adequate "fly-down" area in front of roost

[ChaosMom]

While you're thinking...
It's easy to get locked into a particular type of build. On BYC the popular coop and run configuration is like this;
View attachment 4042191

The above configuration may be suitable for a large walk in coop and run but with regard to security it leaves a lot to be desired in my opinion. Most coops are built out of wood, often it's OSB clad on a wooden frame. Even thick OSB isn't much of a challenge to a determined rat and while you may not have a rat problem now, once the word gets around that there is chicken food in the coop/run they'll show up with their relatives and rather than chew through the metal run fence, they'll opt for the easiest way in which is through the coop itself assuming the coop is based on the ground.

Currently you're planning on three heavyweight hens; this is likely to change.

For a small coop (not a wlak in coop) such as you are currently considering there is a better option that will give you more flexibility for increasing both coop and run size and provide a more secure environment for your birds.
View attachment 4042190

With the above configuration one gets the security offered by the run fence protecting the coop and assuming the run is built large enough, access to all the sides of the coop within the run. Provide a ramp from ground to coop and most chickens will use it to leave the coop at least down to an easy ramp to floor jump height.

While it's true that most chickens prefer to roost as high as possible the height one is after can be gained by building the coop off the ground, be that on legs or two/three sides enclosed which will also serve as a sheltered space underneath the coop.
If the coop is built off the ground, say three to four feet off the ground then having roost bars in the coop at a height that doesn't require any plummeting, or flying to the coop floor, is fairly easy to achieve. Diving off a roost bar and dropping to the floor say five feet may be fine for young fit birds but not so great for older birds and not great for bumble foot, muscle strains and injuries due to flight path errors.

Oh, how very interesting! So for chickens, "high above the ground" means high above the actual ground, the level of the run, not above the coop floor! I didn't realize that AT ALL. I had even seen posts about "height above the coop bedding" and was ready to throw my hands up in despair. I want them to feel safe and secure without building a three-story addition in the back yard.

Yes, the coop wiil be raised two feet (0.6m) above the level of the run, so does that mean that even 18" (<0.5m) above coop floor will work, as it's 3 1/2' (a bit more than a meter) up? (Sorry for all the different measurement scales - I wish that the US had gone metric back in the sixties when I was in grade school, and it would be instinct by now!)

Wherever the coop winds up, it will be within the HW cloth surround. I'm with you - I don't place much faith in plywood, etc., against determined predators.

Thanks so much for weighing in!

 

[ChaosMom]

To answer the basic question, yes ideally you want at least as much landing space in front of a roost as the roost is high, so 24" high roost should have 24" in front. Some birds flap more and may need a bit more space, some plummet and may need less space in front. But they can also adjust a bit as I have my nests (fully inside) directly across from the roost, so many of my birds come down diagonally to ensure they avoid it.

Thanks, this is what I was hoping to hear! Not having ever seen a bird in the wild carrying a retractable tape measure, I figured that chickens would be smart enough to make this work. I just don't want to hear that "bonk" from inside! I appreciate your insight.

 

[ChaosMom]

Always a good idea, IMO, better to make mistakes and corrections on paper rather than in lumber.
Use graph paper so things are in scale.

Absolutely! After my husband and I have remodeled three houses, two which were built in the 1920's, I live and die by quarter-inch graph paper. Thanks!

 

[ChaosMom]

Thanks to everyone who has posted! I'm honored. BYC is one of those places that show that social media doesn't have to be a toxic mess.

To add, by "heavy breeds", I mean that two of the first three will be a Buff Orpington and a Plymouth Barred Rock, with the third an Easter Egger. If (haha) we add more, it will probably be something in the lines of a Barnevelder and Olive Egger, so (eventually) a total of three chonks, to borrow a cat term.

Chonks for sure, but not on the scale of Brahmas, bless their hearts.

City regs will force me to top out at five or six, a total of seven critters per household, so in my case, chicken math will meet some real-world boundaries pretty quickly. Unless the hens eat the cat, which could happen.

 

[ChaosMom]

OK, drawings and photos per request.

On the drawing, the top part is just the overall space I'm working with. (We're on a tiny city lot, 0.15 acres., much of which is taken up by house and shed for the model T that was popular when this was built.)

