Norfolk Chicken House

[Hinksy]

Bought this Chicken House just before Christmas, got it from Ebay so did not pay anything near the asking price on this site.

Egg 9 Chicken Coop Run Hen House Poultry Home Ark Nest Box Coup & Run Set - Feel Good UK

We was planning on getting about 5 or 6 Chickens, the write up states it is big enough for 9 Chickens, RSPCA blah blah!

However I dont exactly believe all the write up's you get on all these sites claiming this that and it plays music...etc.. etc...



How many Chickens do people think would actually be comfortable for this House?


I have already purchased an XXLarge Extension to put on the front of it.

[Bramble-Poultry]

perfectly acceptable for 6 chickens, with an extension run. I would certainly put no more than 6 in it.

The only comment about these runs are that the wood is not the best quality it is only softwood and will rot through very very quickly, if I was you i would add extra wood treatment before you pop you chooks in and make sure you check it and treat it regularly as it will rot.

[RichmondHens]

Depends on how you plan to "manage" the chickens on a day to day basis. I would put no more than 4 in if they were to be in it all the time, and if that were the case, you would either need to move it fairly frequently, or fill the run with wood chip. If you were planning to let them out to free range for a while each day then you could get away with 6.

I agree with Bramble about the quality of the wood and it needing extra treatment.

[jimred]

My first coop was similar to this, fine for my 4 bantams(i added a 3 foot extension) when their not free ranging, as Bramble says extra wood treatment is needed.

i gave mine 3 coats of yacht varnish, if its like my coop then check the nest box floor is screwed down as foxy could push his way in.

also the coop perch may need to be fixed in, when the chooks jump onto it the perch bounces out of the bracket and falls to the ground.

Good value coops with a few mods, have a look at The Chicken House Company when you get your next coop!

[tlck9]

I would certainly say about 4 chucks, I had an ark where they said around 6-8 chucks and I certainly wouldnt have put more than 3-4 in

One pointer, that I wish I had read this site in more detail before getting my chickens, is that the inside was just wood, I should have got some gloss white and painted it, so that if I ever got (which I did) red mite I could see it and deal with them quicker

[chicken_house_man]

It depends on how much space you want to give them. It's got a floor area of 2.25m (1.4 x 1.6 (1.98-nest box?)

I normally work on an area of 1 meter/bird in a permanent run. Less if it for temporary use such as a hospital, hen and chicks etc. Equally if they are free rangeing they can manage with a bit less if they are shut in occasionally.

On a permanent basis the run is suitable for 3, maybe 4 birds.

[Hinksy]

The plan is for the chickens to be out as much as possible, the house and run even with extension is purely for when me and my wife are not about to keep an eye on them and keep them safe. So they would be in there as less as possible.

Already thinking about changing certain areas of the wood, any other tips?

[Snadger]

One of the guys at the allotments has just got rid of one of these. He had four hens in it and they seemed cramped to hell!
I would say no more than three hens or four banties in it.........and thats WITH a double size extention.
Btw........my allotment neighbour has just bought it off him and I told them they shouldn't really put more than three chooks in it.

PS The 9 birds they advertise it as being ok for must be sparrows!

[Hinksy]

Well built the coop today, some of the parts on it do seem a little flimsy and cheaply put together but on the whole it actually seems ok. The housing area appears plenty big enough for the 5/6 Chickens that we want. After all they wont be in there all of the time.

Have noticed some areas of the coop that need some adjustments and general modifications to make it that much more secure.

The one thing is though it does have a felt roof on the main house, the nest box and the small ramp inside the coop and run area. From what I have read on here and books this can house Red Mite, how is best to reduce the risk? I can remove the felt from the ramp but wondered if painting the felt roof might work?


Thanks, Ja

[Suechooks]

The red mite lives under the felt between the felt and the wood so painting it won't help. If you can replace the roof with Onduline that's a good option. The Onduline does need good support at 18 -24" intervals otherwise it sags under snow or in the hot weather. It is really good otherwise as being corrugated it gives good ventilation. I have it on all my chicken houses. If you're just constructing the coop you could also seal the joins with silicone sealer to further discourage red mite - it will live in ANY nook or cranny in the coop.

[Bramble-Poultry]

if you cant fit onduline, then lift off the felt, cover the roof base board in red mite powder and refix the felt back on. That way any mite that tries to get under the felt gets nuked by the powder!

[MaureenHall]

I'd also suggest painting inside with Creocote. The first coop I bought 2 years ago is similar to the one you've got, and last year it was the only one with a huge red-mite problem. When I stripped the felt off the roof I looked as if I'd been dusted from head to foot in grey powder; it was only when I saw the critters moving around on my arms that I realised what it was After scrubbing with ***** fluid, steam cleaning, and blow-torching the whole of the interior I used Creocote and watched the little blighters crawling out to the outside of the coop. It was a horrible experience. All my coops are now painted inside (2 of them outside too) with either Creocote or gloss paint

[Hinksy]

Have now installed a corrugated roof to add a little more protection, think I need to give the wood a better finish than what it so far has though.

So should I gloss the inside and Creosote the outside? Whats best?

Thanks

Ja