Chickens!

[steveh_131]

I'd be interested to see some chicken coop designs.

Do any of you that raise chickens feel like sharing some pictures and ideas?

I'd like to get some chicks this year and build a coop. I've done some research but I'm curious what works the best here in Indiana, especially dealing with cold temps like we had last winter. I'm mostly going for eggs. I don't think that I can keep a Rooster, I only have a half acre and I don't think the neighbors would appreciate it.

Whaddya got, Chicken enthusiasts?

 

[eldirector]

Tagging for interest.....

I'm waiting on my accountant (wife) to approve the coop design and funds, and then get started!

 

[Scutter01]

My preferred coop. It's not very roomy, though.

 

[Indy_Guy_77]

I should take pictures of my folks' moveable coops (they have a few acres of fenced pasture).

Relatively easy to make, I think, but my step-dad is a cabinet/furniture maker as well - so building things like that are somewhat "easy" for him.

It'd take me a month to build an open-bottomed moveable coop. LOL

-J-

 

[KLB]

Have you been to TSC yet? Or are you just wanting to build one?

 

[steveh_131]

Have you been to TSC yet? Or are you just wanting to build one?

Planning to build one. I have quite a bit of treated scrap lumber around, but I'm wondering if chemicals from it could be an issue.

Anyways, I'd like to keep it fairly inexpensive but still attractive (for the wife).

 

[Sgt7330]

https://www.indianagunowners.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=28649&d=1399651224

The bottom picture is how the coop is now. I liked the look of the open coop design, but where I live it liked to blow over and wasn't as secure. The coop is now ground anchored. The wife and kids wanted more chickens, so I closed it up and used some free dog kennel panels from a neighbor. Later, I covered the top of the yard with the black plastic raspberry netting. It keeps the flyers in, and the red tail hawks out. Everything likes to eat chicken, including me. We have dealt over the years with hawks, owls, fox, coyote, mink are especially tough, and the worst has been stray dogs. (I have shot 3 who wouldn't take the warnings and kept killing or trying to dig in the yard)
I like some of the fancy built coops I have seen for sale locally here off Interstate 74 exit 123, I think the Amish folks are building them. They are nice, might get one for the wife soon when this coop gets worn down. You can use or make about any thing into a chicken coop. I've seen people use mini-barns and fence w/posts for the yard. It looks pretty good.

 

[eldirector]

Unless I see something better, this is the one I plan on building:
Hen House & Hutch Design

It is actually bigger than I need, so I may scale down the dimensions a little. They neighbor has an unused dog run I may buy, too. would make a fine chicken run, and I can sell the left-over sections.

 

[Leadeye]

Shibumi might post something on this, he has a good chicken coop setup or rather chicken fort. In the southern woods everything looks at chickens like a free buffet.

 

[steveh_131]

Unless I see something better, this is the one I plan on building:
Hen House & Hutch Design

It is actually bigger than I need, so I may scale down the dimensions a little. They neighbor has an unused dog run I may buy, too. would make a fine chicken run, and I can sell the left-over sections.

Interesting. How many chickens are you hoping to have?

A few questions for veterans regarding this design:

1. There is a 1 1/2" vent opening all along the back wall. Is this still necessary in the dead of winter, or do you need a way to close off ventilation so that they won't freeze?

2. The external nesting boxes seem common in every design I've seen. In the winter, wouldn't they get really cold with all sides but one exposed to the air? Do the eggs freeze?

3. That's a pretty small coop....I've read 4 square feet is necessary per large hen. Have you found this to be true, or can you pack them in there a little tighter?

ETA:

4. For winters with -20 degrees like we just had, should I consider double walls with insulation in between?

 

[Archbishop]

No need to insulate. They really will take care of themselves. Not a good idea to go below 4 sq ft per chicken. They can start pecking each other a bit more with less room. Vent is need all year round. Eggs will freeze if left out too long.
Chickens are a lot of fun. If I can locate pictures of our coop I'll load them up.

 

[eldirector]

Interesting. How many chickens are you hoping to have?

Only about 3 or 4, which is why I thought about shrinking the dimensions a bit. Probably one of the smaller breeds, too. I'll also give them a run that is about 3-4' by 6-8'. Should be plenty of room. We may let them run the yard now and then, as well. The back yard is about 1/4 acre fenced. I'll have to keep them out of the garden, though.

