Chicken Coops for Sale in Rogersville, Alabama
Chicken Coops for Sale in Rogersville, Alabama
Transform Your Little Tikes Playhouse into a Chicken Coop
When I started pestering my husband about chickens (again), I knew I was fighting an uphill battle. He did not want to spend a bunch of money and time on the construction of a suitable coop. We’d already been down the road of improper chicken housing before, and it wasn’t a road that either of us wanted to travel again. But I really, REALLY wanted to give chicken keeping another try. And I thought that with a little bit of forethought, we could eliminate the challenges we ran into before. For starters, the birds would need enough space. And the coop would need to be easy to clean. And most importantly, the coop would need to be secure. Nothing like coming home to find your chickens walking along the 6′ high wall that surrounds your yard! But to construct this type of set up from scratch would cost quite a bit of money in materials, not to mention all the time and sweat it would take for the hubs to actually BUILD the thing.
**This post contains Amazon Affiliate Links. That means that purchases made through my site will provide me with a small commission at no additional cost to you. These funds help to keep Homespun Sprout up and running.
So then I started scouring the internet trying to find the best deal on a “coop in a box”. I had my eye on but the price tag was a bit hefty. (It’s actually on sale for 58% off right now if you happen to be in the market for a pre-fabricated coop!) Not only was the hubs not excited about building a chicken coop, he also wasn’t excited about the idea of another “thing” in the yard. Our yard was already overrun with toys, bikes, gardening tools, a composter, and our very well-loved Little Tikes Playhouse. So as I sat in the yard one spring evening watching the kids play with everything BUT the playhouse, I got to thinking… Why couldn’t we just turn the playhouse into a chicken coop?!?! I didn’t tell hubs about the idea right away. Instead, I began looking at the structure of the playhouse to see if my idea would even work. Guys, I swear, this thing was MADE to become a chicken coop! It had everything we needed! The house is large enough for me to walk inside to rake it out, it has plenty of space for a nesting box, waterer, food, and a roosting bar. And it even came with a little cut out section near the floor (picture a doggy door) so the chickens could access the run we built behind it! I sketched out an idea of the modifications that we would need to make, and I presented my idea to the hubs. Guess what? He went for it! It was PERFECT. The structure was already built. We wouldn’t have to add another “thing” to our already tiny yard, and the best part? It’s totally incognito. No one would EVER suspect chickens were living in the playhouse! That night, I ordered our chicks! So how did we transform the playhouse? Well, let’s take a tour, shall we?
The first thing we did was cover all the openings with garden wire. Hubs had a roll of this laying around from some other project. He used drywall screws to attach the wire to the windows. The coop actually stayed like this for a while. While the chicks were still small, it was best for them to be confined to a smaller space, so not having a run wasn’t an issue.
Next the hubs built the run. You can see the “doggy door” in the bottom left corner…this is how the chickens get in and out of the house. The run is a pretty simple A-frame structure made out of 1″x 1″ pine pieces. The frame was made in sections and the wire was screwed on to each section as it was assembled. The top of the run lifts up so I can climb in and rake out the poo. I just prop it open with an upside down rake and jump on in.
The corners are all secured with these nifty . And the whole top piece is attached to the frame with some thin chains that act as a hinge. Here is a picture of the chains.
The brown plastic covering you see on this window is actually the cover to our sand and water table. The hubs cut it to fit over the largest window to break some of the wind in the winter. He used more drywall screws to attach it to the house.
Inside the coop, we attached a roosting bar (made out of an old broom handle) to the side of the house using a simple scrap of wood to attach it.
Here is a look at one side of the roosting bar. The other side just sits on the “mantle” inside the house.
My favorite part about the coop is the nesting box. Hubs attached a recycling bin to the wall using a couple brackets. It’s the PERFECT size for a comfy chicken laying box. And it’s up high so there’s a little privacy. We did cut it down a bit…chickens are not very bright creatures…they were afraid to go inside when the lip of the box was up higher.
The is hung from the ceiling by a thin chain (to keep the birds from standing on it), and the just sits on the floor. The set up is working BRILLIANTLY for us. The birds are happy and laying an egg per chicken per day (even though it’s winter), and it is all super easy to care for. The best part is that we were able to make this transformation for a whopping $46. I can’t say enough about how awesome chicken are…I’m pretty sure my kiddos would agree! Think you might transform your little tikes playhouse into a chicken coop?
Here is the complete list of materials and tools we used to make our playhouse into a chicken coop. Our chickens have been living in the coop for 8 months, and it’s still holding up great!
