If you are an avid poultry breeder and are engaged in breeding and keeping chickens, then the main task for you in this matter will be to create suitable comfortable conditions under which the birds not only do not lose their egg production, but can calmly wait for spring without getting sick. The harsher the climate where the chicken coop is built, the more requirements are placed on keeping chickens. Normal breeding of birds means the presence of a chicken coop, where it is light and warm even in winter. You may well build one yourself.
Layout and dimensions of the premises
If you decide to create a chicken coop for 50 chickens with your own hands, you must choose one of two ways to grow a bird: on the floor or in cages. At the same time, several aspects are observed, among them it should be highlighted:
- dry microclimate in the chicken coop;
- natural winter light.
If the room is wet, then the whole bird can earn diseases of the upper respiratory tract. As for natural light, it will create comfortable conditions for the production of vitamin D in the body of a bird. If you want to create a chicken coop for 50 chickens with your own hands, it can provide for the floor keeping of the bird, this gives it relative freedom of movement, and birds can sleep on perches. If you install the cages, you can reduce the time for cleaning the room and save space. However, even with a cellular content, chickens should be released for a walk in the aviary.
Do-it-yourself chicken coop for 50 chickens should be built where sunlight will penetrate the room throughout the day. Floor maintenance requires the installation of perches 60 cm from the floor. In order to ensure the normal functioning of the chickens, about 5 laying hens should be per square meter. This indicates that the do-it-yourself chicken coop for 50 chickens should be built taking into account its area, which is 10 m 2 .
Coop layout for 50 birds
50 birds is an impressive amount of laying hens. In this case, the chicken coop can be 4 meters long and split into separate sections. The door from each compartment should exit into a common corridor. Its length is usually equal to the length of the chicken coop. The entrance should be through this corridor.
On the walls that are adjacent to the corridor, cells with nests should be installed. This will facilitate the extraction of eggs, and in this case you do not have to go into the section. Opposite wall can take place for ash baths. Feeding the birds can be done in cages, but quite often the feeders are installed on the floor. The exit to the aviary can be through doors that are located on a small wall. Its length can be 2 m. Such a layout will provide the birds with the opportunity for rest and walks in separate cages. A chicken coop project may provide for an area of 10 m 2 or more, the bird will not be crowded in this space, and a person will be able to look after it.
Construction recommendations
Before starting work, some recommendations must be observed. The chicken coop should be wide and long. It is important to take care of such a number of drinking bowls, feeders and perches, so that they are enough for all birds at once. It is important to provide the coop with heating; for these purposes, a warm floor or stove equipment is usually used. The longer the room is, the more lamps should be in it. Doors should be located so that the cold air when they open comes in a minimum amount.
Foundation and floor work
Having developed the project of the chicken coop, one of which you can borrow from the article, you should start creating the foundation. The described construction will be capital, therefore it is necessary to prepare a moat for the base, the depth of which will be 0.5 m. As soon as the concrete mortar poured to the bottom solidifies, you can begin laying the roofing material.
Flooring is done in one of two options. The first involves laying a substrate, on top of which pipes for a warm floor should be mounted. The entire structure is poured with concrete of 3 cm. Such a floor is covered with hay and straw, which will provide heat throughout the chicken coop. The second version of the floor involves laying roofing material on top of the foundation, as well as installing lags around the perimeter. They are spread on a wooden floor. In this case, the floor will turn out to be quite warm, but the room will need to be heated in a different way.
Drawing a chicken coop for 50 chickens is not something complicated. If you decide to engage in the construction of such a building, it is important to take care of the availability of a heating source. This is necessary because the laying of chickens depends on how warm it is in the room. If water heating is not possible, then you can install an electric heated floor. When the temperature drops to +7 ° C, chickens will feel cold. However, the temperature of the underfloor heating system must not exceed 40 ° C.
Walls of the building
If you decide to build a simple chicken coop with your own hands, it is important to take care of the walls. They are usually made from materials such as:
- brick;
- adobe;
- wood;
- cinder block.
Each of these materials is recommended to be insulated from the outside. This will save energy and protect the building from wind and cold. The height of the walls should be slightly higher than human height - 2.2 m. Lining on the outside can be done in any way, while inside the wall they are plastered and covered with whitewash.
Wall Recommendations
If you want to make the house as warm as possible, then for the construction of walls it is best to use wood, it can be logs or timber. If the construction is frame, it is recommended to use bars. This option should be sheathed with lining, thick 10 mm plywood or planed board. Such decoration should be outside and inside the building.
Thermal insulation can be placed in the frame, which is usually foam or mineral wool. When choosing a beam for the frame, it is best to use a square material with a side of 100 mm. You can apply the bars with a section that is 100 x 50 mm. Before sheathing the structure from the outside, a windproof film must be fixed to the frame. On top of the insulation from the inside, you can also fix the vapor barrier film, it will not be superfluous. A natural paneling is installed on top like a wooden lining.
A chicken coop will become more durable if its walls are made of stone or brick. Although this kind of material is durable, it has the ability to absorb moisture. In this case, chicken coop heating is absolutely necessary, which entails an increase in energy costs. In addition, it is more difficult to build walls from such materials, the work will be time-consuming, and the master needs to have special mason skills.
Erection of a roof
Even the simplest chicken coop must have a roof. It is being erected after the completion of the walls. Before laying the last row of masonry, it is necessary to mount the logs. The wood is covered with top, it can have any kind, for example, OSB or chipboard. The roof is usually pitched. In this case, you can equip the attic inside it, in addition, snow will not accumulate on the surface. In the presence of an aviary, the roof is made in such a way that it at least partially extends over it. An aviary is usually located near one of the walls or around the perimeter.
Making roosts
Quite often, poultry breeders wonder how to make a roost for chickens with their own hands. In the summer, they are located outdoors. The distance between them should be 0.5 m. They should not bend, and they should be removed by 0.6 m from the floor. It is good to make the perches removable, then they can be removed and cleaned. It is recommended to do this 2 times a year.
For work on the production of perches, you can use a square beam with a side of 40 mm. Wood is processed by sandpaper and rounded. At the next stage, you need to fix the side strips, which will play the role of supports. They cut out the grooves where the poles will be inserted. The distance between them, as well as the number of poles should be determined taking into account the number of chickens and their breed.
Prepared poles are installed in the supports. The main part of the structure is ready for this, now you can build a pallet. For this, additional bars should be fixed to the walls at a height of 40 cm, on which the pallet will be located. It can be made from any material by filling with an adsorbent. This design will facilitate cleaning. The final touch is the construction of the stairs, which should be placed under the slope.
Corral equipment
Next to the chicken coop, it is necessary to arrange a platform that will allow to grow chickens in the summer. The pen should not go to the south and the hottest side, but it should not be constantly shaded. It is important to ensure the dryness of the paddock, there should not grow hazardous plants. You should also protect him from uninvited guests.
A metal mesh can be an excellent material for a durable and durable corral. It is important to use fine-meshed material that is stretched, and then fixed to poles dug in corners. In order to prevent domestic animals from getting inside and to prevent the laying hens from trying to leave the chicken coop, it is necessary to make a fence with a height of 2 m. The metal mesh is selected so that a curious bird cannot get stuck in the cells. It is important to take into account the difference in the sizes of roosters and hens, as well as chickens.
Conclusion
Another suitable material for building the walls of the chicken coop is adobe. Such products are formed from cut straw and clay. Bricks can be done independently. In this case, it will be possible to get a house that will be as comfortable and warm as possible for chickens. The only difficulty in the construction can be the alignment of surfaces.