In the winter, they'll likely get a lamp to simulate daylight and help with some warmth. Probably a heated waterer, too.

My sister has "city chickens" in Indianapolis. Hers are in a small unheated coop with 3x6 attached run. She stuck them in the garage for a few days (in a dog kennel) when the temps got crazy cold this winter. No issues in several years. Food, water, and clean the coop/run routinely, and she gets a couple of eggs a day. After a few years, she gets fried chicken, too!

 

[88GT]

1. There is a 1 1/2" vent opening all along the back wall. Is this still necessary in the dead of winter, or do you need a way to close off ventilation so that they won't freeze?

Yes. Ventilation is a must all year long. I recommend Gail Damerow's book on keeping chickens. Very easy to read and understand, but complete.

2. The external nesting boxes seem common in every design I've seen. In the winter, wouldn't they get really cold with all sides but one exposed to the air? Do the eggs freeze?

External nesting boxes make collecting the eggs easy. Yes, they will freeze. No, it isn't a problem if you put them in the fridge immediately. Or at least we have not had any negative impacts from it. The flip side of that coin is that the eggs don't have to be refrigerated either, but once they are, they need to remain so.

3. That's a pretty small coop....I've read 4 square feet is necessary per large hen. Have you found this to be true, or can you pack them in there a little tighter?

Yes and no. The number is critical if you keep the birds confined in the coop 24/7. It's less critical if you give them ranging room during daylight hours. That said, there's still a minimum necessary for the ranging space. But if the coop is only used as a bedroom, you can get by with something slightly smaller. Provided the birds have the temperament for it, that is. And they will come out if given the choice. Confinement is forced on them. They will not naturally stay in the coop.

ETA:

4. For winters with -20 degrees like we just had, should I consider double walls with insulation in between?

No. They are dumb and will come out of the coop regardless of the weather, but they are hardy birds. Heat is more likely to kill than cold. My coop (see pics below) has no insulation and is simple construction, WYSIWYG. I did wrap the run in plastic over the winter to mitigate the wind and increase the greenhouse effect. It stayed about 10-15 degrees warmer in the run than the outside temp. They can acclimate to the cold temps very well. Only one "tooth" on one bird's comb got frost bit this past winter.


Here's my coop/run. We used the house as a wall. The coop was an emergency purchase. We weren't waiting to get the chickens any longer, but we knew we wouldn't have time to build them a proper coop space. The run was easy. The posts aren't even set in concrete. So when we move it this summer (fingers crossed) and rebuild, it's just a matter of pulling them out.

This is the west-facing side. We used car siding on the left side of the door to provide shelter against the elements. It is a great place for them to hunker down in the winter. The door is a farm screen door from Menards, $30-something. The framing is just 2x4.

This is the south side. The tarp on the top was used to keep the snow out this winter. I don't normally tarp/plastic the top, but this winter was particularly harsh. The snow sitting on top of the tarp was a great insulator too. I will take the tarp down this weekend and probably won't put it up again until the super hot summer days. Keeping it covered lowers the temps by 10-15 degrees. What you can't see is that the back 1/3 of the roof is covered with 2x10s. They come out as far as the car siding.

The food and water. These are hanging under the 2x10 roof so they stay sheltered from the elements as well. For the most part. Occasionally the food will get soaked, but they eat it anyway. And there's never more than a day and a half worth of food so it isn't there long enough to go moldy. They don't use the perch. Instead, they like to bed underneath the actual coop as the earth there is still soft and scratchable.

The run is about 9x7. The coop is about 2x4 and can house 4-6 birds, depending on size. I have 4. 2 Barred Rocks and 2 Rhode Island Reds. If you make a permanent coop (not a tractor, the move-able kind), put pea gravel over sand. You'll thank me later.

(The dog house is a hospital coop that is destined for demolition as soon as I get the chance.)

 

[88GT]

You can get coop design ideas from backyardchicken.com. It's also a great place to learn. It's the chicken keeper version of INGO.

 

[shibumiseeker]

Interesting. How many chickens are you hoping to have?

A few questions for veterans regarding this design:

1. There is a 1 1/2" vent opening all along the back wall. Is this still necessary in the dead of winter, or do you need a way to close off ventilation so that they won't freeze?

