Anyone made/ adapted their own coop? What do you think of this?

[Grockle]

I want to sell my Eglus and have had a run built but I need somewhere for the girls to roost & lay. I was wondering about adapting this:

www.homebase.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?langId=110&storeId=10151&partNumber=654159

Not quite sure how though. Does anyone have a better idea?

www.homebase.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?langId=110&storeId=10151&partNumber=654159

This is . . . quite a bad idea. In summer, it's going to act (as greenhouses do) and heat up beyond a point that is comfortable / safe for your chickens. It's also far too high compared to the area - they won't have enough room to get up onto the perches, nor any room for nestboxes or feeders / waterers.

You don't say how many chickens you've got, but a standard garden shed would be a good option if you have a few. If you only have 2 or 3, then something like this www.diy.com/nav/garden/garden-buildings/sheds-garden-storage-workshops/garden_storage/-specificproducttype-garden_storage/Blooma-Wooden-Overlap-Tool-Chest-11987671?icamp=recs might fit the bill, although the top-down access will make it a pain to clean, and if there's roofing felt on the top then you'll need to replace it (corrugated plastic is a good option here) to avoid red mite infestations.

You'd just have to modify it to add in a pophole, nestboxes and perches (for nestboxes and perches, it's easier to retrofit with freestanding ones. NB the perches must be noticeably higher than the nestboxes, to avoid them sleeping in the nestboxes.

Boomting, I did think it through before just randomly picking something that would be completely inappropriate!

It will be in a shaded area of the run so shouldn't be too hot & my girls don't go in their coop during the day anyway. They can if they want but they don't.

It will be attached to the wooden frame of the run so won't be unstable.

They will have wooden ramps to get up to the perches - it's about the same height as the the Eglu Cube.

The feeders & waterers are in the run so they will have access to them all the time, as they do now.

I would put nest boxes on the bottom shelf.

If you don't want others opinions, then don't ask for them.

I still think that there are far better options out there, which will suit both you and your hens better, for a similar price. I probably ought to add that if that plastic stuff is the stuff I'm thinking of (and I strongly suspect that it is), then there will be nothing to stop a fox / badger scratching its way through.

But hey, you obviously know best.

Erm, thanks Boomting. What an odd response... I was addressing the issues you had raised

The hens live in a purpose-built foxproof run (weldmesh dug 1ft down and 1ft out) with paving slabs around the outside, so the roosting bit doesn't need to be more fox-proof. It's just somewhere for them to sleep and lay but I want it to be comfortable for them and practical. Thank you for your input.

Hi grockle, we converted our garden shed into a chicken coop. We just put a pophole into the side and built a permanent run. We have made the run fox proof and leave the pophole open permanently. We dont have any nest boxes as our hens quite happily lay on the floor. Just like your hens they never go inside the coop in the daytime (only to lay). For roosting bars we just use an old wooden shoe rack. Our hens are nearly a year old now. They are very happy and laying well. It just goes to show that with a bit of imagination you can make anything into a chicken coop without having to pay a lot of money out.

Thanks Boothie - shoe racks are a great idea