Winter chicken coop: how to build with your own hands, materials and tools, dimensions

Establishing a winter chicken coop is a rather difficult task for a farmer. With the help of the correct implementation of this procedure, it will be possible to keep chickens in the winter. In this case, it is necessary to strictly adhere to a certain sequence of actions - calculate the area, select materials, select means for insulation. Equally important is the arrangement of nests, feeders, drinkers.

What is the difference between a winter chicken coop and a summer one?

In order for birds to survive the winter without problems, it is necessary to build an all-season chicken coop. Birds are highly sensitive to frost. Therefore, when arranging a frame house, important features should be taken into account:

1. Humidity. This is one of the main enemies of chickens, especially in low temperature conditions. In such a situation, the respiratory tract of pets suffer. Therefore, the chicken coop must be completely dry.
2. Lighting. In winter, chickens face a lack of lighting. Therefore, a winter chicken coop should be equipped with a large number of windows. They must be warmed up. Artificial lighting is also required.
3. Size. Don't make a chicken coop too big for winter as it's hard to heat it.

Choosing the best location

To choose the optimal site for construction, you need to focus on the following features:

1. It's rather damp in the lowlands. Therefore, the room should be placed on a hill.
2. Birds need rest. Therefore, the poultry house is built away from sources of noise.
3. The well-being of birds depends on the amount of sun. Therefore, the windows of the poultry house should face south.
4. It's bad for birds to overheat. Therefore, in hot weather, the windows shade.
5. The chicken coop should be placed not far from human habitation so that you can follow the birds.
6. It is recommended to place the building on dry and sandy soil.
7. The area for the chicken coop should be protected from the wind. Trees and bushes are used for this.
8. A walking area should be located near the chicken coop. It should have shelter from the sun, wind and other adverse climatic phenomena.

The wrong place for birds is bad for their he alth. Chickens become weak and sickly, do not lay well, and have difficulty fertilizing eggs.

Calculation of sizes

When choosing the size of the house, it is recommended to take into account the number of birds. The area of the winter building depends on this.

For 10 chickens

To equip a mini-chicken coop in the country, a barn with an area of 10-15 square meters is suitable. This is enough for the full activity of birds. The room must have at least 1 window and a grill for ventilation.

For 20 chickens

For so many chickens, you need a full-fledged barn. Its size should be 18-20 meters. The height of the walls is about 2 meters. Walking area - 2x3 meters.

For 30 chickens

For 30 chickens, the same option as for 20 is suitable. For this number of birds, a room of 20 square meters will be enough.

For 50 chickens

This number of chickens will require a fairly large room - about 50 square meters. Height should not exceed 2 meters. The site covers an area of 3x4 meters.

For 100 chickens

The chicken coop project for 100 chickens has a considerable area, exceeding 50 square meters. Such a large room needs high-quality insulation.

Building material

For a building to be durable, quality materials are required:

1. The foundation will require a mixture of sand and cement, roofing material, gravel. You also need wooden formwork, screenings, a grid with small cells. In addition, it is worth preparing a thin rope, tape measure, rods, pegs.
2. For the walls you need to take wooden beams, staples, bricks, plywood, cement, foam blocks.
3. Slate, plywood, fiberboard or chipboard can be used to equip the roof. You can also use roofing felt, roofing felt, wooden slats and beams. Slate is considered the most suitable option.
4. For the floor it is worth using floor logs, wooden boards, beams. Chipboard or fiberboard sheets are also suitable.
5. Ventilation will require pipes and dampers.
6. For nests and perches, it is recommended to use slats, sectional partitions, fiberboard, shavings.

In addition, it is worth arming yourself with means for attaching feeders, a stapler, a jigsaw, a hammer. It is also recommended to prepare nails.

Before using wooden boards or plywood, they should be treated with an antiseptic compound. After that, the material must be sanded with sandpaper.

Preparatory work

Before building a winter chicken coop, it is worth doing the preparatory work. First of all, it is recommended to correctly select a place for construction, make an accurate drawing of the building and calculate the amount of required materials.

If the site has clay or swampy soil, drainage work will certainly be carried out. If this procedure is ignored, the supporting base of the structure will quickly fail.

How to build a chicken coop for the winter with your own hands

In order for the construction of the chicken coop to be successful, it is worth strictly following the rules for all work.

Foundation for poultry house

Construction technology is determined by the material from which it is planned to build a chicken coop. The columnar structure can be piled, with a small recess, or tape. It is used as a rigid base for heavy brick walls. The foundation for light structures from beams or logs can be made in the form of blocks or pillars.

Gender

The floor can be made of wood or concrete. However, in such a situation, its warming will be required. For this, sawdust is used.

It is better to use boards for the floor. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Upholster the bottom layer with unedged boards. Place steam and waterproofing on top.
2. Place the bars at a distance of 65-80 centimeters.
3. Place insulation between them.
4. Place the edged boards on top and fit them tightly.

