Nowadays, chicken coops have been erected in many suburban and suburban areas. Owners often build them on their own, because there is nothing prohibitively complicated in this.. In this article, we will learn how you can build a poultry house for 50 chickens with your own hands..
Choosing a place
The first thing to do before starting construction work is choose an ideal place on the site for the future chicken coop. It is impossible to treat this stage with disdain, since it plays one of the most important roles. The owners definitely need to pay attention to the landscape that takes place on their local area..
Experts strongly advise against building poultry houses of any size in low areas. This is due to the fact that it is in such areas that a particularly large amount of precipitation accumulates. This can be very bad for the health of birds..
It is recommended to start construction in places with a slope to the south.. Thus, excess fluids will not be collected in large masses near the house – it will be both dry and warm in the building..
The chicken house must be built like this, so that the rays of the sun penetrate into its inner space. For example, if the building will have a rectangular structure, then it is better to arrange it in length from east to west. Throughout the daylight hours, the sun’s rays must penetrate the windows of the house – this is one of the necessary requirements.
Preparation
Before you start building a reliable chicken coop for 50 birds, you must do preparatory activities. Let’s get to know them.
Drawings and dimensions
Before starting construction work, be sure to draw up project future construction. Only having in hand detailed diagrams indicating all dimensional parameters, it will be possible to build a reliable poultry house without making mistakes. First of all, you need to calculate the area of \ u200b \ u200bthe building, taking into account the location of the window and door structures, take into account the location of the perches and other parts necessary for chickens.
The design phase can be considered one of the most important. It is at this moment that it is necessary to think carefully about the location of lighting devices, ventilation strokes, heating components. Due to the design, it will be possible to calculate the approximate cost of construction along with the amount of required materials..
A house with an area of about 10 square meters will be sufficient for 50 chickens. m. (2.5 by 4 m). In order to maintain an optimal microclimate in the building, as well as for the convenience of its maintenance, it is recommended to choose a height of no more than 180 cm.
Having made a competent and careful calculation, having thought over the layout of the future poultry house, it will turn out to build a really comfortable and strong structure in which the birds will not be cramped.
Tools and materials
A reliable and durable chicken coop can only be built from quality materials using the same quality tools. Most often, poultry houses are built from wood. Other available material will also work – oriented strand board. It is very easy and convenient to work with the latter, even if the home master does not have rich experience in such matters..
A chicken coop can be built and made of bricks or expanded clay concrete blocks. It is not recommended to use sheet metal for such purposes. The fact is that such a material not only cannot keep heat inside the building, but also attracts excessive dampness and moisture, and with them cold. In such conditions, chickens will certainly start to get sick..
Consider a detailed list of the components that will be needed to build a high-quality 50-hen house:
- cement – a couple of bags;
- sand;
- a concrete mixer or other container in which it will be convenient to mix a concrete solution;
- building level (the most convenient are the laser and bubble options);
- insulating material (expanded clay is suitable);
- roofing material and slate;
- electrical wire, light bulb, switch;
- glass;
- beams, boards, bars;
- concrete blocks;
- Rabitz;
- ventilation pipes;
- trowel and shovel;
- roulette;
- metal mesh;
- crushed stone;
- grater and spatula.
Manufacturing plan
Having prepared all the necessary drawings, having purchased materials and tools, you can proceed directly to the construction of a “house” for poultry. It is important to decide in advance on, what will the chicken coop be – winter, summer or all-season. The progress of construction work will depend on this..
First step – construction of a strong and high-quality foundation. A tape base is ideal for a chicken coop, but it will be expensive. To save money, it is permissible to install a columnar foundation when building a poultry house from wood..
Bricks and mortar are used to install the pillars..
We will analyze in detail how to properly build the foundation.
- It is necessary to mark the selected area in accordance with the drawings. Pegs or reinforcement are driven in at the corners of the building and a thread / rope is pulled between them.
- Pits are dug along the designated perimeter at a distance of 1 m with a depth of 0.5 m.
- If the soil on the site is clayey, the bottom of the holes must be covered with sand.
- Next, the pits are filled with a solution of concrete with crushed stone.
- When the mortar is fixed, it is necessary to form pillars of bricks with a height of at least 30 cm.The bricks must be fixed with cement mortar.
Next, you need to make the floor. Better to build it out of wood. A beam of 100×150 mm is laid on a brick base. The pillars are pre-supplemented with a special covering material (waterproofing). At the corners, the bars are sawn down to the thickness of the material.
Before installation, the bars are coated with antiseptic compounds so that the tree does not rot and deteriorate in the future. You will need to drill holes in the timber for fasteners – for attaching to the base pillars. Studs or anchors should be used as fasteners..
Having laid the base, lags are installed. They need to be laid on the edge, making a step of 0.5-1 m. They are fixed by means of self-tapping screws and metal corners. Floorboards should be laid on the finished frame base, securing them with nails or self-tapping screws.
