Top 15 Chicken Coop Mistakes

This is the best and most constructive article I’ve read.
I have 30 chickens including 8 silkies in Florida,USA.
One of my coops( the hen house part) needs replacing and I appreciate the information about building instead of buying lol. The coop being replaced is a patched TSC coop that required work the first year. Both the 28” square and 15 foot square runs require aprons. Having clear instructions like those listed here are a great help.

This covers just about everything! I have to watch out for heat in the tropics, and may add more hardware cloth on the sides for extra ventilation. I do have pretty good shade. One thing I did was use corrugated aluminum buried 8" deep around the base - it doesn't rust. more expensive, but I'll never need to re-do this heavy job. Thanks for a great article!

This is a good article,but I disagree STRONGLY on the matter of supplemental heat in severely cold winters! I live in a state that can get down to-20 or colder--but there is also ANOTHER factor not mentioned here--WIND CHILL. The wind out here tends to blow FIERCELY(what do you think drives the temps down?),making the final temperature UNBEARABLY and DANGEROUSLY COLD! NO animal can survive in that for long! My babies are in a room up in my barn,with an electric wall heater,off the floor,so NOTHING flammable gets near it--the elemenys are hidden way inside,so it's safe.Even in that heated room,a few of my rooster "boys" got some frostbite on the tips of their combs,when the temps PLUNGED,with the wind blowing outside--driving the INDOR temps BELOW freezing! Without any heat--everyone would have DIED,due to prolonged exposure.In Summer,when the temps get near triple digits,I have a room air conditioner to remove not only heat,but excessive humidity,which can be FAR WORSE than the heat alone.OK,you might say my babies are ''pampered''--but,maybe that's WHY the AVERAGE lifespan of mine is about 10-13 years,my oldest who just died of old age,was 16!

I really appreciate the time and effort put into this very good article. Many Thanks!!

This article was a lot to think about. When I first decided to have chickens, I did not have the materials or the know how to build my own coop. I ordered a prefab coop on Amazon and added a run. I have been making modifications as needed, but I felt that that was best as I was a beginner. At some point, I would like to get more chickens, and I will then be working on a better coop.

Great way to give tips and suggestions for improvement. How safe and sturdy one needs to build depends on the environment of course.
There is no way you can make a complete list that fits all. The number, type and size of one’s chickens can vary enormously too. But surprisingly you come a long way.

Great article with tons of information, amazing job @Weeg !

This is great, but I don't exactly agree with the no heat rule, you should specify that some chicken breeds do need it. For example, silkies sometimes need it. Just say that it depends, and heat isn't always bad. Overall though, great!
Edited to apologize in advance for if this sounds mean. I don't intend it to be, sorry if it is.

This is such an excellent article! I keep reading it over and over again! Thank you!

Good article with tips for building a coop

Highly informative. A must-read for newbies.

Good job! I hope it helps people build better coops.

Very informative article!
I made the mistake of starting off with a prefab coop. Now my chickens don't roost.

Good article. Some parts couldn’t gone into a little more detail, and there were some things not listed that would’ve been helpful, but it was a good read.

Alot of really great info. At 3 years of raising nutty cluckies, I still find there is so much more to learn. I'm always learning always improving, but BYC and the other members here make my learning much easier and faster.

Very nicely done