Do NOT cut off ventilation in the winter. They are more likely to suffer frostbite if you do so because there is more moisture closer to the surface of the skin.

2. The external nesting boxes seem common in every design I've seen. In the winter, wouldn't they get really cold with all sides but one exposed to the air? Do the eggs freeze?

Eggs do freeze but it takes some time. If you collect in the morning and evening it isn't really an issue.

3. That's a pretty small coop....I've read 4 square feet is necessary per large hen. Have you found this to be true, or can you pack them in there a little tighter?

Depends on how long they will be "cooped up" in there. If they are allowed out daily then a smaller coop isn't an issue. I've had 12 birds in a 3'x4' coop for a week while I was away. My current coop has roosts throughout it so they make pretty good use of the space. I wouldn't keep them in that small a space without allowing them to range though.

ETA:

4. For winters with -20 degrees like we just had, should I consider double walls with insulation in between?

No. They need decent air circulation to prevent them from having the problems I mentioned above. Get a cold hardy breed and let them acclimate. It is NOT good for them to go from a warmer to colder environment repeatedly. Add some small heat lamps if you must, but don't put them in an insulated box, just feed them high energy grain and make sure they have plenty of liquid water as much as they want and they'll do fine.

My coop is 4' off the ground with a 1/2" welded wire mesh on the bottom and the two long sides with only the short sides a solid wall and I've been caring for chickens like this for about eight years now and never lost one to cold. Lost plenty to predators and why I will go berserker on raccoon.

 

[88GT]

Point to emphasize: chicken wire is unacceptable to keep predators out. Hardware cloth or welded wire mesh is essential.

 

[spencer rifle]

Our coop was a cast-off that we cut in half to fit in our old dog pen. The dog died, so the chickens took over the fenced in area. When we let them run in the yard they dig through all our mulch and make a big mess. Now making a chicken tractor to move them around the yard and between the pen and the garden. Ours stopped laying during the deep freeze, but putting a light on a timer got them laying again in a week. Our former girls (all killed by possums and raccoons) were ISA browns, who layed all winter without any additional light. This crew (two black sex-link, one Rhode Island red and one ISA brown) needed the light. ISA browns are very hardy and great layers, but not easy to get. The RIR lays HUGE eggs - one had a triple yolk - must be why she is always cranky.

 

[3steps]

My coop is 7' x 4' with an attached run of about twice that size. I have 9 chickens. That is a good number, more would get too crowded for me to say that the eggs come from happy chickens. My coop has a solar panel that powers a radio to keep predators away and to power the automatic door. With the auto door, we can leave for 3-4 days without needing to worry about a chicken sitter.

INGOers have given you lots of great advice. I will add a little more on chicken breeds. ISA Browns, Golden Buffs, Black sex-linked, and Leghorns are bread to be very productive layers - for 2 years. After that they often burn out and start to have health problems. In comparison, my Australope and Barred Rock are a little less productive, but have been good layers for 3+ years. I would recommend sticking with all high producers or all hearty duel purpose breeds. I time will come when you will need to replace the flock. Having girls of a similar laying expectancy will make that easier. Another breed I recommend is Salmon Faverolle. They are very friendly and lay consistently even in the winter when there is less light.

Also keep in mind that chickens do not start laying until they are ~5 months old. People often get chicks before a coop. When they are small they can live in the basement or garage. Watching how quick the chicks grow can be a great motivator for getting the coop done in a timely manor.

 

[SkinNFluff]

tagging for later. i will try to get some pictures of our coops.

 

[cburnworth]

I built a a frame coop during the summer & had planned on closing it up for the winter. I had 2 nesting boxes & 2 roosting rods and a middle area completely open. in the winter they got moved to the former dog house area( 7x12 area that the dog used to inhabit. I placed a door with latch on it, added some 2x4 for roosts & built a raised nesting box in it. I also purchased a thermostat & a heated water tank. the thermostat kicks on between 32 & 45 degrees. I usually left the door cracked open enough for the girls to get out if they wanted to. when it was warm I got 4-6 egg's a day & durning the winter it was 2-4. I had also gotten 4 more(for a total of 10) but they hadn't started laying yet.