So a while back I wrote a
post about wanting to build a mobile coop that was suitable for our incredibly variable and steep terrain.
Most mobile coop designs out there have wheels under them and are usually quite wide, making them perfect for more or less even ground, but unpractical and potentially dangerous on steep terrain (imagine a coop on wheels rolling unhindered down a slope!!).
In my previous post I was considering making a double decker
chicken coop with a narrow wheelbase, at least allowing us to navigate the narrow pathways that serpent up the various slopes. But that idea brought with it lots of top-heavy designs that would have likely been too easy to top over. So in the end we scrapped the whole wheel-base idea and reverted to a simple structure that can be carried by two persons, taking some inspiration from
litter designs from over the world.
The resulting design was a skeleton like structure with mesh bottom, very light boarding, removable inner structures and roof, that is light and maneuverable
enough that me and my husband can easily cary the coop to a new location each month or so. We've been using the coop for three months or so now and I thought it would be interesting for you fellow permits living in hilly terrain to share some of my observations. The coop is still a work in progress though, so we are constantly adding/removing features and improving on the build
Below you can find some notes about the coop, how it functions and keeps up with the weather, and what I would change in future designs.
Pro's:
-Very light structure, could be carried by two small females (me being one of them!)
-Removable roof and internal platform reduce weight even more and allow easy cleaning and repairs
-Mesh bottom and windows allow for good ventilation: a bonus in our humid location and hot summers
-Very cheap construction. The skeleton structure could be made for around $15. The boarding was the most expensive part for us as we wanted something that looked pretty and natural, so we paid about $60 for the pine boarding. But this could have been replaced by any other kind of sheeting material available
-Houses up to 6-7
chickens depending of the breed
-Very manœuvrable to move the structure over uneven ground. We have successfully carried the coop on 50% slope, a narrow beam across a river. Just make sure to wear good shoes that provide grip so you don't slip!
-The mesh bottom and mesh window allow for the person carrying the coop in the back to look through the mesh screen to see his/her feet. So this person can still see where they are going/ positioning their feet in a sure way. The front person doesn't have this problem since they are looking in the other direction.
-The front panel opens completely, allowing for easy cleaning and acces to the inside.
-The side panel opens as well, giving access to the nesting boxes
-Removable nesting boxes made out of crates allow for easy cleaning
-Mesh bottom means less
poop in the coop!
-Enough height in the coop that we can add a thick layer of hay/straw in winter for them to walk on.
-Coop can be easily used in combination with electric netting.
-Your
chickens will look like Chinese royalty when being transported in this design!
Con's:
-Current build of coop means we need to first build a quick level platform with a couple of bricks and 2 planks to have a level spot to put the coop on.
-The coop alone would not be bear proof at all due to the light build. Luckily we don't have bears so that's not an issue, but relevant for anyone wanting to make one for themselves.
-You always need two people to move the coop.
-The coop can only house a small flock. A larger design would no longer be practical to move in this way, due to being too big/too heavy to transport safely across uneven ground.
What I would improve in future designs:
-Current walls are single walled. In the future we want to have internal paneling as well to allow for some space between the panels that we can fill with insulating materials
-Don't use nails!! Only screws!! Our mistake was to attach the outside boards with nails to the structure. Due to rain and snow the boards warped and wiggled themselves loose from the nails. Replacing all the nails with screws more or less solved the issue.
-We need a better roof. We used the leftover
wood boards with a plastic backing to make the current roof because we didn't have anything else at the time. But a removable lightweight metal roof would be a better solution
-The internal platform that functions as a roof for the nesting boxes and an extra platform for the chickens to sit or access their roost is a poop trap! We would need to make a system where we can cover the platform with bedding material that they can't easily kick off, but is still easy to clean.
-The large mesh window will need a panel that we can use to close off most of the mesh in colder times, currently using a piece of leftover styrofoam.
-Would curtains be a silly idea to attach in front of the mesh, still allowing for good ventilation, but giving the chickens a bit more of a sense of protection? I feel that given that their roost is at the same level as the window, the chickens could feel more exposed, less safe? We have been using an old blanket to hang over the window on windier days to prevent draft.
-Making legs for the coop that can be individually regulated in height, so that there's no more need to build a level platform first to put the coop on.
I'd love to hear your thoughts on our coop experiment!
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