Building my first coop/run

[ThatsMyPurseIdontknowyou]

On the left hand side will be 3 nesting boxes. Planning on using like dish tubs or something that are easy to slide around.

I need to put the dividers in for those.

I'm short a couple of 2x4s to finish boxing it all in, hold down the ceiling of the coop area, etc.

Also need to put in a couple of roosts.

The little piece of plywood is just for mock up, I am using some 1/4" diamond plate steel I'm going to cut to use as the door so its heavy enough to pull itself down. Then it will get attached via a line to a pulley, then out the front and to a cleat, so it will be easy to raise and lower the coop door without needing to go inside.

And then the large open area where my drill is at will be a hinged door so you can open the whole thing up, clean it out, get your eggs, etc. I checked and my wife can reach all the way to the back.

And, the whole floor of the coop area pulls out so you can dump all the bedding really easily.

And you are probably going to ask "But why didn't you make it easy to access from the outside, so you don't have to open the door and go in to get to the eggs?" And I agree. However, my thinking was -

1. Chickens are of questionable legality with regards to zoning. The less obvious I could make it that this was a chicken coop to people driving by, at least initially, the better.

2. My wife is super excited about this. I want to make sure it stays that way. If next spring she's still gung-ho on this, I can add it. And if the whole chicken thing is a flop, I just built myself a baller gardening shed.

It would be pretty easy to just drill a few holes and then connect them with a sawzall, I know where everything is at. Then box it in, add a cute little door, etc etc. I will be saving all of the leftover plywood and everything for future projects and repairs.

I will also be adding some vents with little sliding covers, both on top, and on the side.

 

[StinkyAcres]

On the left hand side will be 3 nesting boxes. Planning on using like dish tubs or something that are easy to slide around.

I use dish pans in my nesting boxes and I do recommend them. However, you do need to make it so they can't perch on the sides and tip them over. Placing them inside wooden boxes would solve that problem.

 

[ThatsMyPurseIdontknowyou]

A thought, and I would appreciate feedback:

What if for the coop area, I did the whole top of it with hardware cloth. Then in the winter, I just set some plywood on top. In summer, I remove the plywood and just expose the hardware cloth for venting?

 

[aart]

A thought, and I would appreciate feedback:

What if for the coop area, I did the whole top of it with hardware cloth. Then in the winter, I just set some plywood on top. In summer, I remove the plywood and just expose the hardware cloth for venting?

Yep.
Might not want to cover the whole thing as ventilation is very important all year around.

 

[Squawkers]

A thought, and I would appreciate feedback:

What if for the coop area, I did the whole top of it with hardware cloth. Then in the winter, I just set some plywood on top. In summer, I remove the plywood and just expose the hardware cloth for venting?

Yeah, I think that is a really good idea. Chickens need a lot of ventilation, one of the most important things. Even in the winter.

 

[Squawkers]

Because it would be plenty above the chickens (I assume) I wouldn’t cover it up at all in the winter. Unless you get some really cold weather maybe.

 

[ThatsMyPurseIdontknowyou]

Because it would be plenty above the chickens (I assume) I wouldn’t cover it up at all in the winter. Unless you get some really cold weather maybe.

We've touched -20 F a few times in the last decade. But it typically hangs out in the teens for a few months.

 

[Squawkers]

We've touched -20 F a few times in the last decade. But it typically hangs out in the teens for a few months.

I think it would be fine in the teens as long as it is a bit above their heads. Not sure if that would be fine in -20 though (wouldn’t be surprised)