Chicken Coops for Sale in Southington, Connecticut
Chicken Coops for Sale in Southington, Connecticut
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!
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Chicken Coop Basics in Southington, Connecticut
A good place to start any search is the internet. Simply plugging in the phrase "chicken coops for sale in Southington Connecticut" 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 Southington Connecticut chicken coops. What to look for when buying a chicken coop in Southington, Connecticut With the substantial rise in chicken keeping there has been an equally big increase in the variety of fowl paraphernalia on sale. Poultry real estate is a situation in point. It's likewise a classic example of the good old bandwagon being jumped on as different prospective fowl housing professionals pitch a selection of holiday accommodation claiming to be the ideal solution to your chicken real estate requirements. Typically the rate looks appealing, your house looks attractive, hell also the clean-cut family standing there feeding the chickens look appealing. Surely they recognize a professional chicken house when they see one? There are several inexpensive as well as awful coops flooding the market. I know this as I've tested a variety of them in the area, as well as seen a ewe run directly via one when the feed bucket appeared. The result was only a pricey stack of firewood and also a tiny group of bemused and now homeless bantams.
Chicken Coop Run in Southington, Connecticut
Typically these standardized models are created of fast grown up wood - come the initial decline of rainfall they swell, leaving you either barricading a doorway that will not shut, or ripping the doorway furniture off in a vain effort to launch the squawking residents. The very first warm and comfortable day suggests the lumber dries and also cracks, the really felt roof covering bubbles and also boils, and also come nightfall the hens refuse to go in. This is not due to their frustration at the decline of their as soon as appealing property but since the hovel is now a haven for, as well as possibly crawling with, the poultry keeper's nemesis, red mite. Add on the fact that it claimed on the blurb that it would suit four big chickens when that stocking density was based upon the Circle Line at 5pm on a Friday, as well as what are you entrusted? A number of joints and some kindling. A good coop for thee to 4 birds should cost you around ₤ 300 though this can depend upon whether you elect for a totally free standing house or one with a run connected. Assuming you are ranging your birds in a huge space and also the pop opening door is big enough for the breed you keep, after that the primary needs of real estate boil down to 3 points which will specify the number of birds your house will certainly hold; perches, nest boxes as well as ventilation. Most types of chicken will certainly perch when they visit roost at night, this perch needs to preferably be 5-8cm broad with smoothed off sides so the foot rests comfortably on it. The perch needs to be more than the nest box access as chickens will certainly also normally look for the acme to perch. A perch lower than that will certainly have the birds roosting in the nest box overnight (which is incidentally when they produce the most poo) resulting in stained eggs the list below day. They shouldn't however be so high off the floor of your home that leg injuries could possibly occur when the bird gets down in the early morning. Chickens require concerning 20cm of perch each (in tiny types this is certainly less), plus if more than one perch is set up in your house they need to be greater than 30cm apart. They will certainly hunker up with their next-door neighbors but are not that keen on roosting with a beak in the bloomers of the bird ahead. Ideally your home must have a least one nest box for every three birds and these must be off the ground and in the darkest area of your home. Your home must have sufficient ventilation: without it then condensation will accumulate every evening, even in the chilliest of weather condition. Realize, ventilation works on the principle of warm air leaving via a high space attracting cooler air in from a reduced space - it's not a collection of openings on contrary walls of your home and also at the same level, this is exactly what's referred to as a draught. If you have a house with a run attached then the points above are still real, but you must likewise think about the run dimension. The EU maximum legal equipping thickness for a totally free variety bird is (and let's face it, among the motivations for maintaining some hens in your home is potentially boosted or better welfare) 2,500 birds each hectare, that's maximum one bird each 4m squared. Take a close consider a few of the deal houses - it could well be your home has the appropriate perches, right air flow and adequate nest boxes for a sensible variety of birds, but will each of the chickens have anything more than an A4 sized item of ground to invest the day on? Therefore as the saying goes, "you get what you pay for". You might believe you've grabbed a deal, yet you and your group could possibly rue the day you did. Purchase the ideal house and it will certainly last for a couple of decades, if not longer offered the correct treatment. Eventually your chicken and also your poultry maintaining encounter will be much the better for it.coop build
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