Chicken Coops for Sale in Hungerford, Texas
Chicken Coops for Sale in Hungerford, Texas
My DIY Chicken Coop and Run
One of the things I’ve missed since moving north from our country home in Texas 13 years ago has been having chickens, and our own fresh eggs. Having a new grandbaby made my chicken longing all the more compelling–I might be able to accept eating store-bought eggs for myself, but my granddaughter must have only the best and most nutritious!
Being a busy grad student and nurse meant I thought I didn’t have time for DIY projects, so my original intent was to purchase a pre-made coop and chicken run. To my amazement, I found a chicken tractor on Amazon.com–with FREE super saver shipping! I happily placed my order.
A week later, Amazon informed me my order had been canceled due to unavailability. Frustration set in. I searched in vain for another source, but couldn’t find anything I liked as much that was within my price range. It seemed that building my own was my only option, but I didn’t see how I possibly could. For one thing, we don’t have much in the way of woodworking tools. Also, finals week was fast approaching, and “spare” time was at a premium. I needed to come up with something I could do quickly and easily, without too many fancy tools. Here’s what I came up with:
I bought a Rubbermaid storage shed at Home Depot.
Inside, I added a roost and a rack to hold the “nestbuckets” made from Home Depot buckets. I also made a screened wall on one side, so that one door can be left open for ventilation during nice weather.
To secure the wooden fixtures, I drilled holes through the walls of the coop and screwed wood screws through from the outside into the wood pieces. Where possible, I took advantage of the shapes and depressions of the plastic to add additional support. The screen wall is fastened to the wall of the coop and also to the roosts. The nestbuckets are not permanently fastened to the rack they sit on — I use a bungee cord to hold them securely in place.
In the back of the coop, beneath the nestbuckets, I cut an opening for the chickens to use for going in and out. I made a mistake and made it flush with the floor, before realizing that there should be a “lip” to hold the bedding in, so I added a scrap piece of lumber across the bottom for that purpose. I used strips of trim to “frame” the opening and hide the hollow walls of the Rubbermaid container.
Since there’s no way to keep the right-hand door closed when the left-hand one is open, I added gate latches on the inside to fasten it to the screen door. I can easily reach the lower one by reaching down through the top of the coop, but for people whose arms aren’t as long as mine, a pull string could be rigged for that purpose.
The last step was to add four eye bolts to the outside of the coop, to secure it to the run (I’m using bungee cords for this purpose), and to add strips of 2×2″ lumber to use as handles, since the smooth plastic makes it hard to get a grip on it for transporting the coop.
The run is made from two cattle panels with 2×4″ openings, using pig rings to secure the pieces together. The sides and top are each a half panel. The remaining piece was cut into 3 parts. Two of them form the end of the run farthest from the coop. The bottom half is fastened permanently in place, and the top half is fastened only at the top, forming a hinge that allows it to be swung up onto the top of the run for access to the inside. Again, I used a bungee cord to fasten the access panel in place when it is closed. I’m tall enough to easily step over the lower piece, but someone without my height advantage might need to modify the design to work for them. The remaining thin piece of cattle panel was fastened vertically to one side of the end of the run next to the coop. It adds some structural stability as well as allowing for the fact that the coop is not quite as wide as the run. A 2-foot wide strip of hardware cloth with 1/2″ openings was fastened all the way around the lower portion of the run, to keep raccoons from reaching through to grab the chickens.
Finally, I fastened a tarp over the run at one end to protect the feed from rain. Here’s the finished product, complete with chickens:
Chicken Coop Yard Design in Hungerford, Texas
A good place to start any search is the internet. Simply plugging in the phrase "chicken coops for sale in Hungerford Texas" 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 Hungerford Texas chicken coops. What to look for when buying a chicken coop in Hungerford, Texas With the massive boost in chicken keeping there has actually been a just as big rise in the array of chicken stuff for sale. Chicken real estate is a case in factor. It's additionally a timeless instance of the good old bandwagon being got on as numerous would-be chicken real estate professionals market a selection of accommodation claiming to be the optimal remedy to your chicken housing demands. Commonly the price looks eye-catching, the house looks desirable, hell also the clean-cut family standing there feeding the chickens look attractive. Definitely they recognize a quality chicken house when they see one? There are lots of affordable as well as horrible cages flooding the marketplace. I recognize this as I've checked a variety of them in the area, and seen a ewe run straight through one when the feed container showed up. The result was nothing but a costly stack of firewood as well as a tiny flock of bemused and also now homeless bantams.
