Chicken Coops for Sale in Pulaski, New York
Chicken Coops for Sale in Pulaski, New York
Transform Your Little Tikes Playhouse into a Chicken Coop
When I started pestering my husband about chickens (again), I knew I was fighting an uphill battle. He did not want to spend a bunch of money and time on the construction of a suitable coop. We’d already been down the road of improper chicken housing before, and it wasn’t a road that either of us wanted to travel again. But I really, REALLY wanted to give chicken keeping another try. And I thought that with a little bit of forethought, we could eliminate the challenges we ran into before. For starters, the birds would need enough space. And the coop would need to be easy to clean. And most importantly, the coop would need to be secure. Nothing like coming home to find your chickens walking along the 6′ high wall that surrounds your yard! But to construct this type of set up from scratch would cost quite a bit of money in materials, not to mention all the time and sweat it would take for the hubs to actually BUILD the thing.
**This post contains Amazon Affiliate Links. That means that purchases made through my site will provide me with a small commission at no additional cost to you. These funds help to keep Homespun Sprout up and running.
So then I started scouring the internet trying to find the best deal on a “coop in a box”. I had my eye on but the price tag was a bit hefty. (It’s actually on sale for 58% off right now if you happen to be in the market for a pre-fabricated coop!) Not only was the hubs not excited about building a chicken coop, he also wasn’t excited about the idea of another “thing” in the yard. Our yard was already overrun with toys, bikes, gardening tools, a composter, and our very well-loved Little Tikes Playhouse. So as I sat in the yard one spring evening watching the kids play with everything BUT the playhouse, I got to thinking… Why couldn’t we just turn the playhouse into a chicken coop?!?! I didn’t tell hubs about the idea right away. Instead, I began looking at the structure of the playhouse to see if my idea would even work. Guys, I swear, this thing was MADE to become a chicken coop! It had everything we needed! The house is large enough for me to walk inside to rake it out, it has plenty of space for a nesting box, waterer, food, and a roosting bar. And it even came with a little cut out section near the floor (picture a doggy door) so the chickens could access the run we built behind it! I sketched out an idea of the modifications that we would need to make, and I presented my idea to the hubs. Guess what? He went for it! It was PERFECT. The structure was already built. We wouldn’t have to add another “thing” to our already tiny yard, and the best part? It’s totally incognito. No one would EVER suspect chickens were living in the playhouse! That night, I ordered our chicks! So how did we transform the playhouse? Well, let’s take a tour, shall we?
The first thing we did was cover all the openings with garden wire. Hubs had a roll of this laying around from some other project. He used drywall screws to attach the wire to the windows. The coop actually stayed like this for a while. While the chicks were still small, it was best for them to be confined to a smaller space, so not having a run wasn’t an issue.
Next the hubs built the run. You can see the “doggy door” in the bottom left corner…this is how the chickens get in and out of the house. The run is a pretty simple A-frame structure made out of 1″x 1″ pine pieces. The frame was made in sections and the wire was screwed on to each section as it was assembled. The top of the run lifts up so I can climb in and rake out the poo. I just prop it open with an upside down rake and jump on in.
The corners are all secured with these nifty . And the whole top piece is attached to the frame with some thin chains that act as a hinge. Here is a picture of the chains.
The brown plastic covering you see on this window is actually the cover to our sand and water table. The hubs cut it to fit over the largest window to break some of the wind in the winter. He used more drywall screws to attach it to the house.
Inside the coop, we attached a roosting bar (made out of an old broom handle) to the side of the house using a simple scrap of wood to attach it.
Here is a look at one side of the roosting bar. The other side just sits on the “mantle” inside the house.
My favorite part about the coop is the nesting box. Hubs attached a recycling bin to the wall using a couple brackets. It’s the PERFECT size for a comfy chicken laying box. And it’s up high so there’s a little privacy. We did cut it down a bit…chickens are not very bright creatures…they were afraid to go inside when the lip of the box was up higher.
The is hung from the ceiling by a thin chain (to keep the birds from standing on it), and the just sits on the floor. The set up is working BRILLIANTLY for us. The birds are happy and laying an egg per chicken per day (even though it’s winter), and it is all super easy to care for. The best part is that we were able to make this transformation for a whopping $46. I can’t say enough about how awesome chicken are…I’m pretty sure my kiddos would agree! Think you might transform your little tikes playhouse into a chicken coop?
Here is the complete list of materials and tools we used to make our playhouse into a chicken coop. Our chickens have been living in the coop for 8 months, and it’s still holding up great!
