Plastic Chicken Coop

[sev]

I am new to the site and the forum and wondered if anyone has any tips on how to convert a plastic shed into a chicken coop/house. Adding access for the birds, laying area and perches. Any advice would be appreciated.

[lancashire lass]

Have you already got a plastic shed or considering buying one (new or second hand)? And do you already have any diy skills, particularly woodworking?

Sometimes it helps to see what the basics of a coop are to give you an idea of what you should be considering for your converted shed coop - have a look at the various coops people have had (click on this LINK - it should take you to the last page of members coop photos, and work your way back ... unfortunately Photobucket has removed photos from earlier pages so you might struggle to see if you started from page 1) or google "convert plastic shed to coop" and click on images.

First - make holes and add some ventilation slots (which you can open / close depending on the weather) near the roof area - they'll help when coops get hot especially in summer, and allow warm to escape in summer. Secondly helps to reduce some of the condensation especially in winter - plastic surfaces are usually worse than wood) Poor ventilation and condensation (high risk of moulds developing) can cause breathing problems for chickens

You might need to build a wood frame inside the plastic shed on which to build nesting areas and to fit perches. If the shed is big enough for you to walk in, you probably don't need access to the nest box from outside the coop to collect eggs (if that's why you want to keep chickens) - in which case, you could make a shelf on which to construct nest boxes. A nest box is basically a shelf which is subdivided so that only one chicken will fit in, with a front ledge so that straw (and egg) doesn't fall out (in my home made coop, I use a deep rectangular washing up bowl partially filled with straw which is the same thing, and easier to clean) Importantly, it has to feel safe - so a nest is typically dark and out of the way of traffic (chickens in and out of the coop) and perches. Don't forget to add ramps up to the nesting areas - don't expect chickens to fly down as most breeds will land heavily like a sack of potatoes and risk injury especially to their feet (... bumblefoot)

For the chickens to enter and exit the shed, near where I live someone used a board as a ramp that also served as a door. A hole just smaller than the board was cut out about 6 inches above floor level, and a wooden frame built on so it made it easier to screw in a latch for the door and fit 2 door hinges. In a morning, the door would be unlocked (latch at the top) and dropped down as a ramp for the chickens to enter and exit the shed. At the end of the day when the chickens went to roost, the ramp was just lifted up and latched to keep the fox and other small predators from entering at night.

Hope that helps sev, and good luck with your project

[Richard]

Hi there

I can't really add anything to Lancashire Lass's informative post.

Forum Moderator Wendy had an old Plastic Bunker she converted, but alas, due to photobucket not allowing to link photos anymore, cannot direct you to it.

Some have converted old Wendy Houses (nothing to do with Moderator Wendy !!).

Plastic definitely makes cleaning a lot easier and great;ly reduces the red mite problem.

Richard

[wendy]

Yes mine was a double wheelie bin holder. Had it for about 10 years.
Didn't have the red mite problems I had with the wood house.
Easy to wash out completely and dry with an old towel in 40 odd minutes.

[kitla]

http://www.downthelane.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=5920&start=45
about 2/3 down this page there's one that someone did.
I bought the same shed years ago with the intention on making it into a coop, dhmade me a lovely pop hole door that opened down to become a little ramp. However, I had 4 young cockerels at the time & I discovered that plastic isnt a very good sound insulater. The shed is now my chicken food & bedding store.

[Sandra M]

I Have a 10ft by 8ft plastic shed I have it in the middle of a large run I use cat litter trays with lids for nest boxes and drain pipe for perches I didn't cut a little door because it is in the middle of the run I just leave the door open then shut it at night the run is made of heras panels.

[sev]

Many thanks to all for all the advice and help

[sev]

Hi All again,
What would you guys advise on the floor area of a run.
I plan to pave the area of the new run that I am going to obtain. The run will be at least 4M x 2M or may be larger.
Is it imperative that they have an area to scratch the earth? I have a couple of hens at the moment in a smaller set up and they are digging their way to Aussie.

[manda]

You need to work on an absolute minimum of a square metre per chicken...and really double that is better. The more space they have the less likely you are to get health problems and fighting.....4x2 you could 4 hens in there easily - 6 at a push (I wouldn't though).

They like digging - they look for bugs and worms...they'll also create hollows and sit / dust in them.

You could put something with some sharp sand and dirt in so they can do that without digging (the shell paddling pools are a common thing for that) ...but if you leave earth they'll dig in it regardless of what you provide...because they can

You could pave some and leave them some to dig in ...it is what they like doing....leave an area with dirt and put some bits of wood in there ...bugs will come and they will love it.