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Our Chicken Coop – A story of chickens

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BEFORE COMMENTING PLEASE READ!!!!!
UPDATE: Hello dear readers!!!  We are so glad you love our chicken coop so much.  We did not originally intend to share plans/dimensions/directions when we made this post which is why they’re not included here.  We love that you love our coop and love that it has been shared multiple times, sadly it has been shared by sites saying we had all the directions for building the coop which we do not.  Please consider this an inspiration post, something to look at to give you an idea of what you can create yourself.

10 things you need to know before bringing home baby chicks
Click to read 10 things you need to know before bringing home baby Chicks!

So WAY back in March…Josh and I had a talk with the boys and we decided as a family that we would get some chickens.  We were all pretty excited about this new adventure and couldn’t wait to get started!  At the beginning of April we headed over to IFA to figure out what we would need and how many chickens we wanted.  They had a very helpful employee who told us everything we would need to know about taking care of our chickens.  Also, lucky for us we had a friend available to answer any questions we might have!

The boys were excited to help pick out the chickens and were even more excited when the IFA staff told us the chicks needed to be held lots and lots so they would be used to the kids. 🙂  After about an hour there we came home with…
overhead view of chicks
Six adorable chicks!  Because we are a family of five we decided to get two chickens that are said to lay daily and four chickens that lay 3-4 times a week.  We figured that would be plenty of eggs for us!
A couple weeks later, IFA did an Easter Egg Hunt.  Now being a farm supply store, they don’t give away just candy in their eggs, they also give away…you guessed it CHICKENS!  (And bunnies and ducks and turkeys) Jenn’s kids ended up with four leghorn chicks!  Another family in our ward decided they didn’t need any extra chickens and gave Jenn’s family another two chicks!  Since we were already building a coop for our chicks, we offered to let Jenn’s family’s chicks live with ours.
overhead view of chicks
So here are the little chicks!  Happy under their heat lamp and eating away! 🙂
While our chicks were perfectly happy in the garage, in their tote…it quickly got too small for 12 chicks.  As soon as they were ready, we transferred them to the backyard to a makeshift coop.  I did not take a picture of the makeshift coop because…well it was pretty sad.  It served it’s purpose and the chickens loved it but it was not anything you’d want to show off!  With that in mind, Josh began the process of building a coop for our chickens.  We saw a coop at IFA that we thought looked great!  However, it was $600.00.  As much as we liked our chickens…we didn’t $600.00 like them!
So Josh took a few measurements and we sketched out what we wanted for our chickens, using the IFA coop as inspiration.  We took a trip to Lowe’s to price out our materials.  We were lucky enough that we had left over wood, Jenn’s family had left over wood and a family a few  houses down from us reroofed their house and donated their left over roofing supplies to us!  It was our goal to use as many materials as we already had and keep the cost as low as possible!
Let me say now…Josh and I have never “built” anything.  Really.  This was quite an adventure for us (mostly Josh since he did almost all of the work) and I’m so happy with how it all turned out!
wood platform
He started with the base for the coop itself.  We wanted to make sure that there was enough clearance for the chickens to use under the coop as part of the chicken run.
drilling into platform
He used four 3″ screws in each post to make sure it was nice and sturdy.
building frame of chicken coop
Wall framing almost done!
eggs on the ground
 Look what happens when you start building a chicken coop…your chickens start laying eggs! 🙂  (So far Jenn’s chickens are the only ones laying.  Lucky for us, our chickens are DUAL chickens so if they don’t get to laying…they’re going to get to frying!)
chicken coop framed
side view of chicken coop frame
The framing completed from two angles.
adding walls to chicken coop
 Up go the walls!
adding walls to chicken coop
drilling wall of chicken coop
Putting in the hinged door for collecting eggs.
side view of chicken coop and door
chicken coop door open
Getting the eggs out will be a breeze! 🙂
finished chicken coop
finished chicken coop door
front view of finished coop
 A few angles of the walls all up and the plywood for the roof up.  As you can see, our coop has skylights…that’s how we roll.
side view of coop building
 First coat of paint and the tar paper on the roof.  You may wonder why we chose this color for the chicken coop.  Well to be completely honest, we picked colors we wanted to paint our house and figured the coop would be the perfect guinea pig to see if we like the colors! 🙂  The coop is Valspar’s Royal Gray.  (I know, it looks blue to me too!)
painted door
 For the door we chose Valspar’s Kettle Black.  It has blue undertones so it goes really well with the Royal Gray.
painted siding
 The roof complete with the windows in.  I’ve seen lots of super cute chicken coops with real glass windows.  It was less expensive ($1.29 a pane) to just use plexiglass.  And it worked perfectly!
painted front of coop
painted side of coop
painted back door of coop
The chicken coop with the final coat of paint, windows/hardware on and trim put up.
finished front door coop
 The door on the chicken coop.  We chose to put a large door on the side to make it easier to clean out for us.  And I have to say that it makes it look way cuter! 🙂
inside finished coop
 The Roosting bar inside the chicken coop.
side view of finished coop
front of finished coop
 Trim all painted and mesh put around the bottom of the coop.
inside coop shelves
 The nesting boxes.  The only thing I didn’t get a picture of was the peel and stick tiles that we put on the bottom of the coop.  They were only $0.02 a tile!  I think we ended up using about 14 tiles.
finished coop with chickens
The finished chicken coop with the happy chickens inside!
finished coop with chickens