The finished structure is lubricated with antiseptics, additionally insulated if the chicken coop is being built not only for summer, but also for winter.
The next step is building walls. They are built in the form of wooden frame bases, and insulating material is fixed in the remaining cells between the racks. Having assembled the frame, you can start arranging the roof of the poultry house. First, the rafters are installed by measuring the distance of the front and rear racks, adding about 30 cm for the overhang.For the chicken coop, you can build a shed roof.
All boards must be treated with antiseptics. A plastic wrap is laid on top of the rafters, then the crate with the selected roofing is inserted (slate or ondulin is suitable). The roof is also treated with antiseptic agents. The outer side of the structure is sheathed with OSB sheets. A vapor barrier is fixed between the racks, and then mineral wool. After completing the specified work, you can proceed to the internal arrangement of the built poultry house for 50 chickens.
Arrangement of the chicken coop inside
It is not enough to correctly build a chicken coop on the site – it still needs to be correctly furnished inside. Only then can poultry be allowed inside.. Let’s take a look at what needs to be placed inside the “house” for laying hens.
- Perches. These are details representing wooden perches. They are used for sleeping birds. Perches are attached horizontally. The suitable diameter of these elements is no more than 6 cm.It is necessary to correctly calculate the length of the seats based on the rule that at least 30 cm should be allocated for one bird. The perches are fixed 50 cm from the floor.
- Nests. They are installed at a great distance from the entrance door tight and places where there may be drafts. You can use wooden or plastic boxes to make nests. Some farmers make such details with their own hands. The optimal nest depth is 40 cm, and the height and width are 30 cm.
- Feeders, drinkers. You can buy ready-made containers for water and food, or you can make them yourself. Many farmers choose what are called bunker tanks. It is better to supplement the floor containers with a net so that the hens cannot scoop out the grain. Bowls or pots on the floor are ideal for water. You can also install nipple drinkers in the house.
- Ventilation. In a hen house, a ventilation system performs a very important function. Ventilation can be the easiest here. The main thing is that fresh air can freely enter the room. In the summer, frequent airing is enough, but in winter it is better not to resort to this method – it will become too cold for the birds inside..
- Lighting. You can’t do without artificial light in a chicken coop. Incandescent or fluorescent bulbs will work..
Warming and walking
No matter how warm and cozy a chicken coop is for 50 layers, with the onset of winter it doesn’t care additional heating sources will be needed. Some farmers prefer to do with an ordinary potbelly stove, while others decide to use modern electric heaters High Quality. You can also heat the house with gas.
Electrical devices are the easiest to operate. They have a lot of advantages in comparison with other options for heating devices..
The set temperature can be easily maintained by setting the appropriate power.
Do not forget that poultry will need regular walking.. The coop should be built with a suitable and well protected walk area. The latter is used to comfortably release birds from the main room. So they can graze freely.
The dimensional parameters of such a courtyard can be different – from 1.5 to 1.8 m. It is necessary to enclose the area for walking with a strong metal net. The latter should not have defects or damage, otherwise predators can easily get into the chicken coop, which will entail very bad consequences..
Inside the coop itself it is recommended install a separate door that will lead directly to the courtyard for walking. In addition, a strong canopy is usually installed over the walking area, which well protects the feathered population from the attacks of predatory animals. It is advisable to install additional perches on the territory of the courtyard.
Helpful hints and tips
If you are planning to build a hen house for 50 layers, it is worth listening to some useful tips and tricks..
- Chickens do not tolerate only cold, but also excessive heat. That is why it is better to provide shutters on the windows, which will be very useful on especially hot days. In winter, the temperature inside the house should not drop below 12 degrees..
- It is not recommended to build a chicken coop in lowlands or depressions on the site. Cold air will actively accumulate here, as well as rainwater. Keeping birds in such conditions is unacceptable..
- The lighting intensity in the poultry house should be 5-12 Lx. in the recreation area and nests, and in places where feeders are displayed – 50-60 Lx. If the light is brighter, the birds will become too anxious and even aggressive. Serious vision problems may begin, appetite and egg production decrease.
- When cutting holes for installing windows in a hen house, it is recommended to take into account the fact that vertical pockets will let in much more light than horizontal ones of the same area..
- It is recommended to install red lighting in the house. This technique prevents possible pecking of eggs, as well as unnecessary anxiety and aggression of birds..
- Water heating can be installed in the chicken coop. This is a good solution, but it will only be possible to implement it if the outbuilding is attached to the living quarters..
- If the poultry house is made for all-season use, it is better to use OSB slabs for the internal cladding of the building, and at the same time make the walls from a different material.
- For the construction of a chicken coop for 50 birds, you can use only high-quality wood without defects, traces of rot and mold. A good building will only come from the same good materials..
Tips for building and arranging a chicken coop for 50 chickens, see below.
