If you want to have chickens than a chicken coop is a must have. Not only will it provide is it going to provide shelter from the elements, but it will also protect against predators and provide a place for the hens to lay eggs.
I remember when I first went looking around the hardware store at chicken coops I couldnt believe how much they were. The materials to build them cost less than $100 (I did a comparison); however, they wanted to charge me $300+.
If you want to save yourself a bunch of money and still have a nice looking chicken coop than read on. Ive prepared a basic outline of what you should do.
The first step in every successful project is proper planning. Every time I dont follow the 6 Ps my projects always run into trouble. Heres where you think of how many chickens are going to be living in the coop. Are you going to be starting with chicks or bantams (that affects feeder and waterer height). How many of your chickens are going to be hens? Where are the nests going to go? (I put mine along the edges of the coop). A big factor will be sunlight. How many windows are you going to put in? If you cant get a window on each side youre going to need to install a light.
By thinking of everything that can go wrong before you start building your coop you can avert a lot of hair pulling. After youve been through those questions you have to think about where your chicken coop will be placed in your yard.
An important factor in the winter placement of your coop will be where it faces in the winter. You should have at least one window that faces southward where the warm sun can get in. If you have any bushes or hedges make sure your coop is several feet away from them because thats where the snakes and rodents live (and they like chicken). Always remember that youre going to need to clean the coop so have a couple feet of clearance around all the edges.
Now that weve thought about all the problems and where its going to go its time to figure out the design. For this I recommend getting a good set of plans. I tried building my coop without plans and it did not turn out the way I expected it to. There are quite a few good plans available on the internet.
Before you start building anything gather all your materials! Youll save a lot of time if you have everything available. Trips to the store cost time and increase frustration. Common things youre going to need are: wood (2" x 4"), cinder blocks, chicken wire, insulation, hammer, nails, screws and shingles.
Now that youve gathered the materials you need its finally time to build! This project can be built in a weekend so choose a weekend thats going to be good weather and start building. Youll be surprised at how fast you can build a backyard chicken coop. There are a couple more tips I can give you. Make sure to provide good ventilation through screen windows and doors (chickens dont like being wet, and if its wet and cold it can cause health problems). When laying out the screen for the run make sure to bury some screen about a foot deep and attach it to the run. This will prevent predators from digging underneath and getting in.
I hope Ive helped alleviate some of your concerns about building a backyard chicken coop. Remember, if you do all the planning first you will save yourself the headache and frustration of trying to figure it out later.
I remember when I first went looking around the hardware store at chicken coops I couldnt believe how much they were. The materials to build them cost less than $100 (I did a comparison); however, they wanted to charge me $300+.
If you want to save yourself a bunch of money and still have a nice looking chicken coop than read on. Ive prepared a basic outline of what you should do.
The first step in every successful project is proper planning. Every time I dont follow the 6 Ps my projects always run into trouble. Heres where you think of how many chickens are going to be living in the coop. Are you going to be starting with chicks or bantams (that affects feeder and waterer height). How many of your chickens are going to be hens? Where are the nests going to go? (I put mine along the edges of the coop). A big factor will be sunlight. How many windows are you going to put in? If you cant get a window on each side youre going to need to install a light.
By thinking of everything that can go wrong before you start building your coop you can avert a lot of hair pulling. After youve been through those questions you have to think about where your chicken coop will be placed in your yard.
An important factor in the winter placement of your coop will be where it faces in the winter. You should have at least one window that faces southward where the warm sun can get in. If you have any bushes or hedges make sure your coop is several feet away from them because thats where the snakes and rodents live (and they like chicken). Always remember that youre going to need to clean the coop so have a couple feet of clearance around all the edges.
Now that weve thought about all the problems and where its going to go its time to figure out the design. For this I recommend getting a good set of plans. I tried building my coop without plans and it did not turn out the way I expected it to. There are quite a few good plans available on the internet.
Before you start building anything gather all your materials! Youll save a lot of time if you have everything available. Trips to the store cost time and increase frustration. Common things youre going to need are: wood (2" x 4"), cinder blocks, chicken wire, insulation, hammer, nails, screws and shingles.
Now that youve gathered the materials you need its finally time to build! This project can be built in a weekend so choose a weekend thats going to be good weather and start building. Youll be surprised at how fast you can build a backyard chicken coop. There are a couple more tips I can give you. Make sure to provide good ventilation through screen windows and doors (chickens dont like being wet, and if its wet and cold it can cause health problems). When laying out the screen for the run make sure to bury some screen about a foot deep and attach it to the run. This will prevent predators from digging underneath and getting in.
I hope Ive helped alleviate some of your concerns about building a backyard chicken coop. Remember, if you do all the planning first you will save yourself the headache and frustration of trying to figure it out later.
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