Another angle.  After the chicken coop itself was completed.  Josh used 2 x 2’s and 2 x 3’s to build the frame for the yard and another, outdoor roosting bar.  We also added in the ramp for the chickens to get into the coop.  I’m super proud of Josh for all of his hard work and I’m really excited for how amazing it turned out!!  Our total cost for the entire coop…every last nail, hinge, can of paint, everything was about $290.00.  And the best part is the chicken coop and run are significantly bigger than the one at IFA. 🙂  So HUGE round of applause for Josh and the chicken coop!

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I love this! I want chickens so badly but I live in a neighborhood with close yards/fences/neighbors…not sure if it would work? how fun!

Thanks Melodee! If you want chickens, I would check with your city laws. As long as you are within the ordinances for your city, there really shouldn’t be a problem. 🙂 Also, we picked the breeds that were known to be calm and quiet. 🙂 If you don’t have tons of room, I would suggest getting 3 or 4…they are happier when they have friends. 🙂

What a great looking coop!

Thank you Diane! 🙂

Saw this over at Uncommon Slice’s party and had to come by… i love chickens! Your coop is really cute and looks like a great home for the girls.

Thank you Anne! We are pretty proud of it! 🙂

That is an adorable coop! I am planning to get some pullets in the spring so I need to get working on the yard and the coop…thanks for the inspiration.

Thanks Christine! 🙂 It was fun to do!

These are great coop plans! I’ve been thinking about getting chickens. I have the space for them, and now I’ve got coop plans! Good luck with your layers.

Thanks so much! We’ve been having lots of fun with them! 🙂

I’m seriously impressed! I have been thinking about getting some chickens too but I don’t think my husband would go for it.:(

Thank you Heather! Josh was against it at first, but then I think he saw how low maintenance they are and was okay with it. Plus it gave him a chance to flex his building muscles. 🙂

I love this project!! We would be kicked out of the neighborhood if we did this… but if I ever move someplace without a Nazi HOA, I would totally do this project!!!

Thank you Nadia! It’s been a super fun experience! (And I agree…get away from those nasty HOA’s!!)

Fantastic! I really loved this post…thank you so much for sharing! It’s going on one of my pinterest boards. “:o)

Thanks Geneva! Glad you enjoyed it! 🙂

That is the CUTEST chicken coop I have ever seen! I want one! I am featuring this at somedaycrafts.blogspot.com. Grab my “featured” button.

I want a chicken coop!! I need to do a lot more research…Like, how do you know which eggs are un-fertilized , edible eggs and baby chicken eggs. Maybe that’s a really ridiculous thing not to know?

Eggs are only fertilized if you have a rooster. So only get hens and then you don’t have to worry about it!

Thanks for the feature Someday Crafts!! I’m really excited! Thank you!

MommaHen, unless you want to raise chicks (which I’m WAY to nervous to try) just don’t get any roosters…then you won’t have to worry about any fertilized eggs. 🙂

This is so cute! My hubby and I have been talking about getting some chicken. With three hungry boys in my house, I imagine it could save us a ton of money! I’m pinning this so I can show him later:) Thanks so much for sharing all the great details!

Thanks Kelli! 🙂 Chickens are LOTS of fun!

I LOVE this! I would love if you would share this at the Crazy Cute link party happening at Between U & Me right now! I’ve got a totally awesome giveaway this week, too!
OOH! AND, I’m your newest follower! 😉
http://www.betweenuandme.com

The coop is so adorable, I want one for my chickens! What breed do you have that lays daily? Mine our Rhode Island Reds, but they haven’t laid at all yet:(

Thanks Courtney! I’ve linked up AND I’m a follower! 🙂

Thank you Sarah! Our breeds that lay daily are the white Leghorns (the only ones currently laying) and our Buff Orpingtons will lay daily. I was told by the IFA staff that they could start laying between 4-6 months…but it’s possible that they might not start laying til Spring. They do need to have 12 hours of light a day to lay. We learned that the hard way! 🙂 Good luck with your chickens! I hope your chickens start laying soon! 🙂

We too built a chicken coop this summer, Not as nice as yours though! We used all recycled materials. You can see it here: http://avisitwithmrst.blogspot.com/2011/10/shedchicken-coop.html
We have two chickens we got for free, but no eggs yet. Will get some more come March.

Thank you Mrs T, I think your coop looks great!

WOW this is impressive! This just so happened to be the Reader’s Choice on Sew Woodsy today!

