Building a Chicken Coop – Wooden Or Metal?
Are you building your own private chicken house? Not sure what materials to use? Wooden or metal? We’ll review some of the items to consider when building a chicken coop as wood or metal.
Wooden Coop
The classic coop is typically a wooden coop. They come in all sizes and styles. Chicken coop builders sometimes use 3 materials. These are the wood, two by four’s that are unprocessed to offer protection to the health of the chickens, shingles for the roof to keep rough weather out, and siding or the exterior protection. You may also need screws, nails, wire for the chicken run, and other various materials.
Wood is maybe one of the most vital materials in making a chicken coop. You’ll need to ensure that when you get your wood it should have underwent treatment. The wood for coops should be water repellent to stop sicknesses to your chickens. Your chickens need to remain dry at all times.
Moisture will encourage illness and sicknesses to spread. The wooden coop should prevent wetness so as not to accumulate moisture. Installing some type of insulation will prevent moisture from accumulating. In addition, it will help keep your chickens warm.
When you wish to buy untreated wood, buy with it a water sealer. Treat the wood yourself by simply following the directions on its package. Untreated wood, coated by a sealer, ensures a wet free coop.
Make sure your wooden coop is free of wooden chips. Baby chicks might ingest these wooden chips and harm them. Wooden chips may come from wood being scratched by chickens. If you spot these chips, remove them right away.
Metal Coop
Another important chicken coop material is the metal. A metal coop will ensure that cleaning is easier. It will prevent dirt and chicken poop from sticking to the coop. This will make sure that there’s no bad smell inside the coop with proper cleaning. It is also weather proof and will not rot like the wood as time passes.
Metal can also be used to form the chicken run outside of the chicken coop. You might need plenty of chicken wires dependent on how many chickens you intend to keep or to reproduce.
You would like to have sufficient chicken wires to let it be planted in the ground with at least 8 inches in depth. Burying this material will stop dogs, cats, and other predators to move beneath the chicken wire to prevent getting to your chickens. Also, make sure that the chicken wires are placed high enough to prevent predators from climbing over them.