Chicken Coop Setup in Hungerford, Texas
Generally these standardized designs are constructed of rapid grown up timber - come the first drop of rainfall they swell, leaving you either blockading a door that will not shut, or tearing the doorway furniture off in a vain attempt to launch the squawking occupants. The initial warm day indicates the hardwood dries as well as cracks, the felt roof covering bubbles as well as boils, and come nightfall the hens refuse to enter. This is not due to their dissatisfaction at the decrease of their when appealing property but since the hovel is currently a haven for, as well as most likely crawling with, the fowl caretaker's bane, red mite. Add the fact that it stated on the blurb that it would fit four huge chickens when that stocking thickness was based on the Circle Line at 5pm on a Friday, as well as what are you left with? A few joints and also some kindling. A good coop for thee to 4 birds should cost you in the region of ₤ 300 though this can depend upon whether you choose for a free standing house or one with a run attached. Presuming you are ranging your birds in a big room and the pop hole doorway is big sufficient for the type you maintain, then the main requirements of real estate boil down to 3 factors which will define the number of birds the house will certainly hold; perches, nest boxes and air flow. Many types of chicken will certainly perch when they visit roost in the evening, this perch needs to preferably be 5-8cm wide with smoothed off sides so the foot sits pleasantly on it. The perch needs to be more than the nest box access as chickens will likewise normally seek the highest point to perch. A perch less than that will certainly have the birds roosting in the nest box over night (which is by the way when they generate the most poo) causing dirtied eggs the following day. They shouldn't nonetheless be so high off the flooring of your house that leg injuries could possibly occur when the bird comes down in the morning. Chickens need about 20cm of perch each (in tiny breeds this is clearly less), plus if more than one perch is mounted in the house they must be greater than 30cm apart. They will hunker up with their next-door neighbors however are not that crazy about roosting with a beak in the bloomers of the bird ahead. Ideally your house needs to have a least one nest box for every 3 birds and also these must be off the ground and also in the darkest location of the house. Your house must have appropriate ventilation: without it then condensation will build up every night, even in the chilliest of climate. Be aware, ventilation deals with the principle of warm air leaving through a high gap attracting cooler air in from a lower gap - it's not a collection of openings on contrary wall surfaces of your house and also at the very same degree, this is exactly what's known as a draft. If you have a house with a run affixed after that the points above are still true, however you need to also take into consideration the run dimension. The EU maximum legal stocking density for a cost-free variety bird is (as well as allow's face it, one of the motivations for maintaining some hens in the house is potentially boosted or far better welfare) 2,500 birds each hectare, that's maximum one bird each 4m made even. Take a close take a look at a few of the deal homes - it could well be your home has the ideal perches, right ventilation and also enough nest boxes for a sensible variety of birds, yet will each of the chickens have anything greater than an A4 sized piece of ground to invest the day on? Therefore as the saying goes, "you obtain just what you pay for". You may believe you've got a bargain, however you and also your group might rue the day you did. Purchase the appropriate house as well as it will certainly last for a few decades, if not longer given the correct treatment. Ultimately your poultry as well as your fowl keeping encounter will be considerably the far better for it.coops plan
More Posts
Chicken Coops for Sale in Corrigan, Texas
Chicken Coops for Sale in Grandview, Texas
Chicken Coops for Sale in Azle, Texas
Chicken Coops for Sale in Bedford, Texas
Chicken Coops for Sale in Flint, Texas