Design a Successful Chicken Coop
The most important thing to remember when starting a chicken coop construction project is the prior planning. You can save money and hours of time by planning what kind of chickens you intend to raise, and how many chickens you intend to keep in your coop.
Don’t skimp on planning your chicken coop by cutting costs with cheaper materials, the whole point of the coop is to give your chickens a place to live. A well built chicken coop is vital to having healthy happy chickens who will lay you lots of delicious eggs.
Here are a few guidelines for chicken coop construction:
* Avoid overcrowding by giving at least 3-4 square feet per chicken. Giving your chickens enough space inside the coop is very important, as it will harm your chickens otherwise.
* Likewise, you’ll want to make sure your chickens have enough room outside their home. Somewhere between 8-10 square feet per chicken is a good idea for the chicken run.
* Make sure you include some way for you to get into the coop yourself. You will need to get in both to collect any eggs your chickens may lay and to clean out the coop on a regular basis.
* You’ll need to make sure predators can’t get in. This usually means wire of some sort, as well as making sure the coop itself is constructed in a way that keeps unwanted visitors out.
Aside from these practical concerns, you’re free to design your coop in any way you please, and to construct it from any materials you wish. Chickens are fairly easy to please, so much of what you decide to do with your coop will be for your own personal convenience. This is why building the coop tall enough for you to easily get in will be a help to you.
Just make sure that any materials you use in your chicken coop construction will stand the test of time, and that you also take into account your local climate. Those in warmer year-round climates may be able to use wire doors or walls, but if you live somewhere that’s cold and wet for part of the year, you want to make sure that you use solid walls and possibly even some insulation to stop your chickens from stressing when it’s cold.
To allow your chickens easy access, you can build a chicken door off the ground with a ramp leading up to it. Building the coop off the ground is an excellent idea, as it will not only stop water from flooding the floor of your coop, but it will keep out snakes and weasels.
Once you’ve planned out everything to a full extent, then you can get started on constructing your coop. Don’t skimp on the materials, because the better quality ones you use, the more sturdy your coop will be. At the same time, don’t be afraid to re-use others’ discards. Local recycling centers can be great places to find cheap quality construction materials.
If you’ve planned out your chicken coop construction before you began, then the actual construction process should be fairly easy and fun. This is why having a good design is so important.
Kor Rassad offers more great tips on Chicken Coop, at his website http://www.chickencoopadvice.com.