How to build a chicken coop

The owners of private yards try to use their land to the maximum, therefore, in addition to growing vegetables, they are engaged in poultry and livestock farming. It is easiest to keep chickens at home. There will always be fresh homemade eggs and meat. However, keeping birds in the yard or fence will not work, as in winter they will simply freeze. So, they need to build suitable housing. Now we will talk about how to build a chicken coop with your own hands, plan it correctly and equip it inside.

Planning and calculation of the dimensions of the chicken coop

Planning a poultry house begins after the exact number of chickens is determined. The diagram shows a variant of a chicken coop with a compartment for chickens, but the room can be planned at your own discretion. It is important to immediately determine the size of the house. So that the chicken can move freely for two heads, 1 m is taken away² free area. However, this does not mean that if the owner decided to start four laying hens, then a poultry house with an area of ​​u2buXNUMXbXNUMX m is enough for them.².

Even if the owner decided to start 2-4 layers, the minimum area of ​​​​the chicken coop should be 3 m². We discussed only the dimensions of the house, but the chickens still need to walk. In freedom, they develop, strengthen muscles, which affects egg production. It is impossible to let chickens out into the yard, as they will peck plantings of cabbage and other vegetables in the garden. The only way out is to build a fence near the chicken coop. The paddock is made from a grid, where 1–2 m is allocated for each head.² free area.

When building a chicken coop with your own hands, the entrance doors of the barn and aviary should be located on the south side. It is desirable that the poultry house is protected from the winds by other buildings or tree plantations. The mesh walk is partially covered with light roofing material. Under the roof, chickens will hide in the shade or from the rain.

A place for building a poultry house is chosen on a hill so that rain or melt water does not interfere with chickens. Drainage is provided around the chicken coop. It can be an ordinary moat that diverts water into a ravine.

And now we will look at how to properly prepare a place for a poultry house. If the site is located on a plain, you will have to make a small artificial embankment. To do this, use any construction waste, stones or just rubble. The following layers are poured regardless of where the site is located – in a lowland or on a hill:

• It will take a lot of crushed glass and clay. This mixture is spread with a thickness of about 10 cm over the entire area of ​​uXNUMXbuXNUMXbthe chicken coop. Thanks to the glass inside the house, small rodents will not penetrate. Where there will be a paddock, it is unnecessary to mix glass into clay, as chickens can dig through it.
• The top layer is poured from sand with a thickness of about 15 cm.

When the site is ready, you can start building the foundation.

The video shows a winter poultry house with a range:

Choosing the type of foundation for the poultry house

The construction of the chicken coop begins with the construction of the foundation. Let’s look at how to make the right choice of base:

• For a small poultry house 2×2 m in size, built from a bar using frame technology, the concrete foundation can not be poured. A light structure will withstand an embankment of clay, glass, crushed stone and sand. In this case, it is made at least 30 cm high. An example of a frame house is shown in the photo. The chicken coop is installed with the lower frame on an artificial embankment. The gap under the house is sewn up with a mesh that will protect against the penetration of predators. The frame itself and the place under the chicken coop are covered with a small layer of expanded clay.

  

• Under a large wooden chicken coop measuring 4×4 m, you already need to build a columnar foundation. For this, square holes 1 cm deep are dug around the perimeter of the future poultry house after 70 m. 10 cm of sand with crushed stone are poured onto the bottom, after which brick pedestals are laid out. All posts must protrude at least 20 cm from the ground, and be on the same level. Brickwork is performed on a concrete solution. A sheet of roofing material for waterproofing is laid on top of each pedestal, after which the main frame of the poultry house frame is knocked down from the timber.

  

• Stone chicken coops are very heavy. They are rarely built, but there is still such a variant of the house. Such a building is ideal for year-round keeping of chickens in cold regions. A strip foundation is poured under a stone chicken coop. To do this, they dig a trench at least 70 cm deep, put up formwork, lay a reinforcing frame, and then pour a concrete solution with crushed stone.

  

There is another type of reliable foundation for which screw piles are used. They can be easily screwed into the ground on their own, but the high cost of piles is a luxury for a chicken coop.

What to make a floor for a poultry house

Continuing to study the arrangement of the chicken coop, it is necessary to touch on the correct arrangement of the floor. The bird stays here all day, and only sleeps on a perch at night.

Let’s take a closer look at what and how you can make a warm and durable floor of the house:

• With frame technology the construction of a chicken coop, the floor is laid from boards. If the house is to be used year-round, the flooring is made double, and insulation is laid between the skin.
• In a chicken coop built on a strip foundation, the floor can be left earthen, but the chickens will rake it. An excellent option is clay mixed with straw. The mixture is spread in a thick layer over the entire area of ​​uXNUMXbuXNUMXbthe poultry house. After solidification of the mass, a monolithic warm floor is obtained. The strongest is concrete screed. However, such a floor will be cold in winter. It will be necessary to pour a thick flooring or knock down a finishing floor on top of the concrete from the boards.

In a poultry house made on a strip foundation, the floor of any material must be isolated from the ground. Sheets of roofing material are used as waterproofing. They are overlapped, wrapping the ends of 20 cm on the walls. The joints of the sheets are glued with hot bitumen. With year-round use of the chicken coop, the floor is additionally insulated with mineral wool or foam. Thermal insulation is laid on top of the waterproofing, then it is covered with another layer of waterproofing, after which the floor of the poultry house is equipped.

