roof of the box). The cleanout and access doors are a Carolina Coop style arrangement on the north side of the coop, with a drop door on the south side of the coop, to be able to...

Second revision. (I redesigned the nesting box hutch and the front doors)

I'm working on designing an 8'x8' coop with attached 8'x20' run. I can share the sketchup file, if you'd like to explore it. https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/diy-coop-and-run-design-feedback.1620217/post-27679218

I wanted to say thank you — your coop is one of the design inspirations I’m drawing upon for mine.

(1) Are you new to chickens / when did you first get chickens? Yes, I am (mostly) new to chickens. My paternal grandparents had a small flock on their farm when I was a kid, and I've cared for a few friends' flocks. My partner’s parents raise chickens (and geese, ducks, and turkeys) We got our...

I'll probably make the two deepest corners into doors on the north- and south-facing sides (the coop is oriented east-west lengthwise)

I've revised the design to expand the coop to 8x8', raise the run door and nesting boxes to 12" off the floor in order to better suit the deep litter method, make the run into 6' modules, and revise the front door design.

I'm about to start construction on a coop and run in our suburban backyard in the Piedmont of North Carolina. We have 13 standard-size laying birds (well, week-old chicks) that will need a home soon. I've drawn on designs like the The Palace Coop and Carolina Coops to build in dual purpose...