Chicken Coop shed essentials
This list of chicken coop shed essentials will help you transform your old shed into a new and efficient coop right in your own backyard. Keep this list near so you can create a space that will allow your chickens to be happy and healthy all year long.
When raising chickens, it is important to set up a home that will keep them safe from predators, warm in the winter, and dry in the summer so they can flourish.
Ready to start collecting daily fresh organic eggs right in your own backyard? If so, this list will get you started with a self-sufficient backyard coop that is low-cost and easy to set up.
Many times, a new venture on a homestead can be expensive so finding ways to make things easier on your wallet is the best option. Look at what you have and see if you can repurpose something old into something new.
This is what we did when we decided to raise a larger flock of chickens. Rather than investing tons of money building a new coop from scratch, we instead updated an old shed. A shed that was sitting empty in the back corner of our yard.
We invested less than $50 and built a long-lasting coop that comfortably holds 25 hens and one rooster without overcrowding.
This article will cover all the must-haves for setting up the perfect chicken coop so you can
Read our guide on how to transform an old shed into a new chicken coop for our step-by-step plan. Once your coop is ready, jump back to this list to finish up the layout both insiede and out before you add your flock.
Chicken Coop shed essentials
A chicken coop is broken into four parts, food, water, shelter, and protection. Knowing the role that each part plays will help you decide what items to include.
Things to Keep in Mind:
- Inside Space – This will determine the size tool you can house comfortably inside the coop.
- How many hens you will be raising – This will determine how many items you will need for the entire flock to use without issues.
- What predators you commonly see where you live – This will determine what additional items you will want to include to keep your flock safe.
- Outside Pace – This will determine what additional things you can include for your flock.
chicken feeder
Chickens are one of those animals that love to eat often throughout the day. For that reason, continuous feeders are a great addition to have in a coop.
Over the last ten years, I have tried almost every feeder out there, and my favorite is the galvanized steel hanging feeder.
Although it is the most expensive of all the feeder options, these feeders are very durable and allow the chickens to peck away at their food without doing any damage. Another option is a plastic feeder but I have found that chickens can chip away at the plastic causing cracks in some areas.
A continuous feeder will hold quite a bit of feed ensuring it is always available for your chickens. I usually need to fill our feeder every 2-3 days for our flock of 8 chickens.
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Where should you put a feeder in a coop?
Continuous feeders hang from the ceiling extending it up off the floor. This will keep the feed from getting tipped over and prevent any manure from getting inside. You will want to hang the feeder up off the ground far enough that your chickens can eat from it comfortably.
This can be anywhere from 10-12 inches depending on the breed you raise.
Things to Remember:
- Hang the feeder inside the coop with enough room for your chickens to eat from any side. Ours is about 2 feet in from the nearest wall.
- Keep it away from the roost.
- Be sure to have it in far enough from the door that the sun or rain will not damage the feed.
Chicken waterer
Having clean fresh water in a coop is just as important as feed. Again, you will want to choose a location that will allow the flock to access the water without risking dirt or manure from getting inside.
There are many different types of waterers that you can use allowing you to select the best one for your coop. Just one tip here, be sure to choose the material that works best for the weather in your area.
Where we live, for example, the winters can get pretty brutal and because of that, I had a very hard time finding a chicken waterer that could withstand the wear and tear of frequent below-freezing temperatures.
I tried the plastic waterers only to have them crack halfway through the season. Next, I tried a galvanized steel waterer, but after a few years, it started to rust. I finally settled on a simple rubber water bowl.
Many times in the winter, the water freezes solid and this can damage plastic and even metal waterers. Using a rubber bowl allows me to bang the ice out without any risk of damage.
Where should you put the water in a chicken coop?
It is important to have the water dish up off the ground so that bedding and other debris does not contaminate the water.
If using a plastic or metal waterer, you can hang them from the ceiling of your chicken coop. If using a rubber bowl, you can place it on a cinder block or another platform. Another tip in using a rubber water bowl is to place a rock inside to keep the bowl from tipping over.
Chickens like to perch in the most precarious places, and this often includes the side of the water bowl. The rock helps to keep the bowl from tipping over and actually does a great job.
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Chicken Roost
Chickens have the instinct to get up off the ground once the sun starts to set. Because of this, it is important to have a good chicken roost inside your coop. You can easily make your own with scrap pieces of wood you may have lying around your property.
I also like to have a roost outside in the chicken run as well. Sometimes our hens like to roost during the day, and having an option outside is helpful. Also, in the hot summers, this outdoor roost encourages them out of the hot and stuffy coop and into the cooler fresh air.
DIY Chicken Roost Ideas
Here are a few DIY ideas you can use to set up a roost in your chicken shed coop.