The bottom half of the drawing is what I was asking about in the first post, mainly whether there would be enough room for hens to jump/fly down from a 5' roost/perch on the long side of a 4x5 coop (option 1.)

NONE of these sketches are ready for cutting lumber! I realize that dimensions are different inside and out and so forth. I'm just mentally trying to visualize coop size and eventual location before getting down to details. My current wishes are layout 1 in area A, but all is changeable. Edit to add: the coop sketches would have the nest boxes elsewhere, not on the shed wall.

The photos are of the shed wall that will be the back of the run. Why yes, it's a jungle back there! The killer heat wave last summer and then Hurricane Helene on 29 September took the wind out of my gardening sails last year. The raised bed in the foreground with the trellis framework will be taken down to make room for the 8' depth of the run. The shed rafters are 24" o.c. with an approximate 18" overhang, and at some point, I will be asking for ideas and advice for incorporating it as a half-monitor roof for ventilation.

Thanks for any feedback!

 

[perkolator]

I think you can get away with all 3 designs in the pic, I can't imagine they'd need more than 2.5ft of landing area for only 18" height roost bar. My chickens go up to a 5-6ft high roost bar, some will jump/fly straight up near vertical and go down at an angle steeper than a 45-degrees.

 

[ChaosMom]

I think you can get away with all 3 designs in the pic, I can't imagine they'd need more than 2.5ft of landing area for only 18" height roost bar. My chickens go up to a 5-6ft high roost bar, some will jump/fly straight up near vertical and go down at an angle steeper than a 45-degrees.

Thanks! Love the real-world testimonials.

 

[WindyRoost]

I’m in your same boat, trying to find adequate space for de-roosting activities and it’s been a while since you posted but thought I’d share…
I had a Barred Rock and an Orpington who always jumped down from the roost, about 2.5 feet. Most others used the ramp despite it being awkward. Both hens developed bumble foot. It may have been coincidence, but I did read somewhere that if heavy breeds jump they are more likely to develop bumblefoot. Of course I’ve forgotten where I read that!
With your short roost this shouldn’t be a problem but worth considering in future coops.

 

[Ted Brown]

I changed from a ramp to vertical trunk sections positioned in front of my drop boards. Many of my hens jump up & down using the stumps even with a 13' flight path in front of them. Stumps use less floor space than ramps.

They are pretty adaptable given food, water, fresh air.

 

[OphyliaOrpington]

Hi, all; new member here. I've been reading BYC for several months now in preparation for our three 7-8 pullets coming in early March. We're putting up the large (8'x15') run now and may have to use a temporary coop until we get the design figured out.

I'm wrestling with dimensions vs how the coop will fit in the run space with door. Ideally, it would be 4'x5' with 2 outside nest boxes on the 5' side, which I can figure out the roost bar etc without a problem. But chicken math - I'm betting that we'll add two more for a total of five.

So I want a 5' roost bar, but in a 4'x5' coop, that means that they'll only have 4' minus 15"-18" from the wall, so a max of 2 1/2' - 2 3/4' landing area. I read here *somewhere* that the space in front of the roost should be at least as long as the height about the floor lest they go bonk when they fly down. They're heavy breeds, and the roost will probably be 18" above the floor (with poop board below.)

*waving hands in air* - when you're ensuring adequate fly-down space, don't they opt to fly a bit diagonally for a gentler flight path, not straight ahead?? If I build a 5x5 coop for a longer flydown area, the nest boxes will have to be inside (human door opening reasons), and then I have to figure out the whole keeping them off of the nest box roofs.

tl;dr - will a roost bar on the 5' side of a 4x5 coop allow adequate landing space as they fly down off the roost? thanks!

-- I have no pics, because this only exists in my overheated brain.

I am confident you’ll figure this out. Your roosting bars can be moved later if you don’t get it perfect the first time.

Anyway, what I wanted to say is: I got 7 chicks last year. I built my coop to suit 7 because I never thought I’d get more. This year I’m getting 5 more. So we had to expand the coop. (This may be a never ending battle.) But I’d make it bigger than you need it to be. Not just in case you want more later, but also b/c you may need to keep them in there sometimes.