Appropriate coop size

[Emfrank]

Hello guys, im new to the group and iv been keeping chickens since September last year so still a novice, although i did do extensive research before i started this journey, anywho i have 4 chickens at the moment, but looking to have about 20 eventually, i already have a huge 25ft by 40ft outdoor fenced run with grass, mud, dust baths, plenty of sun, shade and bushes so thats not my worry, their coop is an 8x6 shed but its rotting, was here before i moved in, and im looking at buying a new bigger shed for them, would a 10x8 be suitable for that many birds, they will have about 90% floor space due to the feed buckets and straw bales, same as now, what do you guys think?

 

[3KillerBs]

Welcome to BYC. Where, in general, are you? Climate matters, especially when it comes to housing.

Your outdoor run sounds fabulous.

The Usual Guidelines

For each adult, standard-sized hen you need:

• 4 square feet in the coop (.37 square meters)
• 10 square feet in the run (.93 square meters),
• 1 linear foot of roost (.3 meters),
• 1/4 of a nest box,
• And 1 square foot (.09 square meters) of permanent, 24/7/365 ventilation, preferably located over the birds' heads when they're sitting on the roost.

Here's the math for 20:

• 80 square feet in the coop. 8'x10' is the most practical because 7'x12' or 6'x14' require a lot of weird cuts.
• 20 feet of roost
• 200 square feet in the run. 10'x20', 12'x16' or 8'x25' as suits the land available.
• 20 square feet of ventilation.
• 5 nest boxes.

And a bit from an article that I'm writing:

Note in re: Large Flocks in Large Coops

From a behavioral standpoint, the larger the coop/run the less space an individual chicken needs because there is so much more overall space where it can get away from bullies and freely engage in such natural behaviors as perching, foraging, dust bathing, etc. without interference from other flock members. But increasing flock density still comes with problems in the areas of sanitation, over-grazing, and the like since an individual chicken still eats the same amount and produces the same amount of waste.​

And an article explaining why these are guidelines rather than RULES: https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/how-much-room-do-chickens-need.66180/

I have a flock of 23 not counting chicks in a 16x16 Open Air coop and it's been great to have the over-sized space. If you can go a larger than the suggested minimums it makes a lot of things easier. Climate particularly matters in this because a person in a severe climate that confines the birds to the coop for months has less flexibility than a person in a mild climate where the birds never lack access to the run.

 

[Emfrank]

Im in Chesterfield England, smack dab in the middle of the country, so its not too hot or too cold, weve been having a few mild winters of late, heat in summer in my house reaches about 28° Celsius on average so a coop/shed would probably be around that mark and in winter outdoors can get as low as -3° Celsius, my hens are ex battery/ commercial so an average size breed, did have 5 but 1 passed away of natural causes in January, theyre all so docile until getting treats, they have all day access in and out of the coop via a heavy duty drop down door i made out of spare timber which is bolt locked open during the day so cannot be accidentally shut and bolt locked down at night from the inside so from the outside even i couldnt open it with a crow bar, the shed side wall would give out first, they take themselves to bed when the sun drops down over the trees so i go in, let it drop, lock it down and lock the main shed door, my bike shed is less secure so i want to get something of large enough size but is also easy to fortify incase of any potential break in

 

[Folly's place]

Welcome!
Bigger is always better! Your plan would bee okay, but minimum in size, so can you get larger? Here our coop/ run combination has five separate areas, with door that can be either open or shut, depending on what's going on. It gives birds out-of-sight spaces, especially important now that we aren't free ranging because of AI. Having multiple feeders and waterers also makes a big difference.
Mary

 

[Emfrank]

Welcome!
Bigger is always better! Your plan would bee okay, but minimum in size, so can you get larger? Here our coop/ run combination has five separate areas, with door that can be either open or shut, depending on what's going on. It gives birds out-of-sight spaces, especially important now that we aren't free ranging because of AI. Having multiple feeders and waterers also makes a big difference.
Mary

I could but the price of a decent shed 12 x 10 is costly here in the uk so would cost me over £1200 which equates to about $1500 USD, i just dont have that kind of money right now, birds here in england are no longer under avian lockdown rules so they have the run to free range in, i have 1 large feeder in the run and a low down water trough for them in their run too, not to mention the bigger the shed i get the more space in the run it will take up, and they spend the entire day outside enjoying themselves

 

[aart]

Yep, chicken housing isn't cheep!
You can go smaller, but be ready to deal with the consequences.

no longer under avian lockdown

But no doubt, lock-down will reoccur at some point.
Is your huge run area good/ready for lock-down conditions?

Im in Chesterfield England

Welcome to BYC! @Emfrank
Here's how to add your general geographical location to your profile.
It's easy to do, and then it's always there!

 

[3KillerBs]

Do you get any significant snow?

Are you able to build rather than buy? You can save a substantial amount of money that way -- or make a larger coop for the same investment.

 

[Percheron chick]

Pictures of the existing shed? Sometimes it looks worse than it is.

 

[Emfrank]

Ill get some when im not busy, its bad, when the previous owners of the house were still alive, they had re felted the shed roof twice, just layed one layer over the other, i didnt realise this until me and my neighbour helped me felt it again because it was leaking, the clout nails on half the shed wouldnt stay in because the wood was mush when wet, it still leaks a little in heavy rain which luckily we arent due to get any time soon and some of the panels of wood on the sides have got narrow gaps where some wood has rotted off, iv just patched it up for the time being

 

[Emfrank]

Do you get any significant snow?

Are you able to build rather than buy? You can save a substantial amount of money that way -- or make a larger coop for the same investment.

Not really, weve only had 2 really bad snows in 15 years and no because here the price of timber has skyrocketed and it would cost me roughly twice as much if not more to build from scratch than it would to buy, plus im a 5ft 2 single mum with only limited skill on building things, small things i can manage, but something like a shed would be practically impossible for me to do alone and i dont get any help from anyone