Chicken Coops for Sale in Le Roy, West Virginia
Chicken Coops for Sale in Le Roy, West 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!
shared with: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Related Posts
Latest posts by Paula ()
- - March 22, 2016
- - January 28, 2016
- - January 22, 2016
Chicken Coop On Wheels in Le Roy, West Virginia
A good place to start any search is the internet. Simply plugging in the phrase "chicken coops for sale in Le Roy West 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 Le Roy West Virginia chicken coops. What to look for when buying a chicken coop in Le Roy, West Virginia With the significant increase in poultry keeping there has been an equally large rise in the array of fowl paraphernalia on sale. Fowl housing is a proceedings in factor. It's likewise a timeless example of the great old bandwagon being got on as various would-be chicken real estate experts peddle a selection of cottage declaring to be the ideal remedy to your chicken real estate requirements. Usually the cost looks eye-catching, your house looks desirable, heck even the clean-cut family standing there feeding the chickens look desirable. Undoubtedly they understand a professional chicken house when they see one? There are lots of low-cost and also awful coops flooding the marketplace. I understand this as I've examined a variety of them in the field, and seen a ewe run straight with one when the feed bucket appeared. The result was only a costly heap of fire wood and a tiny group of bemused and also now homeless bantams.
Chicken Coop Ideas in Le Roy, West Virginia
Usually these standardized designs are built of quick grown timber - come the very first decrease of rainfall they swell, leaving you either fortifying a door that won't close, or tearing the door furniture off in a vain attempt to release the squawking inhabitants. The very first warm day implies the wood dries and also cracks, the really felt roof bubbles and also boils, and come nightfall the hens refuse to enter. This is not because of their frustration at the decrease of their as soon as appealing residential property but since the hovel is currently a place for, as well as possibly abounding, the chicken caretaker's bane, red mite. Add on the fact that it said on the blurb that it would certainly fit four big 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 hinges and also some kindling. A suitable coop for thee to four birds must cost you in the region of ₤ 300 though this can depend upon whether you elect for a cost-free standing house or one with a run affixed. Presuming you are ranging your birds in a big area as well as the pop hole doorway allows sufficient for the type you keep, then the major requirements of housing boil down to three factors which will certainly define the number of birds your home will certainly hold; perches, nest boxes and air flow. The majority of types of chicken will perch when they go to roost in the evening, this perch ought to preferably be 5-8cm large with smoothed off edges so the foot sits conveniently on it. The perch should be above the nest box entrance as chickens will also normally look for the acme to perch. A perch less than that will have the birds roosting in the nest box over night (which is by the way when they generate one of the most poo) leading to stained eggs the list below day. They should not nonetheless be so high off the flooring of your home that leg injuries could happen when the bird gets down in the early morning. Chickens need concerning 20cm of perch each (in small types this is certainly much less), plus if more than one perch is set up in the house they must be more than 30cm apart. They will certainly hunker up with their next-door neighbors yet are not that crazy about roosting with a beak in the bloomers of the bird ahead. Preferably your home needs to have a the very least one nest box for every 3 birds and these need to be off the ground and in the darkest location of your house. Your home must have adequate ventilation: without it after that condensation will certainly develop every night, even in the chilliest of weather. Be aware, ventilation deals 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 holes on contrary walls of the house and also at the very same level, this is just what's referred to as a draught. If you have a house with a run affixed then the points above are still true, but you must additionally think about the run dimension. The EU optimum lawful stocking thickness for a free array bird is (and also allow's face it, among the motivations for keeping some chickens in your home is potentially enhanced or far better well-being) 2,500 birds per hectare, that's optimal one bird each 4m settled. Take a close take a look at some of the deal residences - it could well be the house has the appropriate perches, appropriate air flow and also sufficient nest boxes for a reasonable number of birds, however will each of the chickens have anything greater than an A4 sized piece of ground to spend the day on? And so as the stating goes, "you get what you spend for". You may assume you've got a deal, however you and also your flock might rue the day you did. Acquisition the right house and it will last for a few years, otherwise longer offered the appropriate treatment. Eventually your chicken as well as your chicken maintaining encounter will certainly be much the better for it.coops chickens
More Posts
Chicken Coops for Sale in Hewett, West Virginia
Chicken Coops for Sale in Beverly, West Virginia
Chicken Coops for Sale in Artie, West Virginia
Chicken Coops for Sale in Kellysville, West Virginia
Chicken Coops for Sale in Arnett, West Virginia