Backyard Chicken Coops Must-Read guide to setting up your coop
Preparing your coop It s time to think about: 1 Preservation 2 Foundation 3 Location What colour to paint? Painting is great fun. The hard part will be deciding on the colour! In order to preserve your coop s longevity and for warranty purposes, it needs to be painted prior to assembly. This protects the timber and helps it weather the harsh Aussie climate. Make sure you let the coop dry completely before your flock enjoys their fabulous new home! What foundation to choose? To easily open the doors and slide out the coop cleaning trays, a firm solid, level foundation is key. Naturally with time and weather the ground moves so to prevent future issues with the coop, there are a number of foundation options you can choose from. You must paint before assembly Painting the coop beforehand is essential as you can cover all the sides of the panel, especially the base pieces. Also, it tends to be easier as you can paint all the pieces of our Penthouse and Mansion without using a ladder! Where to put my coop? Concrete or grass? Sunlight or shade? They ll need shade as well as sunlight so someplace in between is great! A place where there is dirt for your feathered friends to dust bath in is essential. Dirt keeps me clean! 1 *Your warranty will be void if your coop is not painted on assembly.
1 Preservation Painting Painting requires less maintenance and is more durable! We love painting our coops because not only does it look fantastic, it means you don t have to touch it up for at least 3 years! We recommend giving it two coats of a good quality exterior house paint we use Dulux. If you re painting the Taj Mahal, 2-3L of paint will suffice, 4-6L for the Penthouse. And around 6-8L for the Mansion and Run to cover the Mansion roof panels too! If you choose a two-tone colour scheme, you need to add that to your calculations. Taj Mahal 2L - 3L Penthouse 4L - 6L Mansion + Run 6L - 8L Paint inside and out! Paint every edge of every panel twice. Essential Tip When painting the doors of the coop, take care not to paint the inside railing where the door slides. If you ve bought one of our fabulous Auto Door Openers, painting railings can cause the door to stick, and interfere with it automatically opening and closing. You must also paint the inside of the roof panels before assembly. 2
Painting Get this look Shopping list Lexicon Half Dulux 4W 2cm angled detail brush 7cm wide paint brush Dulux exterior house paint Double Bass Dulux GR1 How often do I paint? Every 3 years What do I use? Dulux Exterior House Paint How much do I NEED? 2 coats every side, every panel, inside & out! You ll need 2-8L depending on coop size. Get this look Prefer the natural timber look? Paint it brown to suit your taste. We reccommend this Dulux Exterior swatch: Teak Wood Dulux A106.1 3 4
2 Foundation 3 Location Concrete Base A concrete perimeter, or full slab, is a great foundation upon which to construct your coop. It provides sturdiness, as well as being a great way to keep burrowing predators out. We especially encourage a concrete slab foundation if you ve purchased the Mansion, as it weighs almost 200kgs and needs a very firm foundation to sit on! Timber Sleepers Lay your sleepers down underneath the coop your local nursery/garden supplier will be able to supply you with good timber sleeper options. This is a more cost-effective and less permanent option than a concrete slab. Pavers Pavers are easy to lay down and are sturdy predators will be deterred from burrowing underneath. You can pave the entire base of the coop, or just put pavers around the perimeter. Firm flat ground This is only for the Cluck House or Taj, if you are moving it around frequently. If your chickens live in the run full time, then put the coop on grass & dirt they need to have access to fresh ground to forage for insects and grit to stay healthy! Wire Mesh Galvanised wire mesh keeps your flock safe whilst giving them the benefits of foraging just lay wire mesh under the coop. This makes it difficult for pests and predators to burrow, but also lets the chickens access the ground. You can cut out the middle of the mesh so your flock has an area to dust bathe, without compromising their safety. Choosing the prime backyard spot for the coop There are a number of things that you need to consider when choosing the spot for your coop, especially if you re thinking of putting a concrete slab down you won t want to be moving that anytime soon! Access to sunlight Chickens need somewhere that is partially shaded, and partially in the sun. Dust Bathing Chickens need a patch of dirt in which to dust bathe, clean themselves and keep their feathers free from parasites. If you don t have space, put a bucket of dirt or sand in the coop they ll be soooo 4
Foundation options pavers Concrete base Brick Firm flat ground Raised sleepers 5 Need some help? Email us at sales@backyardchickencoops.com.au or phone 1300 763 133
Bruce & Bindy diy foundation & paved finish Bruce and Bindy Marshall gave their chickens the ultimate life of luxury when they bought the Mansion and four Mansion Runs. Not only does it look incredible in their gorgeous garden, it s functional for all their needs. They designed a practical and stylish foundation that not only keeps the flock safe, it matches their beautiful garden! Bruce started off by making sure the girls had plenty of room to scratch around and dust bathe, so he added around 50cm worth of dirt to the floor. He then made a raised level timber base using corrugated colorbond - giving his coop a steadfast foundation. Finally, Bruce finished off half of the run area with grass and trees, so he can move the girls around and let the grass replenish - ready for the chickens to enjoy it in a few weeks time! An incredibly clever idea and perfect for their backyard. This concrete slab is a very effective, sturdy base for the Mansion. David poured a slab slightly larger, which allows room to walk around and is also beneficial for predator prevention. The best part about a concrete base is that it makes cleaning the coop incredibly easy, as you can simply hose or sweep it out! To allow the chickens to be safe from predators, and still have access to fresh grass and dirt, David poured concrete just around the perimeter of the Mansion Run. Not only is this more cost effective, it keeps the height of the foundations in line with the hutch, and most importantly, the chickens can still scratch around naturally! david s diy concrete base Our Pick! Need some help? Email us at sales@backyardchickencoops.com.au or phone 1300 763 133 6
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