Sunday, March 7, 2010

Ideas for Hen House Designs

A great set of hen house designs eliminate a lot of frustration and leave you enough time to enjoy the rest of your weekend. You may ask why not buy a pre-made chicken coop? If you shopped around for a prefabricated coop, you may have noticed these structures can run anywhere from $500-$1000. If you cringe at the thought of spending that amount of money, you should consider building your own. The great thing about this project is that it doesn't require specialized tools or advanced carpentry skills.

Good hen house designs should address a few areas other than the outward appearance of the coop. It's one thing to build the chicken coop, it's another thing to maintain the structure and care for your hens once it is built. There are few things you should take into consideration.

What size chicken coop do you need? This will be determined by number of chickens you plan to raise. You can fit 5-7 hens into a small hen house. If you plan to have more hens, you will need a medium or large coop. Chickens need sunlight to be productive during the day. You will need to position the house where the sun can shine through the windows during the day. The window should not be obstructed by large trees in the yard.

The hen house designs should also address proper ventilation and climate control. You need to be able to keep your hens warm in the winter, cool in the summer, and dry in the rain. You should plan to have windows that open and close as needed.

The coop should be constructed in a way that you can properly maintain and clean it. A good start would be to elevate the structure from the ground to prevent it from sitting in wet soil. You should be able access the feeding areas without too much difficulty.

There are many things to consider when raising hens. A good set of hen house designs should address each area you need to consider. Good step by step chicken pen plans are critical especially if this is your first time building a chicken coop. It will save you a lot of time, frustration and money.


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