I was asked by a friend to make a chicken coop for a Christmas present for his wife; I enthusiastically accepted the challenge and then realised how little I knew about chickens.
I needed to do some research before I could progress so I used the Internet to find some great sites about coops of all shapes and sizes and draw some ideas from for the project.
My friend had supplied me with a rough drawing of what he wanted so I had a steer as it were but what I needed to know was more about chickens themselves i.e. their behaviour and living requirements, how much space does a chicken needed to live in and most importantly to produce eggs in.
It's amazing how some jobs provoke an interest in a topic that you would otherwise never show the slightest concern, I learned much about these creatures during my research, For example, I never knew that chickens were hypnotised by darkness.
Anyway, I obtained the necessary information i.e. perch height and room required per chicken and even the diseases that could be contracted from direct contact with timber plus heat & moisture effects on the birds etc etc.
So, forewarned and forearmed I was ready to start. It really is worth carrying out research before setting about such a project, it saves on time and effort and is vitally important to ensure the product is professionally correct.
I based my chicken coop on a pallet base after ensuring it would provide sufficient space for 4 birds, and fixed a solid floor surface the top of which I then coated with several coats of a P.V.A glue to water proof and to ease future cleaning.
From this base, I made a rough 3 dimensional sketch of the 4 stud walls so that it was clear in my head where exactly the doors and nest boxes were to be sited. Now I could put dimensions to the plan and make up a cutting list.
Once all the components were cut I built the gable ends which would accommodate 2 nest boxes each and I glued and screwed them onto the base, taking care to ensure they are square and true, this is where clamps are handy.
Before long the frame is complete and before putting the roof trusses in place I set out and fitted the perches, which could be achieved quite easily through the studding.
I had learned from research that these had to be placed so that the birds feathers would not touch the wooden internal walls because this could create an environment for red mite to develop on the chickens, so no room for error here.
I actually moved the perches after the first placing because I was not convinced there was enough room initially. Apparently as darkness arrives chickens search for an off the ground location for the night and once in darkness they become hypnotised and therefore susceptible so a coop needs to provide the necessary safety in the form of perches with a ladder for access.
They will jump off but not up to a perch, I also learned that they can develop a foot injury if the perches are set too high up. The final point on perches is the size which has to be large enough to clamp their feet around, I decided upon 25mm and rounded off the edges on the router.
With the roof I cut an angled ridge beam and then (appropriately) cut a birds mouth wedge on each truss so that they fitted on to the top of the wall and screwed each one in place, I also put an infill piece of angled studding between each truss because without these there would be a gap between the roof and the top of the wall.
This is the studding complete and ready now for the nesting boxes and then the cladding. I made the boxes from 12mm ply board and screwed, clamped and glued the carcasses onto the stud framing.
I decided next to cut all lengths of cladding and started with the roof which is simply placed up here and held with clamps.
I then removed and stored it to fix up later so that I had access to the interior for as long as possible for setting out the doors etc.
A good point to highlight here is the first piece of cladding which I butted up to the roof trusses as this dictates the level of all the cladding, it's important that the pattern is carried around the sides and nest boxes to give the whole structure the right look.
So a bit of thought at this point could save material and effort.
Here you can see what I mean by carrying the pattern of the cladding around, it would look wrong any other way.
A little tip = I nailed the cladding onto the stud frame which was fine except that the nesting boxes weren't sturdy enough to take the hammer blows sideways on, this would not be a problem if you used a nail gun, but I'm not fortunate enough yet to own one. So I pinned the nails in place on the cladding on the bench then offered the piece up and used a G clamp to squeeze the nail home.
Here you can see the finished nest boxes complete with lid and an off-cut of damp proofing to deflect rain water and protect the hinge.
I made another stud frame for the main door which needed to be large enough for cleaning out and I allowed for a drop down door that would also double as a ramp for the birds, I fitted simple deadbolts for securing each door and then all that was left was to fit wheels to allow for manoeuvrability.
I actually cut some wooden wheels on the band-saw and bolted them through the frame and pallet using threaded bolt and washers to space the wheel and allow for easy turning. I wanted to use wood for the wheels to keep the rustic appearance.
All that was left was for me to apply a decent coat of PVA to the end grain of the uncovered cladding and cover with beading to tidy up and that was it complete, a nice little safe and secure home for 4 chickens.
I suppose I spent about 5 days designing and making so not too bad as a one off, I,ve kept all the measurements and drawings so I can replicate the coop if and when. It was safely delivered and is sited and ready for it's new incumbents to settle in and start laying.
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