by Stacia Equi
When my parents moved to a more rural area about five years ago, I talked my mom into getting chickens. It wasn’t difficult; all I said was, “You should get chickens, you could have fresh eggs.” Because I proposed the idea, I was roped into building the coop.
I lived 3,000 miles away at that time and had come home for a visit (which I did only every two years or so). My mom had the chicks, six Buff Orpingtons, in the garage in a brooder. She handed me a plan she had found in Organic Gardening, and I said, “Yeah, of course we can build this in a day.” I was being foolishly optimistic because I was leaving two days later.
The plan cleverly uses the wood called for, and the resulting coop is portable. A gangplank inside can be lowered to give the poultry access to a chicken wire-enclosed area below. (For a somewhat similar portable miniature chicken coop design, check out this Mother Earth News mini-coop design.) I made a few changes to the original plans, but the basic shell was built in one day. Mom has made some changes to it through the years, customizing it for her situation, and it rarely moves from the shady corner of the yard. It’s still in one piece, and currently has two occupants, but it can house more than a dozen chickens. That’s good, because Mom’s getting 12 more in a few weeks.
4 Comments
A great idea. To lighten it, making the portable chicken tractor idea more feasible, use smaller dimension lumber. The plywood sides essentially just keep out the weather; 1/4 inch outdoor/marine plywood will do. Much of the roost floor could be wire instead of heavier plywood, for folks in southern climes anyway (I live in Hawaii), which will also keep the roost area cleaner. Instead of 2x4s, use 2x2s; when tied together with glued/screwed 1/4″ ply, the structure will be very rigid against lengthwise stresses, and the triangular structure will make it absolutely solid for cross-wise stresses. The handles on each end are short, probably projecting no more than 18 inches, so 2x2s are probably adequate (they may bend a little when lifting the coop, but that’s okay); pay attention to the 2×2 grain, keeping it vertical (parallel) in relation to the ‘A’ frame pieces (if the grain is perpendicular to the ‘A’ frame pieces, it will be weaker, more likely to break from the coop’s weight when lifting).
Yes, thanks for sharing! 🙂
This is very cool. I love it!Thanks for sharing!
Awesome! Thanks for sharing.
David w/ http://www.showmesilkies.com