Chicken Coops for Sale in Wheaton, Illinois
Chicken Coops for Sale in Wheaton, Illinois
Our Finished Chicken Coop
These past few days had us outside enjoying the beautiful weather. One of the jobs I crossed off the list was to clean out our new chicken coop.
Because of our over the past year or so, our family was going through several dozen eggs a week. (I can’t help it – I’m hooked on !)
So last summer we quit “planning” to get our own chickens, and actually did it. The whole family pitched in to build a little abode for our egg-laying beauties. And because we were first-time chicken owners and newbies in all chicken-related topics, we joined and gleaned months worth of ideas, do’s and don’ts, and building plans. (I can’t recommend this site highly enough! If you have the slightest inclination of doing chicken anything, go here and read to your heart’s content.)
It was so helpful to see photos and designs when we were in the planning stages, I thought I’d share pictures of our coop and the hows and whys of what we did.
The chicken coop
Instead of starting from scratch, we bought a small granary from my brother-in-law; about 9’x7′ inside measurements. This gave us about 3 sq. ft. per bird. The coop is nothing fancy really. It isn’t visible from the road and we don’t live in town with neighbors to care about the view from their back window, so we used as much scrap material as possible. Plus we didn’t think the chickens would mind.
So far they haven’t rebelled.
We re-tinned the roof (that’s my honey!) and I got to use the saw sawl to make holes for the windows and vents. You can call me Mrs. Handyman. . .
Inside the chicken coop
Framing the windows and vents was the most time consuming part since the building wasn’t square. We used insulation and vapor barrier for the walls for added moisture protection and warmth because the windchill can get -40 below or more in the winter.
We made the roosting boards parallel and the same height because apparently hens will act like old biddies and fight for the top most board. (Some people’s kids. . .)
We rounded the edges of the roosting boards so it’s easier on the hens’ feet. The boards can be removed for ease of cleaning the poop boards underneath.
Poop boards seemed quite popular among chicken peoples and we’ve quickly learned why. First, chickens poop more when roosting, so the roosting boards are placed above the poop board. This makes clean up as simple as buying a wide sheetrock mudding tool and scraping the droppings into a bucket each day. We then add the droppings to our compost pile.
We originally built a rollaway community nesting box directly underneath the poop board, but the chickens ended up laying eggs everywhere but there. Eventually we added a ‘normal’ set of 12″x12″x12″ nesting boxes and they’re happy campers again.
We decided to use the deep litter method. We spread a bag of wood chips on the floor and because the hens leave most of their droppings on the poop boards, there’s minimal waste on the floor. The chickens like to scratch and fluff the wood chips so it gets stirred up and aerated. This means the coop is less smelly, and there’s only a few minutes of daily cleaning of the boards. If needed, you can add more wood chips throughout the year.
We clean the coop out fully in the spring and fall. So far it’s worked wonderfully.
We nailed a board across the doorway to prevent the rising litter from falling out every time we opened the door.
The feeders are gravity fed. They’re made of PVC pipe with a 90 degree corner and a cap at the end. We like that we can leave for several days at a time and don’t have to worry about having someone come out to do chicken chores for us.
This water stand was Travis’s idea. The hens have a platform to stand on so no matter how high the litter gets, they can reach the water comfortably.
The chicken nipples underneath are another idea shared by BYC that I LOVE. The water doesn’t drip, there is no poop or mud to worry about, and our full grown hens figured it out within 24 hrs. The pails are covered with lids to prevent the water from getting dirty and it lasts for at least a week (we add apple cider vinegar).
When we’re home, we clean them out and give them fresh water every few days.
There’s electricity on the wall above the waterers with a timed light switch. We use bird bath heaters to keep the water from freezing during the winter. We had to add the slanted plywood because the hens were roosting on the pails. (I told you they fought for highest roosting privileges.)
The pop door is a simple design, and it works great. It slides up and down, held in by L shaped boards.
When in the closed position, the hook and eye on the right prevent racoons (or children!) from trying to lift the door from the outside.
We used 1/2″ x 1/2″ hardware cloth to cover the insides of the windows and vents. . .
. . .and plexiglass for the actual windows.
We made sure to have plenty of vents (thanks to sage advice from Pat’s Ventilation Page) and used eyes and rope to open and close them at different heights.
Finally, we added a small lean-to to the side so the hens could come out in the winter. This helps block snow drifts right in front of the pop door, and they can still come out for fresh air and sunshine when they get cabin fever.
It might not win a beauty contest – but there’s something to be said for function-ability Hope this gave you some ideas!
