New Half-hoop Coop Build

[Gail Laubenthal]

This thread will document the process of building a new all weather coop for my 50 hens. We live in central TX so typical weather temps range from 100+ in summer to 30ish in winter with occasional ice/snow but rare if at all.

After watching lots of hoop coop videos and sharing posts from BYC, we decided to go with a half hoop style which will allow my 6' body to walk through it with maximum space for my 11' x4' brooder (on curved wall) a dozen nesting boxes (back wall), ample roosts (straight long side), grain storage, hanging wateres and feeders. We have sketched the plans which are rough and are being adjusted as we go.

We got the idea of a half hoop coop from an arched cattle panel area in the Children's Garden which we grew vining plants.

So far we have set the 4 4x6" 10' posts and tested one arched cattle panel for height. It will have a regular screen door at one end and several chicken doors. The girls will free range during the day in a large grassy fenced area. The final dimension will be about 21' long, 12' wide and 7'+ high. We will cover it with chicken wire and a water proof tarp. It will have a ridge pole and several support posts down the center. I will post pictures as we progress. If anyone has any questions or suggestions please post.

 

[PD-Riverman]

OK, as you see---the cattle panels do not give support where they are some-what straight like where you got the post stuck up through it leaning on the ladder. You could add another line of post and boards in that area on each side of the center to help but still the area in between those 2 supports will still be weak if much weight was applied---like a snow.

 

[Kiki]

Chicken wire will not keep predators out.
Invest in some hardwire cloth.

 

[Gail Laubenthal]

OK, as you see---the cattle panels do not give support where they are some-what straight like where you got the post stuck up through it leaning on the ladder. You could add another line of post and boards in that area on each side of the center to help but still the area in between those 2 supports will still be weak if much weight was applied---like a snow.

We will have a horizontal center ridge support 60" out from the posts. We appreciate your feedback and will see if it is needed as we go. In the past 3 years we have only had a dusting of snow.
View attachment 1049232
This thread will document the process of building a new all weather coop for my 50 hens. We live in central TX so typical weather temps range from 100+ in summer to 30ish in winter with occasional ice/snow but rare if at all.

After watching lots of hoop coop videos and sharing posts from BYC, we decided to go with a half hoop style which will allow my 6' body to walk through it with maximum space for my 11' x4' brooder (on curved wall) a dozen nesting boxes (back wall), ample roosts (straight long side), grain storage, hanging wateres and feeders. We have sketched the plans which are rough and are being adjusted as we go.

We got the idea of a half hoop coop from an arched cattle panel area in the Children's Garden which we grew vining plants.

So far we have set the 4 4x6" 10' posts and tested one arched cattle panel for height. It will have a regular screen door at one end and several chicken doors. The girls will free range during the day in a large grassy fenced area. The final dimension will be about 21' long, 12' wide and 7'+ high. We will cover it with chicken wire and a water proof tarp. It will have a ridge pole and several support posts down the center. I will post pictures as we progress. If anyone has any questions or suggestions please post.

Chicken wire will not keep predators out.
Invest in some hardwire cloth.

We will have hardware cloth 4' up from the bottom for snakes. Other than that, we do not have any burrowing predators here. We also have an Anatolian Shepard Dog patrolling our fenced land at night. She keeps the coyotes away from our sheep and chickens
View attachment 1049233

OK, as you see---the cattle panels do not give support where they are some-what straight like where you got the post stuck up through it leaning on the ladder. You could add another line of post and boards in that area on each side of the center to help but still the area in between those 2 supports will still be weak if much weight was applied---like a snow.

We will keep your suggestions under consideration. We will have a ridge poll 60" out from the posts and there will be support posts along the way from the ridge post. We only get a dusting of snow every now and then, so we are not worried about weight. This is just a test positioning of the first panel. We will have 5 of them all together. We are aware of the sagging issues and will adjust the plan as needed, Thanks for your thoughts.

 

[Kiki]

Please don't take this the wrong way BUT sometimes you won't know what you have til you build it.
Kinda like that movie Field of Dreams...Build it and they will come.
Make sure you use the hardwire cloth as a skirt too.

 

[Gail Laubenthal]

Please don't take this the wrong way BUT sometimes you won't know what you have til you build it.
Kinda like that movie Field of Dreams...Build it and they will come.
Make sure you use the hardwire cloth as a skirt too.

Yes, thanks...we do plan to extend the hardware cloth as a skirt.

 

[Gail Laubenthal]

With the weather hitting 100 degrees before 1PM, we had a short morning working on the coop. I am thrilled that we got both end walls partially done, as well as the 5 pieces of cattle panel (just tacked down for now). We have the ridge pole in and braced as well. A cold front is coming in this weekend, so we are hoping that the lower temps (89-90) will allow us to get further along. My husband is a retired math teacher, so it was interesting to see how he made sure the base boards that formed the perimeter were square...used my phones scientific calculator...didn't even know I had one. I am getting to do some of the screwing, too. I have been watching lots of women doing the work on DIY network, so I have more confidence with these power tools.

 

[Gail Laubenthal]

We have our half-hoop coop framed with all of the cattle panel frame attached. My husband continues to take his time with this project since it is a first for us (and he is a bit of a perfectionist). We only had to purchase 2 full sheets of panel because we had so much that was used for other fencing areas (also have a small herd of sheep). I will continue to post pictures as we go, as well as give some explanation of the materials used. We will have a front and back chicken door, which will be able to be opened and closed from the outside. The next step will be to apply the next skin that will cover the wire...we are not using chicken wire! We welcome questions and comments.

 

[snow5164]

You guys did a great job!! It looks amazing !!

We all have different predators and weather conditions to deal with .I'll keep my 6 feet of snow we had this year and you can keep the snakes

 

[aart]

The next step will be to apply the next skin that will cover the wire...we are not using chicken wire!

I will continue to post pictures as we go, as well as give some explanation of the materials used.

So what's the next 'skin'?