walk in diy chicken coop

[Molliep2]

Not sure whether to build a coop or purchase one. Does anyone have any ideas or recommendations? Thanks!

 

[cavemanrich]

All depends on your budget and what your needs are. The entry level coops for $200 are OK if you are not sure what chicken keeping is all about. These are only good enough to house 2 or 3 chickens. All over exaggerate the capacity and say they can hold 6 chickens, when in reality only 2 or 3 semi comfortably. They are cheap quality as well, and will not last very long. A good starter coop for peeps that are not even sure if they want chickens long term. Spend $900 and you can get something better that may be able to handle 6 chickens, and last longer.
If you build your own, assuming you have the tools and knowledge on basic building,,,,,,,, your costs will be half that of a purchased one. Many peeps have a lot of excess materials laying around, and some seek out cheap or free materials, like on Craig's list.
My choice option I like to recommend is re-purposing a garden shed into a coop. Find a new or used one the desired size/capacity and go from there. The Vinyl sheds available in most home centers work very well .
WISHING YOU BEST ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, and

 

[Dmontgomery]

I have not yet seen a prefab chicken coop anywhere that is worth the money. If you want quality you will have to build your own or hire a local contractor.

 

[aart]

Not sure whether to build a coop or purchase one. Does anyone have any ideas or recommendations? Thanks!

How much do you want to spend?
Best bet is find shed plans and build it yourself... with some modifications to accommodate chickens(like large roof over hangs for open eaves for winter ventilation and lots of top hinged glazed windows for summer ventilation and winter light.)

 

[lazy gardener]

Check out the little book published by Sunset: "Sheds and Garages". It's a great starter reference for someone who has no building experience. It explains the terminology as well as common building techniques, and has plans for various size sheds and storage buildings.

The absolute smallest size I would consider building or purchasing for a starter flock: 4 x 8 walk in, shed style. If you buy a short little doll house coop, it will NOT last, it will not be sufficient to meet the needs of a small flock comfortably, and you will pay more for that than you would for materials to build a 4 x 8 walk in style.

If this old biddy (62 years old) can build coops, green house, and chicken tractors, a coop building project is within the means of the average flock owner/starter.

 

[JDN]

I have not yet seen a prefab chicken coop anywhere that is worth the money. If you want quality you will have to build your own or hire a local contractor.

I've seen them, but they are a lot of money, close to $1,000...

OP, what's your climate like?