What have you done to your chicken coop? We’d love to hear your ideas and suggestions!
shared with: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Related Posts
Latest posts by Paula ()
- - March 22, 2016
- - January 28, 2016
- - January 22, 2016
Chicken Coop Pictures in Wheaton, Illinois
A good place to start any search is the internet. Simply plugging in the phrase "chicken coops for sale in Wheaton Illinois" 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 Wheaton Illinois chicken coops. What to look for when buying a chicken coop in Wheaton, Illinois With the massive increase in chicken maintaining there has actually been an equally huge increase in the range of chicken paraphernalia for sale. Chicken housing is a proceedings in factor. It's additionally a classic instance of the great old bandwagon being jumped on as numerous prospective fowl housing experts peddle a range of lodging asserting to be the optimal option to your chicken real estate needs. Often the price looks appealing, your diy-chicken-coop-planshome looks eye-catching, heck also the clean-cut family members standing there feeding the chickens look eye-catching. Surely they understand a quality chicken house when they see one? There are many cheap and awful cages swamping the marketplace. I recognize this as I've examined a variety of them in the field, and seen a ewe run directly via one when the feed container showed up. The result was nothing but a pricey pile of fire wood and a tiny flock of bemused and now homeless bantams.
Chicken Coop Building Plans in Wheaton, Illinois
Typically these standardized models are constructed of fast grown wood - come the initial drop of rainfall they swell, leaving you either defending a doorway that will not shut, or tearing the doorway furniture off in a vain effort to release the squawking residents. The initial cozy day suggests the wood dries and also splits, the felt roof covering bubbles as well as boils, and come nightfall the hens refuse to enter. This is not due to their disappointment at the decrease of their once desirable property yet since the hovel is currently a haven for, and most likely crawling with, the chicken keeper's bane, red mite. Add that it claimed on the blurb that it would match 4 large chickens when that stocking thickness was based upon the Circle Line at 5pm on a Friday, as well as exactly what are you entrusted? A number of joints as well as some kindling. A decent coop for thee to 4 birds should cost you in the region of ₤ 300 though this could rely on whether you elect for a complimentary standing house or one with a run connected. Thinking you are varying your birds in a large area and the pop opening doorway allows enough for the type you keep, after that the primary needs of housing come down to 3 factors which will certainly define the number of birds your home will hold; perches, nest boxes and ventilation. Most types of chicken will certainly perch when they visit roost at night, this perch ought to preferably be 5-8cm large with smoothed off sides so the foot sits pleasantly on it. The perch must be higher than the nest box access as chickens will additionally naturally search for the highest point to perch. A perch below that will certainly have the birds roosting in the nest box overnight (which is incidentally when they generate the most poo) resulting in stained eggs the list below day. They should not nonetheless be so high off the floor of your home that leg injuries might occur when the bird gets down in the morning. Chickens require concerning 20cm of perch each (in little types this is undoubtedly less), plus if more than one perch is installed in your home they need to be greater than 30cm apart. They will certainly hunker up with their next-door neighbors yet are not that keen on roosting with a beak in the bloomers of the bird ahead. Ideally the house needs to have a the very least one nest box for each 3 birds and also these ought to be off the ground as well as in the darkest area of your house. Your house needs to have appropriate air flow: without it after that condensation will develop every night, even in the coldest of climate. Realize, air flow deals with the concept of cozy air leaving via a high void attracting cooler air in from a lower void - it's not a collection of holes on contrary walls of your home and also at the same level, this is just what's referred to as a draught. If you have a house with a run connected after that the factors above are still real, however you need to likewise take into consideration the run size. The EU optimum lawful equipping thickness for a totally free variety bird is (as well as let's encounter it, one of the motivations for keeping some chickens at home is possibly boosted or better welfare) 2,500 birds each hectare, that's optimal one bird per 4m squared. Take a close check out several of the deal residences - it could well be your home has the ideal perches, correct ventilation as well as sufficient nest boxes for a reasonable number of birds, yet 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 exactly what you spend for". You may assume you've grabbed a bargain, yet you as well as your flock can rue the day you did. Acquisition the appropriate house and it will certainly last for a couple of decades, if not longer given the right therapy. Eventually your poultry and also your poultry keeping experience will certainly be much the much better for it.coop chick
More Posts
Chicken Coops for Sale in Marietta, Illinois
Chicken Coops for Sale in Lansing, Illinois
Chicken Coops for Sale in Crystal Lake, Illinois
Chicken Coops for Sale in Broadview, Illinois
Chicken Coops for Sale in Elgin, Illinois