My wife and I decided that we wanted to have chickens on our property, both for the girls enjoyment and for eggs. (fun and utility is always a good combination). We wanted it close to our house for easy of egg collecting, which meant it had to look good- no shantytown coop for these chickens! There was not much money available for this project, so I up-cycled where I could. The coop is made of pallet wood from various types of pallets. I was able obtain 1x4, 2x4, 2x6, 2x8, and 4x4 pieces from various pallets at my work. Most were around 4’ in length but some were 7’ long. Not a single stick of lumber was purchased for this project! (Though I did buy 10lb of screws for this project) Rather than buy shingles or siding, I made it with pallet slats cut to length. After planning the general dimensions, and sketching out the framing of the walls, the rest of the coop was designed and built on the fly, based on what look I wanted and what materials were available to me. The coop has electric service for lighting and heat in the winter, and the walls and roof are insulated to reduce the need for heat in the winter, and make the coop more bearable for hot summer days. This was the first project of this size I have ever tackled before, and it certainly took longer than I thought it would, but I learned a lot while doing it. When people come over to visit, I always enjoy seeing their reaction, especially when I tell them that the coop was made entirely out of pallets!
My wife and I decided that we wanted to have chickens on our property, both for the girls enjoyment and for eggs. (fun and utility is always a good combination). We wanted it close to our house for easy of egg collecting, which meant it had to look good- no shantytown coop for these chickens! There was not much money available for this project, so I up-cycled where I could. The coop is made of pallet wood from various types of pallets. I was able obtain 1x4, 2x4, 2x6, 2x8, and 4x4 pieces from various pallets at my work. Most were around 4’ in length but some were 7’ long. Not a single stick of lumber was purchased for this project! (Though I did buy 10lb of screws for this project) Rather than buy shingles or siding, I made it with pallet slats cut to length. After planning the general dimensions, and sketching out the framing of the walls, the rest of the coop was designed and built on the fly, based on what look I wanted and what materials were available to me. The coop has electric service for lighting and heat in the winter, and the walls and roof are insulated to reduce the need for heat in the winter, and make the coop more bearable for hot summer days. This was the first project of this size I have ever tackled before, and it certainly took longer than I thought it would, but I learned a lot while doing it. When people come over to visit, I always enjoy seeing their reaction, especially when I tell them that the coop was made entirely out of pallets!