In the future, when the chicken coop is completely ready, the floor is covered with temporary flooring. To do this, it is better to use sand or sawdust. Fine straw or hay works well, but they will need to be changed often. Such flooring quickly gets wet, after which it begins to rot. Hay or straw is scattered on the floor of the house in a thin layer, and after two days they are replaced. Wood chips are best perceived by chickens, and they should be given preference.

We build the walls of the poultry house

The technology of building walls depends on what device the chicken coop is, that is, whether it is stone or wooden. Wooden walls will help to keep the heat inside the house optimally. To do this, use a simple edged board, lining, plywood or OSB sheets.

We build wooden walls in the chicken coop using frame technology. To do this, we assemble the skeleton of a barn from a bar with a section of 100×100 mm. First, we knock down the lower frame, we attach racks to it, which we connect from above with a strapping of timber.

The frame completely forms the skeleton of the future chicken coop, so you need to accurately withstand all dimensions. At this stage, we provide openings for windows and doors. We cover the finished frame of the house with a vapor barrier from the outside, after which we carry out the sheathing.

Inside the structure between the racks of the frame, cells turned out. Here you need to lay the insulation, close it with a vapor barrier, and now you can carry out the inner lining of the chicken coop.

For the construction of the stone walls of the house, red or silicate bricks are best suited. But such a chicken coop will turn out to be very cold, and in winter it will require high heating costs. The stone walls of the house will have to be insulated from the inside or outside. For these purposes, the same foam or mineral wool will go.

In rural areas, building material for a chicken coop can be made by hand. If the mixed clay with straw is laid in rectangular shapes, then adobe will be obtained. After drying in the sun, the blocks will be ready for laying out the walls. But such a chicken coop should not be left in the rain, otherwise the clay will simply become sour. The adobe walls of the poultry house will definitely have to be sheathed on the outside with any lining, and they will also have to be insulated.

Whatever the walls of the chicken coop are made of, they should not let cold and damp into the room. Inside the house, it is imperative to whitewash with lime. It will save the walls from the spread of the fungus.

Roof and ceiling installation

Two types of roofs are installed on chicken coops:

• The most effective is the gable design. Firstly, such a roof forms an attic room on the chicken coop, which allows you to store various equipment. The air space between the ceiling and the roof serves as additional insulation for the house. Secondly, less precipitation accumulates on a gable roof, which reduces the likelihood of a leak. It is better to install such a design on large poultry houses measuring 4×4 m. To make a gable roof, triangular rafters are knocked down from a bar, after which they are attached to the upper trim of the barn frame.

  

• On small chicken coops, it makes no sense to suffer with a complex roof. Here it is easier to build a single-sided structure. The slope is made in the opposite direction from the entrance, so that rainwater does not flow from the roof near the doors of the house.

  

Roofing material for the roof of the chicken coop is suitable for anyone. Most often, roofing material or corrugated board is used for poultry houses. In the past, asbestos-cement slate was popular, but the heavy weight of the roofing material requires reinforcement of the house walls. The roof of the chicken coop must be insulated. To do this, mineral wool is laid between the rafter legs under the counter-lattice. Thermal insulation from wooden elements, as well as roofs, are covered with vapor and waterproofing.

Despite the fact that the roof of the chicken coop is insulated, you still need to knock out the ceiling inside. To do this, plywood or OSB is nailed to the floor beams from below. Styrofoam or mineral wool is laid on top of the skin, after which the upper skin is nailed. In principle, it can not be fixed, but this option is suitable for a shed roof of a chicken coop. The gable structure of the house forms an attic space, and the upper skin will play the role of the floor, protecting the insulation from damage.

poultry house ventilation

Any outbuilding for keeping poultry or animals is equipped with ventilation. In a domestic chicken coop, two air ducts are usually installed. They are made from a plastic pipe with a diameter of 100 mm or knocked down a square box from a board. Air ducts are placed evenly throughout the chicken coop.

Natural ventilation of the poultry house consists of supply and exhaust pipes. The first one is brought out 40 cm above the roof, and the second one – 1,5 m. To prevent precipitation from getting inside the chicken coop through the air ducts, heads are put on top. For convenience, the ventilation pipes must be equipped with dampers to regulate the air flow.

In a large poultry house, it makes sense to put forced ventilation. Such a system provides for the use of electric fans together with air ducts.

Making nests and perches for chickens

Perches are to a chicken what a sofa is to a human. They must be comfortable and reliable. Perches are made from a bar with a section of 40×50 or 50×60 mm. The edges of the poles are rounded so that it is convenient for the chickens to clasp them with their paws. The perch in the chicken coop is set horizontally. The poles are placed parallel to the floors at a height of 50 cm.

The first pole from the wall is fixed at a distance of 25 cm, and all subsequent ones – after 35 cm.

If there is not enough space in the chicken coop, the perches are set vertically at an angle. It turns out a kind of ladder of poles in several tiers. The total length of perches depends on the number of livestock. One chicken is given 30 cm of free space on the poles.

Nests for laying hens are made from boxes or knocked down plywood partitions. They are located in a dark place of the house. Usually, at least 20 nests are made for 10 layers.

The size of the nest is selected according to the breed of chickens. Simple laying hens are usually small. For them, a nest depth of 40 cm is enough, and the width and height are kept within 30 cm. The bottom must be covered with sawdust, hay or straw. It is more convenient for the chicken to sit on the litter, and the eggs will not break on the wooden bottom.

The video tells about the device of the chicken coop:

Experienced poultry farmers take the arrangement of the poultry house seriously. For chickens, automatic drinkers, feeders are installed, sensors with regulators are connected to lighting and heating devices. This allows you to visit the coop a couple of times a week to add a new portion of feed and pick up the laid eggs.