chicken coop the begining need a few pointers ???

[craigpix2000]

I managed to grab 2hrs today to make a strat on building the frame please note i am no handy man far from it i usually hide when our lass wants DIY doing :D
the height of the sides off the ground will be 4ft2"
and the lenth is 5ft2"
the small sides will be 4ft 3" long


some of the wood i managed to source for free from work ;)

the sides x 2 done



the base ive made it raised but will probably be laying it on flags if it isnt high enough

just to see what it looks like



please note on that pic it looks to leen to 1 side it doesnt but the part of lawn i tried it on slopes so it gives the impression its wanky lol

on the 2 shorter sides 1 will be the door with a window so it will be easy to clean
and the other side will have the nest boxes and a opening into the run or would the nest boxes be ok in the house near the main door atatched to the back :dry:

The base im either thinking marine ply the bottom or just use the wood ive got to make it a full floor im going to use mdf on the inside walls with some cardboard for insulation or should i marine ply the sides or leave them as they are the bottom of the base will be chicken wired

the sides pictured is that going to be 2 much ventelation should i fill some of the gaps or just fine mesh it to stop anything getting in or just turn it upside down and use it for underneath vetalaiton and just chicken wire it :dry:

all comments apreciated please note im a novice builder so easy explanations are better lol

[perchy]

Good morning and welcome to the forum, unfortuantely we cannot see your photo's and I am no good with measurements, but you do seem to be on the right track.

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viewtopic.php?f=3&t=16462" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[craigpix2000]

thank you for that pics now sorted

[foghornleghorn2]

I wouldn't use MDF or cardboard. They don't like damp.

Look forward to your piccies

[craigpix2000]

measurements for the main coop
lenth 5ft 2"
width 4ft2"
height 3ft3"

the connecting run
lenth 22ft
width 9ft

can any of u people tell me hom many birds i could house i was originally going to get 4hens but looking at the space maybe able to geta few 1 or 2 more rescue hens

[Totally Scrambled]

Morning Craig,
In the coop each bird needs about 8" width of perch space, if you are having more than one perch then they need to have about 10" between them. Then you can work out how many hens will fit. For a perch a length of 2" x 2" works well but remember to round the top edges off so it's more comfy. You may find that being ex batts that they won't use a perch to sleep anyway.
The run space is more important as there is no point filling the coop to capacity if they don't have enough room to exercise and too little room can lead to boredom, bullying etc.
Each hen needs about 10 sq feet of run space and I make your run to be 198 sq feet which means you could fit 19 chooks in it. The more run space per bird the better though
Dom

[Richard]

Hi Craig,

Legally you have 20 chickens in there, but I wouldn't go that far, too busy.

Ample room for 6 / 8 Chickens though. The only downer is there's more poo to clear out, but you've got space to work in, so all is fine there.

Richard

[foghornleghorn2]

Ahh piccies now visible

I would beef up the base, by the time you have sides and a roof on I feel the base may flex and possibly snap. I would run some 2x4 or 2x6 bearers across the base, whichever fits best.

I would keep the vents at the top and cover them with a fine mesh to keep pests out.

Looking good

[craigpix2000]

6/8 chickens sounds enough for me thanx for the help every 1 i really want to go down the rescue birds route but ive been told by a few people they are alot of hard work for people new to chickens

[craigpix2000]

Ahh piccies now visible

I would beef up the base, by the time you have sides and a roof on I feel the base may flex and possibly snap. I would run some 2x4 or 2x6 bearers across the base, whichever fits best.

I would keep the vents at the top and cover them with a fine mesh to keep pests out.

Looking good

thanx for that if i can move the shed its on a (concrete base) nothing will burrow under it then im going to atatch the sides to it and the base will be then just for the floor, if i after put it onto the grass then i will beef it up like u say for sitting the sides on

[Richard]

6/8 chickens sounds enough for me thanx for the help every 1 i really want to go down the rescue birds route but ive been told by a few people they are alot of hard work for people new to chickens

If you're getting 4 'posh' birds now and adding some ex-battery hens, you could leave that until Spring when the weather is a bit better.

Ex-battery hens aren't really extra work, you just need to keep an eye on them at first, be prepared that you may lose one (some don't take the change very well) and watch out for punch ups with the existing birds!

There's not a lot Forum Members can't help you with, so I wouldn't worry.

Looking good though - well done!

Richard

[rhubarb93]

6/8 chickens sounds enough for me thanx for the help every 1 i really want to go down the rescue birds route but ive been told by a few people they are alot of hard work for people new to chickens

Hi. I don't think ex-batts are any more trouble than normal ones. I started with 3 ex-batt girls in July, was a complete novice, and have had no problems (touch wood very quickly!), but I've read on the forum of lots of people having problems with all sorts of chooks.

So if you fancy rescuing, go ahead and do it! It's lovely watching them blossom.

[Steve the Gas]

Welcome Craig

Weldmesh is better to use rather than chicken wire, this is not fox proof.....