Thanks Katie! I didn’t know it was Reader’s Choice! That is awesome!!!

How fun!! Awesome coop!
Thanks for sharing at Show & Share!

Thanks Jennifer!! 🙂

I love chickens!! Our town councilman said chickens cause pandemonium, so he bans them. HA! Your coop looks way better than my coop, but we also made ours too. Love it!!

Thanks Nancy! Pandemonium? Really? LOL! I’d love to see pics of your coop!

Hi Paula, my daughter sent me the info on your coop. I just got my own 4 chucks today and I’m SO disappointed at how tiny the 5-bird coop seems, now the birds are in it.
So I’ve decided to build an extra run for my girls, and I’m sure they will be happier and do will I. I don’t have my own Josh so my electric drill is on charge…

I just wanted to ask, I’ve been told that roofing felt encourages mites, had you heard that?

Post Script..
I’m certain I put a comment about how superb your coop looks, but it hasn’t shown – so here it is – your coop looks great!
I’d really like some of your sunshine too. It’s very Novemberish here in the UK so if you could send some bright weather over, I’d be pleased. x

Artbox49, Josh said that he just used standard roofing materials and hadn’t heard anything about the tar paper encouraging mites. He said it might depend on where you are. We are going to have to research that! I wish I had some sunshine to send you but it started snowing today! EEK! 🙂 Thanks so much for your nice comments! We really appreciate it! 🙂 Good luck with your new yard for your chicks, I’d love to see a picture when you are done! 🙂

What are the dimensions of your coop? I think we are going to make something similar in the spring and I’m gathering ideas for my husband, who’s the master carpenter. 🙂 Thanks!

Hi Erin, sorry it’s taken me so long to respond!! My husband will be getting measurements and a general supply list this weekend so I can get you all of that if you are still looking for information/ideas. 🙂 Thanks!!

Hi Paula! Love your coop and would love to get the details!

I’m completely in love with this chicken coop!! If you could, cold you please e-mail me the supply list? and perhaps dimensions if you’re able! 🙂 my e-mail is [email protected] Thanks so much!

Hi! I just sent you and email! Let me know if you have any other questions! My husband will be getting the dimensions/supply list this weekend so I will email that to you as soon as he does. 🙂

Would you mind forwarding me plans?
[email protected]

Hi, I love this! such a great job (and a great price!). Can you email me the dimensions/ supply list, too? I’m pearlofafrika (at) gmail (dot) com
Thanks so much! 😀

What do you do in the winter to keep the chickens warm?

This coop seems practical and user friendly. My husband is going to build this for me. I will send you photos when we are finished. Thanks for sharing your great idea!

Hello, first I want to say your coop looks great! Found it on pinterest and followed the link. I am about ready to build one of my own but I had one question. The raised floor is great and I think I want to do that with mine also. How is the stability? I feel like it might wobble or shift just being nailed into 4 posts like that. It doesn’t look like the posts are sunken and from your pictures I don’t feel like you added any crossbars or anything for support. Obviously it’s holding up well when the gurls are in it but if you were to bump it (or if my rowdy kids were to bump it I should say…) I worry that it would shift… Anyway, please let me know because I love your design and definitely want to copy-paste into my own yard! Thanks for posting!!

Hello Asher –

This is Josh, Paula’s husband and she felt that I may be able to address your question a little better.

Thank you for coming to the blog and commenting on the coop. The raised floor is a definite plus. I wondered on stability myself but after all the materials were added the coop was much heavier than expected(it took 4 guys to maneuver it in place)and the our boys did use it as a club house until the chicken were moved into it. I used 4 – 3in screws in each post and have had the unfortunate opportunity to watch the balance and stability of the coop tested by our 120lb Newfoundland trying to get to the chickens. As well as the seasonal wind storms we experience in UT and it has held up well. However, in hindsight I do feel some cross bracing would benefit the stability of the legs in the long run. I would love to see your finished product and any enhancements you make to the plans as it can be fun to have some creative liberties(that’s where we got the idea for skylights)as there are so many designs and ideas out there.

Have fun with the experience.

-Josh

I really like the coop that you have designed. I am in need of a coop in the worst way..our chicks are growing fast. I was wondering if you wouldn’t mind sharing the list of materials that you used, along with the dimensions. I have tried many ways to design my coop, looking at plans, and looking at premade coops, and they all come out expensive. If you would not mind, could you please share this information? I would be so thankful. Thank you.

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My wife has decided that she wants me to build a coop like yours for her. I have a few questions as to the dimensions of the coop and run. Also did you use 2×3 or 2×4 lumber for the framing and trusses of the coop? And finally what size wire did you use for the run. It would be much appreciated if you could email me this info.

Thanks
Jason
[email protected]

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I just discovered your site and this amazing chicken coop. I need to convince my husband to build me one this winter so we can be ready for chickens in the spring. Can you post or email me dimensions/supply list? Thanks a ton!