Remember that coop? 12 months later….
The ramp fell off the first week, but we didn’t worry. Hens easily leap a foot up. But now it seems like it was an omen.
Thoughts?
Seriously!
Remember that coop? 12 months later….
The ramp fell off the first week, but we didn’t worry. Hens easily leap a foot up. But now it seems like it was an omen.
Thoughts?
Seriously!
Thanks. Every so often I’m tempted to buy one. I’ll be less tempted.
Sorry for your bad experience, but thanks for the warning.
I have a hand made tractor coop I bought from some Amish 2yrs ago & it’s the best investment ever though pricey! Everyone calls it the “girls” summer Condo! We move it every 2 days. Sorry yours did not work out! My girls & I are extremely happy with ours!
L
I know that none of these pre-made coops are cheap, and it sure is aggravating that it looks so weather beaten in just a year. If it were up here in ‘snow country’ (Catskill mountains, NYS) I would say that the flat roof and snow load was what made the roofing start to buckle up like that. I am not totally surprised to see the door latch not quite line up any more though. That is the hazards of anything built out of wood that spends it’s life outside in the elements. There has been more then one time that we have had to ‘adjust’ latches and hinges on barn doors and chicken coop doors over the years……..between wood swelling and shrinking, ground shifting from frost, horses and people leaning on and pushing on things……and all the ‘farm buildings’ on this property were husband/father built…….so can’t blame it on ‘prefab’. If I were to get a coop like this one though, one of the first things I would do is add some extra support under the nesting box portion……..that is a lot of weight hanging out there with gravity pulling on it all the time.
First, I would check on a warranty. Then I would leave a honest comment on the website of the creator of this coop. People wanna know if it’s worth their money and your images will help them decide. Then I would ask my local hardware store (and vet) if you can stain your coop without hurting your chickens. I would think one of those deck/fence stains might help. Then I would hammer or screw in some new nails/screws to bring it back to tight and uniform (or maybe do this part before staining.) Put in any supports needed and hopefully get some more years out of this coop. And I would put a overhang on the roof to keep the rain from getting inside.
I don’t own a coop, but I’m good at coming up with ideas in general. Hope my ideas help. If you do decide to trash it in the end and get a new one, I suggest hiring someone to build it if you are unable to do it yourself. I think the price would be about the same.
I’m so glad I didn’t purchase that coop! I ended up spending more, but getting a beautiful sturdy coop from the Urban Coop Company. I’ve had it for a year now and still looks new. I expect it will last for many, many more years.
The nesting box need to be lifted up and have 2 legs on it. One on each side to keep out the sag. (Just lift it up and put 2 screws in the leg to screw into the corners.) The roof needs to have the tar roofing material come out past any wood on the roof, it will not look as nice, this will keep water from getting under the roofing and cause rotting. For the uneven “locks”, the ground that it sits on was not level enough to keep from having sag. I would get some cedar shims and but them under points that allow it to sag. (Use a crowbar to pry under certain points to see where it moves & how. You will be able to place shims as needed) this should take care of the door problem. You may have to go through all of this again next year. To keep this from happening, remove the coop and place some “red bricks” around the border and take the time to level them all. Make sure that ou use a rubber mallet to “set” the brick so they are less likely to settle on you again. This will keep the wood form rotting as it will not be touching the ground.