The age old chicken coop has come a long way in recent years, with modern designs blending the best parts of old and new.
The best thing about this is the fact that anyone who can use a handsaw and hammer will be able to construct a chicken coop from scratch.
This article goes over some of the better chicken house designs, and encourages you to start building right away.
Traditional Chicken Coop Styles The chicken coop is one of the oldest, and most popular DIY woodworking projects, along with the Victorian-style greenhouse, and pitched-roof dog house.
The most common style of coop is the traditional hen house.
Thought quite large, you don't need a lot of woodworking experience to build one.
A few pieces of treated pine, some plywood, some chicken wire, and you're there.
It's also fairly common to attach some form of chicken run to such a structure, to further secure your flock.
Of course, not everyone needs a massive hen house style chicken coop.
Other designs include: - The a-frame chicken house.
- The chicken ark.
- The mid-sized box coop.
Modern Chicken House Features Though it could be said that traditionally styled coops are more aesthetically pleasing, they don't generally come with any practical features.
Many new chicken coop plans now provide you with ways to make breeding chickens a lot easier, starting with some pretty simple coop add-ons.
Some popular, easily constructed features are: - A semi-automated egg collection system, where the egg drops from any nest, into an external box.
This means that you don't have to get your hands dirty when fetching eggs.
- A chicken feeder.
This can be made out of wood, or even just a plastic bucket.
It means you'll only have to feed your flock once a week, as grain will automatically drop down into the grazing area.
- Extra security features.
It's important to protect your birds from predators and/or thieves.
There are a number of ways in which to do this, such as digging your fences slightly deeper than normal, and placing chicken wire under the ground.