1. Take two cinderblocks and stand them vertically. Slide a 2×4 through the holes quickly, creating a roost for your flock.
2. If your DIY skills are lacking, you can use a ladder as a roost in your coop. A small step ladder will hold 2-3 chickens, whereas a larger ladder will hold more.
3. You can also use scrap wood to DIY a larger and wider ladder in your coop. This style will hold quite a few chickens and works great if you have a larger flock.
4. A bit more advanced on DIY skills but a great option if you have a small coop. This is a perimeter roost that has a long ladder for easier access for your chickens.
Get our step-by-step guide on How to DIY a Perimeter Roost that will work in a shed coop setup.
Chicken nesting boxes
A nesting box is an essential part of a coop as it gives chickens a safe place to lay their eggs so they are protected until you can collect them.
Again you can purchase nesting boxes that you can use right away inside your chicken shed coop.
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You can also DIY nesting boxes using supplies you already have on hand. We used old plastic milk crates as our box and built a sturdy yet light weight frame to house a set of 6 inside.
Get our step-by-step guide on How to DIY Milk Crate Nesting Boxes for your coop.
Bedding
When it comes to chickens choosing the best bedding is an important part of your coop setup. Bedding has a role to play in your coop as it keeps the ammonia smell down from your chicken’s feces and urine.
A strong and continuous smell of ammonia can cause breathing issues in chickens. By using bedding that will soak up those smells you will, in turn, create a healthier environment in your coop.
What can you use as bedding in a chicken coop?
- Sand
- Wood shavings
- Sawdust
- Hay or straw
- Natural Mulch such as shredded leaves or grass clippings
- Shredded newspaper
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#1. Wood Shavings
Over the years, I have tried different beddings, and my favorite is wood shavings. The larger pieces keep the dust down in the coop, and the wood material does a great job absorbing the moisture from the chicken’s manure and urine.
#2. Sand
Another popular option is sand, and the best part is you can use a kitty litter scoop to remove soiled areas. If you have back issues you can use this long handled scoop making this job a really easy one!
#3. Straw
I have tried straw, but it simply does not absorb all the moisture from the chicken’s manure. And if you have moisture, you will have smell and that is not anything you want inside of a coop.
#4. Sawdust
And finally, another option I tried was sawdust but found it was way too dusty for our chickens. Dust can also cause issues in your hens especially if they are continuously breathing it in.
Wood shavings work the best for us and it is what we have used for the last 10 plus years.
More Chicken Health Resources:
Heating
This is a pretty controversial topic and even though I used to use heat lamps during the winter months, I no longer do. The risk of a fire is just too much and for that reason we choose not to heat the inside of a chicken coop even in the dead of winter.
Yes we live in an area that has pretty brutal winters with wind chills well below -15. But I also found that chickens are pretty resourceful and if given the chance they will adapt and might surprise you at how well they can withstand those temperatures.
By allowing your chickens to slowly acclimate to the weather changes naturally, they will grow thick fluffy down feathers that will keep them warm throughout the cold winters.
That said, you may still feel more comfortable providing at least some source of heat inside your coop. If you do not have electricity in your chicken coop, look for any solar options.
More Winter Coop Resources:
- How to Keep Your Chickens Warm Without Electricity
- How to Keep Your Eggs From Freezing in the Winter
- How to Keep Ducks Warm in the Winter
Protection
When it comes to chickens they look to be fragile especially when it comes to predators. They are not able to fly away from a predator other than in short spurts, they only have their feet and beaks to protect themselves with, and running is their first choice of action when a predator approaches.
For that reason, we like to have extra protection out by our coop to keep the predators away so they do not harm our flock.
• We have a few flashing predator lights at the entryway of our coop, and they do a great job of keeping predators away.
• We also have a motion flood light that will light up the area if a predator approaches after dark.
• Finally, we have a rooster. Roosters are great if you are looking for protection for your flock. Not only will they use everything they have to fight off a predator, but they will also squawk loud enough to warn you that something is wrong.
Read: The Best Roosters for Protection
Extra Essentials for Your Chicken Coop Shed
Let’s now talk about a few things you may want to have but are not necessary to raising your chickens.
- Dust Baths – Chicken dust baths are easy to DIY, and your chickens will love them. Fill with a mixture of sand, wood ash, and food-grade diatomaceous earth. Use a wash tub or old tire to hold the ingredients so your chickens can use it for a dry bath to remove pests and other debris from their feathers.
- Automatic Coop Door – This is great to have if you can’t always be there to let your chickens out onto the run. We installed our first Solar Chicken Coop Door, and we love it. Now our chickens can go out and be closed up on time without us needing to be there.
When setting up a home for your hens, these chicken coop shed essentials will get you off on the right start. Use them to cover the basics needs of your flock and raise healthy, happy, egg laying chickens for years to come.
