Chicken Coops for Sale in Grenada, California
Chicken Coops for Sale in Grenada, California
Tropical Chicken Coop Construction – Ch.1
Tropical Chicken Coop Construction – Ch.1
I have been helping our friends build a chicken coop so that they can start raising there own hens and producing their own eggs. The week before I helped them build a compost pile so that they could start composting their yard waist on a larger scale, now we move into coop development. After researching different designs and methods for building a coop I decided to go with one that would fit well in the tropics. Much like San Diego, you don’t have to worry about a freeze or the chickens getting to cold, however you do need to be concerned with other natural elements like predators, tropical rain storms, gusty winds and too much heat. Taking this into consideration I designed a coop that would protect the hens from the elements, yet be opened up enough to allow a breeze and shade for the hens to grow in.
Chicken Coop Design
Chicken Coop Plans
The structure of the coop is 4x8x8. It is 4 ft wide by 8ft long and 8ft high at its highest point. The floor of the hen house is three feet off of the ground. There is a thatched roof covering the length of the coop to keep out the rain and sun. The roofs highest point is at 8ft (in the center) dropping down to 6ft on the front side, and 7ft on the back side. This allows for a consistent air flow throughout the coop
Chicken Coop Plans (Side Views)
I designed the coop on paper, worked out the measurements and then we started putting it together after we picked up the supplies. As expected we made a few adjustments as we began to put the coop together to fit the surroundings a little better. One thing that I didn’t keep in mind was the slope that we would be working on, this eventually elevated the ‘run’ side a little more giving the hens an extra 6 inches to play around in.
Chicken Coop Supplies (So Far)
- 3 4×8′ 1/2″ pieces of plywood
- 20 2x4x8′ studs
- 12 2x2x8′ studs
- 1 6x2x8′ stud
- 2 4×8′ roofing sheets
- 1 4×50′ roll of chicken wire
- 1 box 3.5″ screws
- 1 box 2″ screws
- 6 hinges
- 3 latches
- 4 cinder blocks
Chicken Coop Structure
Putting up the Frame
After we picked a location by the mango tree, the first thing that we did was put together the frame. This would be our skeleton if you will, everything else would be built off of the frame. As mentioned before the frame of the structure is 4ft wide by 8ft long. We put 6ft posts on the front side, 7ft posts on the back side, and two 8ft posts on the ends (for the roof). Notice the cinder blocks used to give us a level playing field, not the prettiest look, this is something that we will fix up as we finish the project.
Chicken Coop Construction
Putting Up the Walls
After we got the frame up we started to work on the hen house itself, this is where then hens will go to lay their many eggs in the future. We closed off the floor and the back wall first because these are permanent, no doors or latches needed. In this picture you can see that we also added a few more frame pieces for the roof, this was because of the type of roofing that we decided to go with. You will be able to see why when we finish.
Hen House Layout
Building the Hen House
Once we put in the permanent walls and floor we began building the doors that would allow us access into the hen house for cleaning and feeding. This front door section will open up giving us plenty of room to work around the hen house.
Nesting Boxes
The Nesting Boxes
The Nesting Boxes came next on our plans. We decided to do two rows of boxes 4 boxes deep. This gives us a total of 8 nesting boxes. Each box is 12″x12″12″. We started the bottom row 6 inches off of the floor and the next row 12 inches above that. We left a 3″ over hang to give the hens something to climb up to before entering their boxes. We also put a 4.5 inch lip on the front of the boxes making the entrance to the boxes 7.5″x12″. We did this to give the hens more protection and less room to move around. This should prevent them or the other hens from eating their eggs once they began producing.
Entrance for Eggs
Behind the nesting boxes, on the outside of the hen house we installed two barn style doors to give us easy access to all of the boxes, thus giving us easy access to the eggs down the road. This will also make it easier for cleaning an maintenance when the time comes.
Hen House Entrance
Hen House Entrance
This last image is of the entrance into the hen house, this was the last thing that we finished up to this point. We still have the roof, chicken wire enclosure and last minute adjustments. As you can see the Tropical Chicken Coop is coming along just fine. We are almost there but not quite yet. Once we get some more time to work on it we should be able to wrap up this project and move the hens in. Eggs are on their way!
