Chicken Coops for Sale in Tornillo, Texas
Chicken Coops for Sale in Tornillo, Texas
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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Chicken Coop Used in Tornillo, Texas
A good place to start any search is the internet. Simply plugging in the phrase "chicken coops for sale in Tornillo 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 Tornillo Texas chicken coops. What to look for when buying a chicken coop in Tornillo, Texas With the significant increase in chicken maintaining there has been a just as big rise in the variety of chicken stuff for sale. Poultry housing is a case in point. It's additionally a traditional example of the excellent old bandwagon being jumped on as numerous prospective poultry housing professionals market a range of lodging declaring to be the suitable remedy to your chicken housing needs. Commonly the cost looks eye-catching, your diy-chicken-coop-planshome looks desirable, heck also the clean-cut family standing there feeding the chickens look desirable. Definitely they know a top quality chicken house when they see one? There are many economical and also horrible coops swamping the market. I recognize this as I've tested a number of them in the field, as well as seen a ewe run straight with one when the feed pail showed up. The result was just an expensive pile of fire wood and also a little group of bemused and currently homeless bantams.
Chicken Coop Building Plans in Tornillo, Texas
Usually these mass produced versions are created of rapid grown up wood - come the initial drop of rainfall they swell, leaving you either fortifying a doorway that will not close, or tearing the doorway furnishings off in a vain effort to launch the squawking residents. The first warm and comfortable day implies the hardwood dries as well as fractures, the really felt roof bubbles and boils, and also come nightfall the hens choose not to go in. This is not as a result of their disappointment at the decline of their once appealing building but considering that the hovel is now a haven for, as well as probably crawling with, the fowl keeper's nemesis, red mite. Add on that it said on the blurb that it would certainly match 4 large chickens when that stocking density was based on the Circle Line at 5pm on a Friday, and also 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 on whether you choose for a cost-free standing house or one with a run attached. Thinking you are ranging your birds in a big room and the pop hole doorway allows enough for the breed you keep, then the primary requirements of housing boil down to three factors which will certainly specify the number of birds the house will certainly hold; perches, nest boxes and also ventilation. Most types of chicken will certainly perch when they visit roost during the night, this perch should ideally be 5-8cm broad with smoothed off edges so the foot sits pleasantly on it. The perch should be more than the nest box access as chickens will certainly likewise normally try to find 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 one of the most poo) resulting in stained eggs the following day. They should not nonetheless be so high off the flooring of your home that leg injuries could possibly take place when the bird comes down in the morning. Chickens need concerning 20cm of perch each (in little types this is obviously much less), plus if more than one perch is mounted in the house they should be greater than 30cm apart. They will certainly hunker up with their neighbors yet are not that crazy about roosting with a beak in the bloomers of the bird in front. Preferably your house needs to have a least one nest box for every 3 birds and also these need to be off the ground and in the darkest location of your home. Your home ought to have appropriate ventilation: without it then condensation will certainly develop every night, even in the coldest of weather condition. Know, air flow works on the concept of cozy air leaving with a high space drawing cooler air in from a reduced space - it's not a collection of holes on contrary wall surfaces of the house as well as at the very same degree, this is just what's referred to as a draft. If you have a house with a run connected after that the factors above are still true, yet you need to also think about the run dimension. The EU optimum legal stocking density for a free array bird is (as well as allow's encounter it, among the motivations for maintaining some chickens in the house is potentially enhanced or far better welfare) 2,500 birds each hectare, that's maximum one bird per 4m made even. Take a close consider a few of the deal homes - it could well be your house has the appropriate perches, appropriate air flow and adequate nest boxes for an affordable variety of birds, but will each of the chickens have anything more than an A4 sized item of ground to spend the day on? And so as the stating goes, "you obtain exactly what you pay for". You may believe you've got a deal, but you as well as your flock might rue the day you did. Purchase the ideal house and it will last for a couple of years, otherwise longer given the proper treatment. Ultimately your poultry and also your fowl keeping encounter will be a lot the much better for it.chick coops
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