Chicken Coops for Sale in Gore, Virginia
Chicken Coops for Sale in Gore, Virginia
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 Hut in Gore, Virginia
A good place to start any search is the internet. Simply plugging in the phrase "chicken coops for sale in Gore Virginia" 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 Gore Virginia chicken coops. What to look for when buying a chicken coop in Gore, Virginia With the big boost in chicken maintaining there has been a just as huge surge in the variety of poultry paraphernalia on sale. Poultry housing is a situation in point. It's additionally a traditional instance of the excellent old bandwagon being got on as various prospective fowl real estate specialists pitch a range of accommodation declaring to be the suitable solution to your chicken real estate demands. Commonly the rate looks attractive, the house looks eye-catching, heck even the clean-cut family members standing there feeding the chickens look attractive. Undoubtedly they understand a high quality chicken house when they see one? There are many inexpensive and also horrible cages flooding the marketplace. I recognize this as I've tested a number of them in the field, and also seen a ewe run straight via one when the feed bucket appeared. The outcome was nothing but an expensive pile of firewood and a small group of bemused and currently homeless bantams.
Chicken Coops For Sale in Gore, Virginia
Most of the time these standardized models are built of quick grown wood - come the very first decrease of rain they swell, leaving you either barricading a doorway that will not shut, or tearing the doorway furniture off in a vain effort to release the squawking residents. The initial cozy day suggests the hardwood dries and splits, the felt roofing bubbles and also boils, and also come nightfall the hens refuse to go in. This is not as a result of their frustration at the decline of their as soon as attractive apartment yet considering that the hovel is currently a haven for, as well as probably abounding, the chicken caretaker's bane, red mite. Add on the fact that it said on the blurb that it would match 4 large hens when that equipping density was based upon the Circle Line at 5pm on a Friday, and also what are you entrusted? A number of hinges as well as some kindling. A respectable coop for thee to four birds need to cost you approximately ₤ 300 though this can depend upon whether you choose for a totally free standing house or one with a run attached. Assuming you are ranging your birds in a big room as well as the pop opening door is big sufficient for the type you keep, then the primary demands of real estate boil down to three factors which will certainly define the number of birds your house will certainly hold; perches, nest boxes and air flow. A lot of breeds of chicken will perch when they go to roost in the evening, this perch ought to ideally be 5-8cm large with smoothed off sides so the foot rests pleasantly on it. The perch should be more than the nest box entrance as chickens will certainly likewise normally search for the highest point 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 create one of the most poo) causing soiled eggs the list below day. They shouldn't nonetheless be so high off the floor of your house that leg injuries could possibly take place when the bird gets down in the early morning. Chickens need about 20cm of perch each (in tiny types this is clearly much less), plus if more than one perch is set up in your home they need to be more than 30cm apart. They will hunker up with their next-door neighbors but are not that keen on roosting with a beak in the bloomers of the bird in front. Preferably your home should have a least one nest box for each three birds and also these must be off the ground as well as in the darkest area of your home. The house ought to have ample ventilation: without it after that condensation will certainly develop every night, also in the chilliest of weather condition. Know, ventilation works with the concept of warm and comfortable air leaving through a high void drawing cooler air in from a reduced gap - it's not a set of openings on other walls of your house as well as at the exact same degree, this is just what's known as a draught. If you have a house with a run attached then the points above are still true, but you ought to also think about the run size. The EU maximum lawful stocking density for a totally free array bird is (as well as allow's encounter it, one of the motivations for maintaining some hens in the house is potentially improved or much better well-being) 2,500 birds each hectare, that's maximum one bird per 4m made even. Take a close check out a few of the deal houses - it could well be the house has the appropriate perches, correct ventilation and also sufficient nest boxes for a reasonable number of birds, yet will each of the chickens have anything more than an A4 sized item of ground to invest the day on? Therefore as the stating goes, "you get just what you pay for". You could assume you've got hold of a bargain, yet you and your group might rue the day you did. Acquisition the appropriate house and it will last for a few decades, if not longer given the right treatment. Ultimately your poultry and also your poultry maintaining encounter will certainly be considerably the better for it.plans coops
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