Tagged , ,
Chicken Coop Building Plans in Grenada, California
A good place to start any search is the internet. Simply plugging in the phrase "chicken coops for sale in Grenada California" 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 Grenada California chicken coops. What to look for when buying a chicken coop in Grenada, California With the huge boost in chicken keeping there has been a similarly big surge in the range of poultry stuff for sale. Chicken housing is a proceedings in point. It's also a timeless instance of the excellent old bandwagon being got on as various prospective poultry housing professionals peddle a range of holiday accommodation claiming to be the suitable option to your chicken real estate demands. Typically the cost looks attractive, your house looks desirable, heck even the clean-cut household standing there feeding the chickens look attractive. Certainly they know a professional chicken house when they see one? There are many affordable and also unpleasant cages swamping the marketplace. I know this as I've tested a number of them in the field, and seen a ewe run directly through one when the feed bucket appeared. The outcome was just an expensive pile of firewood and also a tiny flock of bemused and now homeless bantams.
Baby Chicken in Grenada, California
Generally these mass produced versions are constructed of fast grown up wood - come the very first decline of rainfall they swell, leaving you either barricading a door that will not shut, or ripping the doorway furniture off in a vain effort to launch the squawking residents. The very first cozy day suggests the lumber dries out as well as cracks, the felt roof covering bubbles as well as boils, and come nightfall the chickens refuse to enter. This is not as a result of their frustration at the decline of their once desirable apartment yet considering that the hovel is now a haven for, and probably abounding, the fowl keeper's nemesis, red mite. Add on that it claimed on the blurb that it would certainly suit four huge chickens when that stocking density was based on the Circle Line at 5pm on a Friday, and what are you left with? A few joints as well as some kindling. A good coop for thee to four birds should cost you in the region of ₤ 300 though this can depend upon whether you elect for a complimentary standing house or one with a run affixed. Assuming you are ranging your birds in a huge area and also the pop opening door is big sufficient for the breed you maintain, then the main requirements of housing boil down to 3 factors which will certainly define the variety of birds your home will certainly hold; perches, nest boxes as well as ventilation. Most types of chicken will certainly perch when they go to roost at night, this perch must ideally be 5-8cm broad with smoothed off sides so the foot rests easily on it. The perch ought to be higher than the nest box entrance as chickens will likewise naturally search for the highest point to perch. A perch below that will have the birds roosting in the nest box over night (which is incidentally when they generate one of the most poo) causing stained eggs the following day. They shouldn't nonetheless be so high off the flooring of your home that leg injuries might happen when the bird comes down in the early morning. Chickens require regarding 20cm of perch each (in tiny types this is obviously much less), plus if greater than one perch is installed in the house they ought to be more than 30cm apart. They will certainly hunker up with their next-door neighbors yet are not that crazy about roosting with a beak in the bloomers of the bird in front. Ideally the house should have a the very least one nest box for every three birds and also these should be off the ground and also in the darkest location of your house. Your house must have appropriate ventilation: without it after that condensation will accumulate every night, even in the chilliest of climate. Be aware, ventilation works on the principle of cozy air leaving with a high void attracting cooler air in from a reduced gap - it's not a collection of openings on contrary walls of your house and at the very same level, this is just what's known as a draught. If you have a house with a run affixed after that the factors above are still real, but you ought to likewise take into consideration the run dimension. The EU maximum lawful stocking density for a totally free range bird is (as well as allow's face it, among the inspirations for keeping some chickens at home is potentially improved or better welfare) 2,500 birds each hectare, that's optimal one bird per 4m squared. Take a close check out several of the bargain residences - it could well be the house has the best perches, appropriate ventilation and enough nest boxes for a reasonable variety of birds, however will each of the chickens have anything more than an A4 sized piece of ground to spend the day on? Therefore as the saying goes, "you get exactly what you spend for". You could think you've got hold of a deal, yet you and your group can rue the day you did. Acquisition the best house and it will last for a few years, otherwise longer given the correct treatment. In the end your fowl and your chicken keeping experience will be considerably the better for it.chick coops
More Posts
Chicken Coops for Sale in Gridley, California
Chicken Coops for Sale in Fort Bidwell, California
Chicken Coops for Sale in Fowler, California
Chicken Coops for Sale in Arcata, California
Chicken Coops for Sale in Gilroy, California