So you want to build a chicken coop? Not too sure about your level of DIY skills? Having difficulty finding a starting point? Limited by cash?
It’s alright, believe it or not most people that choose to keep birds felt precisely the same when they started!
Here are 5 ideas that could give you enough information to let you get started and avoid some common mistakes that could easily turn your project into a nightmare!.
Tip 1 – Look:
It may sound simple, but loads of people attempt to build a chicken coop without giving enough thought to how the coop will look when it is finished! If the plan that you are using does not contain a picture then do a rough drawing based on the dimensions in the plan. Same applies if you are planning your own hen house. Draw it first and then work your way back from there.
Another idea is to take a look at the color sheme that you are planning. Your coop will be there for a long time, are you sure that you really want lime green as the main color?!
Tip 2 – Design:
The design of your coop will be the principal thing to whether you like rearing chooks and whether you get heaps of fresh eggs on a frequent basis.
When you build a chicken coop bare in mind that the whole thing should be kept as simple as possible. If the eggs are awkward to gather because the doors release the wrong way or are too heavy, if the coop is difficult or too fiddly to clean, if your chooks do not have sufficient light, air, roosts, nests or find it difficult to get to their food and water then you are heading for a disaster.
Some easy measures to reduce problems involve;
* sloping the floor slightly to reduce puddling,
* having the coop doors opening outwards,
* having egg collection doors by the nesting boxes so that you do not have to traipse through the coop to collect the eggs.
Tip 3 – Security:
Your hens will require protection in two ways when you build a chicken coop
1. protection from the elements
2. protection from predators
Protection from the elements.
You will have guessed that a weatherproof coop is a necessity, but how about the run? If you include a run then covering it is unquestionably a great idea as this will serve as shelter from the weather and other animals.
Hens function their best when they have a coop that is kept at a consistently comfortable temperature. Aeration is in but drafts are definitely out, so make sure that the windows and ventilation holes are placed where they offer the most air with the least draft. Insulating the hutch is also a cool suggestion as this will help to keep it cool in sunny weather as well as warm in winter.
Protection from predators.
There are many animals both feral and domestic that would like to have your chooks for dinner so bare in mind the security of your chooks when you build a chicken coop.
Other actions like fixing a wire guard over the coop windows and doors, attaching lockable doors on the house, digging your run fence into the ground and covering your run are effortless steps that you can take.
Tip 4 – Location:
The next most vital issue when you build a chicken coop is where you position it.
In a perfect world the site should be in the open, on free draining ground, if possible on a slight hill, and sited so that it gets the maximum sunlight with the least draft.
It doesn’t matter how nice-looking the position that you pick is, if you build a chicken coop in a hollow, under trees and where it catches the most wind and least sunlight then your chooks will not be comfortable.
Tip 5 – Get Well-informed
There are a lot of folks who have spent thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours just trying to build a chicken coop. Depending on which description you look at the regular American is likely to spend somewhere from $250 – $500 erecting their own chicken enclosure. The big shame is that according to the various chook farming forums on-line scores of of these people are still not 100% happy with their pen and struggle with it on a day by day.
A good idea will contain plenty of light and air in your enclosure. It will be comfy for your hens to lay in and straightforward for you to look after, wipe and gather the eggs from. It will also item areas where you can conserve money on materials.
Many people that build a chicken coop do so by ‘trial and error’, they squander both time and money by erecting first and fixing up the blunders afterward, but by having the right plan when constructing your chicken enclosure you will cut down the process and make sure that you get it right first time – saving you both time and money.
Fortunately there are a great selection of plans available for when you want to build a chicken coop that contains all the essentials with easy peasy step by step instructions. Click Here to find out how to make building a chicken house a breeze – In fact I bet it even makes your neighbors jealous and your eggs taste better!
Shortcut to important knowledge about house train a dog – please make sure to study the site. The times have come when proper info is truly at your fingertips, use this opportunity.
