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Chicken Coops for Sale in Geneva, Minnesota

Chicken Coops for Sale in Geneva, Minnesota

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!

 

 

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I’m Paula - like many of you I wear a lot of hats. Child of God, wife of 19 years, mother of 5 earthly children (and another on the way), reluctant cook, chocolate-snatcher, and health and fitness coach at . Various family health issues including Lyme disease and candida has turned me into a 'researcher' with a passion for understanding how our God-created bodies thrive or deteriorate based on what we put in it.

Latest posts by Paula ()

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Chicken coops for sale in Geneva Minnesota can be found in agricultural newspapers and community newspapers. The coops are designed for housing for chickens in a safe and secure environment. They generally consist of a small building or large box that is then sectioned off to smaller boxes where the chickens go to roost (or sleep). Chicken coops are a must for raising chickens. Geneva Minnesota chicken coops are commonly constructed from wood products. They are not very stable buildings and provide only minimal protection from the elements. Now chicken houses used for large production facilities are a entirely different structure, they are huge and can hold up to 10000 chickens. The coops are typically used for backyard operations, or small family farms. They vary in size depending on the number of residents they house. chicken-coops-in-Geneva-MNFinding chicken coops for sale in Geneva Minnesota is probably not one of the easiest of items to find. There are manufacturers of chicken houses and coops that sell them out right and Geneva Minnesota farm supply stores that they can also be purchased through, but generally speaking it will take some effort to find a chicken coop for sale in Geneva Minnesota, especially if your location is not a typically rural location. In rural locations that are much more abundant and easily had. Chicken Coops for sale in Geneva MN

Chicken Coop Out Of Pallets in Geneva, Minnesota

A good place to start any search is the internet. Simply plugging in the phrase "chicken coops for sale in Geneva Minnesota" 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 Geneva Minnesota chicken coops. What to look for when buying a chicken coop in Geneva, Minnesota With the massive boost in chicken maintaining there has been a similarly big surge in the range of chicken stuff on sale. Fowl housing is a situation in factor. It's additionally a classic example of the great old bandwagon being got on as different prospective chicken housing specialists market a range of accommodation claiming to be the ideal solution to your chicken real estate demands. Often the cost looks eye-catching, your house looks attractive, heck also the clean-cut household standing there feeding the chickens look appealing. Surely they recognize a high quality chicken house when they see one? There are numerous cheap and horrible cages swamping the market. I understand this as I've tested a variety of them in the area, as well as seen a ewe run straight via one when the feed container appeared. The outcome was just a costly heap of fire wood as well as a tiny group of bemused as well as now homeless bantams. Chickens for sale in Geneva MN

Chicken Coop Yard Design in Geneva, Minnesota

Typically these mass produced designs are built of rapid grown up wood - come the initial drop of rainfall they swell, leaving you either blockading a doorway that won't shut, or ripping the door furnishings off in a vain effort to release the squawking citizens. The very first warm and comfortable day indicates the timber dries and also fractures, the felt roofing system bubbles as well as boils, as well as come nightfall the hens refuse to go in. This is not as a result of their disappointment at the decrease of their once eye-catching apartment however since the hovel is now a place for, and also probably abounding, the chicken keeper's bane, red mite. Add on that it said on the blurb that it would certainly suit four large hens when that equipping density was based upon the Circle Line at 5pm on a Friday, as well as what are you entrusted? A few hinges as well as some kindling. A decent coop for thee to 4 birds must cost you approximately ₤ 300 though this can depend on whether you elect for a free standing house or one with a run affixed. Thinking you are varying your birds in a big area and also the pop opening door allows enough for the breed you maintain, after that the major requirements of housing boil down to 3 factors which will certainly define the number of birds the house will hold; perches, nest boxes and also air flow. A lot of types of chicken will certainly perch when they visit roost at night, this perch should ideally be 5-8cm broad with smoothed off sides so the foot sits easily on it. The perch should be higher than the nest box entrance as chickens will also normally search for the highest point to perch. A perch below that will 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 list below day. They should not nevertheless be so high off the flooring of your home that leg injuries could possibly occur when the bird comes down in the early morning. Chickens require about 20cm of perch each (in small breeds this is certainly less), plus if greater than one perch is installed in your home they should be more than 30cm apart. They will hunker up with their neighbors yet are not that keen on roosting with a beak in the bloomers of the bird in front. Preferably your home needs to have a least one nest box for every 3 birds and these ought to be off the ground and also in the darkest area of your house. Your house must have sufficient ventilation: without it then condensation will develop every night, also in the coldest of climate. Understand, ventilation works with the concept of cozy air leaving through a high void drawing cooler air in from a lower void - it's not a set of openings on opposite wall surfaces of your house as well as at the very same level, this is just what's referred to as a draft. If you have a house with a run affixed then the factors above are still true, however you should likewise think about the run size. The EU maximum legal equipping thickness for a complimentary variety bird is (as well as allow's face it, one of the motivations for keeping some chickens at home is possibly enhanced or better well-being) 2,500 birds per hectare, that's maximum one bird per 4m squared. Take a close look at some of the deal houses - it could well be the house has the best perches, appropriate ventilation as well as enough nest boxes for an affordable variety of birds, however will each of the chickens have anything greater than an A4 sized item of ground to invest the day on? Therefore as the saying goes, "you get just what you pay for". You might assume you've got hold of a deal, yet you and also your group could possibly rue the day you did. Purchase the best house as well as it will certainly last for a few decades, if not longer provided the proper treatment. Ultimately your poultry and also your chicken keeping experience will be considerably the better for it.
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