Frame

Before making the frame, you need to decide on the design of the roof. Usually it is made single-sided. In this case, one of the walls is made higher.

Building a frame involves the following work:

1. Lay a beam on the surface of the foundation. It should be fixed with anchor bolts. Between themselves, the bars are attached with metal corners.
2. In the corners, put the beam vertically and attach to the lower belt.
3. Attach the upper horizontal belt to the vertical bars. On the outside of the frame, make a crate of small planks or slats. Heat-insulating material is laid on it.
4. The rafters for the roof are placed on the upper belt.

Roof

It is recommended to nail a crate of unedged boards or plywood leaves to the rafters. It is worth fixing the vapor barrier film on it. It should be laid overlapping, sealing the seams. Thermal insulation material and waterproofing are placed on top.

Then the cross planks are nailed to the rafters. When using a soft roof, it is worth laying plywood or OSB, and then laying roofing material. If slate is used, wood paneling is not required.

Wall and floor insulation

Heaters are selected based on the budget. The most affordable option is foam. You can also use mineral wool. In this case, it is first necessary to lay a double-sided membrane. The most comfortable option is considered to be polystyrene foam. It is produced in the form of even and smooth plates. However, this material is quite expensive.

Natural materials are practically free. To do this, use a mixture of sawdust and clay. However, the quality of such insulation is much lower.

Arrangement of a winter chicken coop

After building the premises, it is worth paying attention to the internal arrangement of the winter chicken coop.

Making perches

This design will require bars with a section of 4x4 or 6x4 centimeters. It is important that they have a rounded shape. Therefore, the bars should be cleaned to smoothness in order to avoid damage to the paws.

When using several perches, the distance between the planks in width should be 30 centimeters, and in height - 20 centimeters. Attach a small ladder to the lower tier.

Nests

Nests are best placed in remote corners of the room. For this, wooden boxes are used. For 5 chickens, it is worth providing 1 nest. If you plan to raise exclusively laying hens, you can make more nests.

Feeders and drinkers

Feeders are arranged in length. The size is selected taking into account the number of chickens. For 1 bird should be about 10-15 centimeters. At a height of 15 centimeters from the floor, it is worth making 2 more feeders in the form of boxes. They are filled with gravel or shells. There must be drinkers in the poultry house.

Ventilation in the winter coop

For a normal indoor climate, ventilation is required. Its functions can be performed by a plastic pipe. It is placed under the ceiling, passes through the roof and exits at a height of 1 meter. The inflow is through the slots. If they are well sealed, it is worth mounting a pipe into the wall a little higher than the floor.

Chicken coop lighting in wintertime

The chicken coop is complemented by windows. To keep warm, the frames should have 2-3 glasses. They must be sheathed with mesh inside and out.

In order for chickens to rush in winter, they are recommended to increase the length of daylight hours. It should be at least 11-12 hours. Therefore, it is worth using artificial lighting.

Litter

For chicken coops use 2 types of bedding:

• deep - implies 2-3 layers;
• shallow - it is made in 1 layer.

Deep litter is preferred. To do this, use natural materials - moss, sawdust, straw. You can also use peat or hay.

Installation of the heating system

In order for the chicken coop to be warm, you need to provide additional heating. In winter, you can heat with electricity or other methods.

Electricity

You can heat the chicken coop with infrared lamps. Infrared emitters do not heat the air, but objects. Because they are placed above the perches. A few pieces are additionally hung above the floor. Fan heaters can also be used. When choosing them, it is better to give preference to the programmable model. This will help save electricity.

Oil coolers are not recommended for chicken coops. They waste a lot of energy, but give too little heat. Open-coil devices cause fire and are very dangerous to use.

Boiler and potbelly stove

The chicken coop can be heated with a wood-burning boiler or potbelly stove. You can also fold a brick oven. In this case, the pipe is best placed in the chicken coop. This will provide maximum heat.

Heating the chicken coop by decomposing sawdust

To maintain a positive temperature, use the heat produced by the decomposition of sawdust. However, it will be possible to achieve a tangible effect only with minimal insulation.

Spread sawdust on the floor. The first layer is used in autumn, the second - before frost. The thickness of the layer is 10-15 centimeters. It should lie 1-1.5 months.

A month later, add a fresh batch of sawdust. In this case, the thickness should be approximately 10 centimeters. By the end of winter, the layer is 50 centimeters. In the spring, the composition is taken out to the compost.

Playing yard

Chickens love to be active. Therefore, they should definitely equip a walking yard. It is isolated with a mesh. This will help keep other animals out.

Feeders should be placed near the entrance, using a polycarbonate visor.

Building a winter chicken coop is not that difficult. To do this, you must follow the basic recommendations for the choice of materials and the construction of the structure. Be sure to pay attention to the interior design of the room. This will provide the birds with a comfortable environment. Thanks to this, the birds will be able to rush well. In addition, a quality chicken coop will become a reliable disease prevention.

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