Chicken Coops for Sale in Imogene, Iowa
Chicken Coops for Sale in Imogene, Iowa
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 Blueprints in Imogene, Iowa
A good place to start any search is the internet. Simply plugging in the phrase "chicken coops for sale in Imogene Iowa" 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 Imogene Iowa chicken coops. What to look for when buying a chicken coop in Imogene, Iowa With the big boost in chicken maintaining there has actually been a just as large increase in the range of chicken stuff on sale. Fowl housing is a proceedings in factor. It's also a timeless example of the excellent old bandwagon being got on as different potential poultry housing professionals peddle a range of holiday accommodation claiming to be the perfect option to your chicken real estate demands. Typically the rate looks eye-catching, your diy-chicken-coop-planshome looks attractive, hell even the clean-cut family members standing there feeding the chickens look attractive. Definitely they know a quality chicken house when they see one? There are many economical and also unpleasant coops swamping the marketplace. I understand this as I've checked a number of them in the field, and also seen a ewe run straight via one when the feed bucket appeared. The outcome was only an expensive heap of firewood and a tiny flock of bemused and also now homeless bantams.
Chicken Coop Plans Free in Imogene, Iowa
More often than not these standardized designs are constructed of quick grown up hardwood - come the initial drop of rainfall they swell, leaving you either fortifying a door that won't shut, or ripping the doorway furnishings off in a vain effort to release the squawking occupants. The initial warm and comfortable day suggests the hardwood dries and also cracks, the felt roofing system bubbles and boils, and also come nightfall the chickens choose not to enter. This is not due to their frustration at the decrease of their as soon as eye-catching property however due to the fact that the hovel is now a place for, as well as possibly abounding, the fowl keeper's nemesis, red mite. Add that it said on the blurb that it would certainly match four huge chickens when that equipping thickness was based upon the Circle Line at 5pm on a Friday, and also just what are you entrusted? A few joints and also some kindling. A suitable coop for thee to four birds should cost you around ₤ 300 though this could depend on whether you elect for a totally free standing house or one with a run affixed. Presuming you are ranging your birds in a big room and the pop opening door is big sufficient for the type you keep, after that the major needs of housing boil down to three points which will certainly specify the number of birds the house will certainly hold; perches, nest boxes and also air flow. The majority of breeds of chicken will certainly perch when they go to roost during the night, this perch ought to ideally be 5-8cm broad with smoothed off sides so the foot sits easily on it. The perch ought to be more than the nest box entrance as chickens will likewise naturally try to find the acme to perch. A perch less than that will certainly have the birds roosting in the nest box overnight (which is by the way when they generate the most poo) resulting in dirtied eggs the following day. They should not however be so high off the floor of your home that leg injuries could possibly occur when the bird gets down in the morning. Chickens require concerning 20cm of perch each (in little types this is undoubtedly much less), plus if greater than one perch is mounted in the house they should be more than 30cm apart. They will hunker up with their neighbors but are not that keen on roosting with a beak in the bloomers of the bird in front. Ideally your home should have a least one nest box for every single three birds and also these ought to be off the ground and in the darkest location of your home. Your house needs to have appropriate air flow: without it then condensation will certainly accumulate every evening, even in the coldest of weather condition. Know, air flow deals with the principle of warm air leaving with a high void drawing cooler air in from a reduced gap - it's not a collection of holes on opposite wall surfaces of your home and also at the very same level, this is what's referred to as a draft. If you have a house with a run affixed after that the points above are still real, however you ought to likewise consider the run size. The EU optimum lawful equipping thickness for a cost-free array bird is (and let's encounter it, among the inspirations for keeping some chickens at home is possibly improved or far better welfare) 2,500 birds per hectare, that's maximum one bird per 4m made even. Take a close consider some of the deal homes - it could well be the house has the right perches, proper air flow and sufficient nest boxes for a practical variety of birds, yet will each of the chickens have anything greater than an A4 sized piece of ground to invest the day on? And so as the stating goes, "you get exactly what you pay for". You might think you've got a deal, however you and also your flock could rue the day you did. Purchase the appropriate house and also it will last for a couple of years, if not longer provided the right treatment. In the end your poultry and your fowl maintaining encounter will be considerably the better for it.diy plan
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