Hardware
- , to secure wire to playhouse
- to secure wire to wood frame
- to hang feeder from inside coop
Tools
- – for cutting the wire
- (for pounding staples)
- for cutting 1 1/2″ pieces of wood
Chicken Coop Small in Rogersville, Alabama
A good place to start any search is the internet. Simply plugging in the phrase "chicken coops for sale in Rogersville Alabama" into any one of the numerous search engines and a wealth of information will pop up. This information will provide links to other websites that will be informative and will provide the right direction for finding Rogersville Alabama chicken coops. What to look for when buying a chicken coop in Rogersville, Alabama With the substantial rise in chicken maintaining there has been a just as huge surge in the array of chicken materiel on sale. Chicken housing is a case in factor. It's likewise a classic instance of the excellent old bandwagon being got on as different potential poultry housing specialists peddle a selection of holiday accommodation claiming to be the excellent remedy to your chicken real estate needs. Usually the price looks eye-catching, your diy-chicken-coop-planshome looks desirable, hell even the clean-cut family members standing there feeding the chickens look eye-catching. Definitely they recognize a top quality chicken house when they see one? There are many economical as well as horrible cages flooding the market. I know this as I've examined a number of them in the field, and also seen a ewe run straight through one when the feed container showed up. The result was just a costly heap of firewood as well as a small group of bemused as well as now homeless bantams.
Chicken Coop For 4 Chickens in Rogersville, Alabama
Most of the time these mass produced models are built of quick grown hardwood - come the very first decline of rain they swell, leaving you either blockading a doorway that will not close, or ripping the door furnishings off in a vain attempt to launch the squawking occupants. The very first warm and comfortable day suggests the timber dries and also fractures, the really felt roofing system bubbles as well as boils, as well as come nightfall the hens choose not to go in. This is not due to their dissatisfaction at the decrease of their as soon as attractive property however considering that the hovel is now a sanctuary for, as well as probably crawling with, the poultry caretaker's bane, red mite. Add the fact that it said on the blurb that it would fit 4 large hens when that stocking density was based upon the Circle Line at 5pm on a Friday, as well as just what are you left with? A couple of joints and also some kindling. A suitable coop for thee to four birds need to cost you around ₤ 300 though this can depend upon whether you elect for a cost-free standing house or one with a run connected. Assuming you are varying your birds in a big area and the pop opening doorway allows enough for the breed you maintain, then the primary requirements of real estate come down to three factors which will certainly specify the variety of birds the house will certainly hold; perches, nest boxes and air flow. The majority of types of chicken will certainly perch when they visit roost in the evening, this perch needs to preferably be 5-8cm large with smoothed off sides so the foot sits conveniently on it. The perch should be more than the nest box entrance as chickens will likewise naturally look for the acme to perch. A perch less than that will certainly have the birds roosting in the nest box over night (which is by the way when they produce one of the most poo) bring about soiled eggs the following day. They should not nonetheless be so high off the flooring of the house that leg injuries could possibly happen when the bird gets down in the early morning. Chickens need about 20cm of perch each (in small breeds this is undoubtedly less), plus if greater than one perch is set up in the house they ought to be more than 30cm apart. They will certainly hunker up with their neighbors however are not that crazy about roosting with a beak in the bloomers of the bird ahead. Preferably the house should have a least one nest box for every single three birds and these need to be off the ground as well as in the darkest location of your house. The house ought to have adequate ventilation: without it then condensation will certainly accumulate every night, also in the chilliest of weather condition. Understand, ventilation works with the concept of cozy air leaving with a high gap drawing cooler air in from a reduced space - it's not a collection of openings on opposite walls of your house as well as at the very same level, this is what's referred to as a draught. If you have a house with a run affixed after that the points above are still true, yet you should likewise think about the run dimension. The EU maximum lawful equipping thickness for a free range bird is (and also allow's encounter it, among the inspirations for maintaining some hens in the house is possibly improved or much better welfare) 2,500 birds each hectare, that's optimal one bird per 4m settled. Take a close check out several of the deal houses - it could well be your home has the ideal perches, right air flow and also enough nest boxes for a sensible number of birds, yet will each of the chickens have anything more than an A4 sized item of ground to spend the day on? Therefore as the saying goes, "you get just what you pay for". You might think you've got a deal, but you as well as your flock might rue the day you did. Purchase the right house and also it will last for a couple of decades, otherwise longer given the right treatment. In the long run your poultry and your chicken maintaining experience will be a lot the better for it.chick plan
More Posts
Chicken Coops for Sale in Brookwood, Alabama
Chicken Coops for Sale in Gallant, Alabama
Chicken Coops for Sale in Normal, Alabama
Chicken Coops for Sale in Boaz, Alabama
Chicken Coops for Sale in Pinckard, Alabama