Backyard Chicken Coop Plans
Backyard Chicken Coop Plans
Backyard Chicken Coop Plans
There are chicken coop plans widely available at local building centers and online. Many online plans are a free download and most have a list of all the materials you'll need for completion. The best chicken houses, however, are built by hand with your own needs in mind.
As you plan your chicken housing, be sure to account for the number of hens you plan to have and the climate you live in. Adult chickens require 4 sq ft of space (Bantams require half that). This means that if you plan to keep three egg layers, you will need twelve square feet of space to do it.
Usually, however, the more space you provide, the happier the chickens will be. Larger spaces means less squabbling, more exercise, and less illness.
There are also chicken coop kits available that have all of the construction materials included. These are usually sized for about three chickens and can be cost prohibitive.
If you just want a couple of hens, you can buy a ready made coop and run online. Most of these kits will sit directly on the ground and will not be proof against predators. They are convenient, however, because they can be easily moved. As a secondary "day pen," they can be perfect as a way to easily allow movement to fresh areas of the yard.
Be wary of building materials that can be a hazard to both birds and eggs when building your own. Pressure treated lumber often has arsenic in it, which will be ingested when the hens peck at the wood. Lead and aluminum based paints should also be avoided. Anything your chicken eats can end up in her eggs and thus on your plate.
Chicken wire is not very good for keeping out predators. Many predators can go right through chicken wire, including dogs, skunks, opossums, raccoons, and more.
When you are thinking about your chicken coop plans, chicken wire should only be used on the bottom of the cage to keep predators from digging under. When digging under, the predator won't have the leverage required to break through the wire, so it's a good deterrent. He'll get discouraged and give up.
Protect your chickens with heavier gauge wire on the sides and top of your pen. Even with a place for locking down chickens at night, predators will still probably try to break into the coop to get to the grain or water.
If there are raccoons in your area, you may have to use a padlock to keep them out of the coop. Many is the farmer whose come out to disaster when only a slide bolt or hasp was used to keep raccoons at bay. So keep in mind the predators in your area when building your chicken coop plans.
A diy chicken coop can be the beginning of a fun, enoyable hobby for you and your family.
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