Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Chicken coop design

Anyone have a cheaper and easier build or design for a chicken coop? Looking at something to hold 12 chickens. Looking for ideas.

PM me with your ph #, I'll text you photos of my coop

Sounds good. Thanks

Photo sent, built just prior to increase in lumber prices. Installed an automatic door so they can free range and feed during the day, they're pretty good about getting back inside by dark. The most important part to me is the nesting box access from the outside, keeps you from having to inside the coop for eggs. Because mine free range, they don't need a lot of space. At max, I had 9 hens and 2 roosters in this space but the roosters went on a one way ride. Now I'm in the process of building a duck enclosure, daughter "rescued" two ducks from Tractor Supply that were apparently too big to sell so they were headed to the glue factory (or where ever they send ducks).

One thing we did that was critical is a wire "apron" on the outside of the coop, about 24" that is attached to the bottom and goes away from the coop. This prevents predator "diggers" from tunneling under the coop. Also used "hardware cloth - wire fencing material, about 1" opening" on the lower portion of the coop. Before this addition, we had racoons literally reach in and grab the chickens and eat them through the fence.

Lol. Got your photo!

Good resource and design ideas here: Backyard Chickens

Thanks.

Yeah, you can get real fancy with a hen house/chicken coop.


Think in advance about the need to maintain it, i.e., clean it out and change the wood shavings for fresh periodically. Think in terms of easy access to nest boxes from the outside.

Will do Hawk.

I just had the Mennonites down the road build me one that looks like a school house. Looks great. Put an automatic chicken door on top.

Let's see it.

Make sure it has 2 doors. If you install 4 doors it becomes a "chicken sedan"!

😀

Had them match the barn too

I built this simple shed design for my wife to house 10-12 laying hens. 8'x10' 2x4 studs and rafters, corrugated steel roofing and car siding. 5 nesting boxes and 3 tier roost. 2 Hinged windows with hardware cloth covering for ventilation. Rear guillotine ingress/egress door. Wired for ceiling lights (keep laying in winter) and receptacle to plug in waterer.

I bought a pre made shed, put a Ladies First automatic door in. Money well spent.

I am going to make different nesting boxes.

Here's one the wife will love but your eggs will cost $145/doz.