Hardware
- , to secure wire to playhouse
- to secure wire to wood frame
- to hang feeder from inside coop
Tools
- – for cutting the wire
- (for pounding staples)
- for cutting 1 1/2″ pieces of wood
Chicken Coop Setup in Pulaski, New York
A good place to start any search is the internet. Simply plugging in the phrase "chicken coops for sale in Pulaski New York" 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 Pulaski New York chicken coops. What to look for when buying a chicken coop in Pulaski, New York With the big boost in chicken keeping there has been an equally huge surge in the variety of fowl materiel on sale. Chicken real estate is a situation in factor. It's additionally a classic instance of the great old bandwagon being jumped on as numerous would-be fowl real estate experts peddle a variety of holiday accommodation asserting to be the perfect remedy to your chicken housing requirements. Often the rate looks eye-catching, the house looks appealing, hell even the clean-cut family members standing there feeding the chickens look eye-catching. Definitely they know a high quality chicken house when they see one? There are many affordable as well as horrible cages swamping the market. I recognize this as I've tested a variety of them in the area, and seen a ewe run straight via one when the feed pail showed up. The result was just a pricey heap of firewood as well as a little group of bemused as well as now homeless bantams.
Chicken Hut in Pulaski, New York
Most of the time these standardized versions are constructed of quick grown up lumber - come the very first decline of rain they swell, leaving you either barricading a door that will not shut, or tearing the doorway furniture off in a vain effort to release the squawking occupants. The very first cozy day means the timber dries out and splits, the felt roofing bubbles as well as boils, and also come nightfall the chickens choose not to enter. This is not due to their dissatisfaction at the decrease of their once attractive home yet due to the fact that the hovel is currently a sanctuary for, and probably abounding, the fowl keeper's bane, red mite. Add on the fact that it claimed on the blurb that it would fit four big chickens when that stocking density was based on the Circle Line at 5pm on a Friday, and what are you left with? A couple of hinges as well as some kindling. A respectable coop for thee to 4 birds need to cost you around ₤ 300 though this can depend on whether you elect for a totally free standing house or one with a run connected. Assuming you are ranging your birds in a big area and also the pop opening door allows sufficient for the type you keep, then the major requirements of housing boil down to three points which will certainly define the number of birds the house will hold; perches, nest boxes as well as ventilation. Most breeds of chicken will perch when they visit roost in the evening, this perch ought to preferably be 5-8cm large with smoothed off sides so the foot sits pleasantly on it. The perch needs to be above the nest box access as chickens will certainly also naturally search for the highest point to perch. A perch lower than that will have the birds roosting in the nest box overnight (which is by the way when they generate one of the most poo) leading to stained eggs the following day. They should not nevertheless be so high off the flooring of the house that leg injuries can happen when the bird comes down in the morning. Chickens require regarding 20cm of perch each (in tiny breeds this is obviously less), plus if greater than one perch is mounted in the house they should be greater than 30cm apart. They will hunker up with their neighbors however are not that crazy about roosting with a beak in the bloomers of the bird ahead. Ideally the house needs to have a least one nest box for every 3 birds as well as these need to be off the ground and in the darkest area of your home. The house ought to have ample ventilation: without it after that condensation will accumulate every evening, even in the chilliest of climate. Know, ventilation works with the principle of cozy air leaving through a high space attracting cooler air in from a reduced void - it's not a collection of openings on contrary wall surfaces of your home and also at the very same degree, this is what's called a draught. If you have a house with a run attached then the factors above are still true, yet you ought to additionally think about the run size. The EU optimum lawful equipping density for a complimentary array bird is (as well as allow's face it, among the inspirations for keeping some chickens in your home is possibly enhanced or better welfare) 2,500 birds per hectare, that's maximum one bird each 4m settled. Take a close check out several of the deal houses - it could well be your house has the best perches, correct ventilation as well as ample nest boxes for a practical number of birds, however will each of the chickens have anything more than an A4 sized item of ground to spend the day on? Therefore as the stating goes, "you obtain just what you spend for". You might think you've got a deal, yet you as well as your flock could rue the day you did. Purchase the appropriate house as well as it will certainly last for a few decades, otherwise longer provided the correct treatment. Ultimately your poultry as well as your fowl keeping encounter will certainly be considerably the better for it.diy coop
More Posts
Chicken Coops for Sale in Bethel, New York
Chicken Coops for Sale in Manlius, New York
Chicken Coops for Sale in Ellisburg, New York
Chicken Coops for Sale in New Suffolk, New York
Chicken Coops for Sale in Hammond, New York