Hi my husband and I just bought this coop. We live in a subdivision in the countryside in Idaho. It came assembled and it was recommended to us by the hatchery we got our hens from to not paint it and seal only the outside areas with Thompson non toxic water sealer/ clear. I followed the advise it only took me 45 minutes to do and it was kinda fun! I bought a gallon and I only used about 6 cups. One coat recommended. Dried quickly and ready for us to put in its place in our backyard. We have 3 chickens and I think this will be perfect. We enjoyed your video and I agree on the doors sticking when weather changes, I did sand the bottom of the doors a little to move more freely. It will probably need a new coat of seal every year, only doing the exterior areas will be easy maintenance. Chickens like to peck and I do not see a safe enough paint to be used. The Thomason’s water sealer I purchased is safe for all livestock pets, animals ,as well as humans. I look forward to enjoying eggs soon. Maggie and Rocky kuna Idaho

Hey man! Thanks for the review. I just bought this coop too, I’m in Virginia where it’s wet and humid all summer. I’ll definitely be painting this damn thing. Perfect for my wife and I. I’d love to scratch build but I simply don’t have the time.

Ed, I’ve watched a number of videos on this coop and I have to say, yours is the most informative. Thank you for your candor and honesty. It’s just my wife and I. We are only purchasing 6 hens, no roosters. I’m about to make the purchase on this coop. My plan is to paint each piece before putting it together and placing it on treated wood or cement blocks. Hopefully, that will make it last longer. Thanks again.

HI FROM 'down the road' in the Dale Hollow Lake area! I have this same coop, with 6 standard-sized chickens, and had read all the conflicting discussions about it. Here's what I did, plus a few pros & cons I've discovered in the last 3 weeks I've been using it: 1) pre-construct solid stain, inside & out, 2 coats 2) attached the manufacturer-suggested frame support to the base, as I use it as a 'sled-style' tractor while my chicks & cats learn their boundaries 3) added 1.5" spacers along the top of the frame at the joined intersections for added ventilation between the frame & the roof panels. This will be especially necessary for the longer, colder or nastier-weather days when they're spending more time in the coop 4) am in the process of attaching a 2' "butterfly apron" of hardware cloth around the bottom perimeter of my frame support for predator dig-deterrent - my original choice of attachment hardware was actually a fail, so this weekend I am trying something new 5) added larger roosts in the coop in the form of driftwood branches I found at the lake. These are actually supported by the included roost bars (my chicks refused to use them) and a couple of 2x4 scraps. 6) I did not set up the nesting boxes because a) they were sleeping in them instead of roosting, and b) they took up too much space. As I only have 5 soon-to-be hens, I will only need 1 nest box, which I will add to the corner away from their preferred roosting space, and closer to laying age. Pros: *relatively easy (for my teen boys) to push around the yard so the chicks can have new forage, and the previous area can recover ( we'll be doing this until they learn to "free-roam" safely & make it back to the coop for bed) * also relatively easy to attach a temporary run off the short-door end using t-posts and chicken wire (not predator-proof, though - just keeps them in and gives them a bit more space for now, or for if I have to leave them unsupervised for a short time) * coop maintenance for my 5' .5" self isn't too difficult Cons: *so.much.wood.swelling!! I can barely get their pop door opened/closed, and the window is permanently open for now. The other access doors are okay unless the ground is wonky. * the ramp. I have an over-achieving Polish roo and a high-strung Delaware pullet who manage to faceplant at the bottom DAILY. * space: I've had to make 2 pvc feeders that attach to the outside of the coop and are fed through a hole in the bottom "foraging" area to free up space for their feed. This weekend I will be making a 2 gal. bucket w/cups waterer, which will go on a cinderblock out in their temporary run, as there's no feasible place to hang or set it in the enclosed coop area where it won't get knocked over or sat in/on like their current waterer *not very predator-proof against much of the typical chicken-loving critters. I ended up attaching 1/2" hardware cloth all the way around the top of the frame, with modifications to make sure that even the roofing material gaps were protected. *raising the roof for ventilation also means easier access for rain, especially wind-blown rain. Still trying to formulate how to attach awnings that will block rain but not airflow. For now, we clamp on black trashbags as needed Conclusion: The chicks have been in it since they were 6 weeks old, going on 3 weeks now, and I've not witnessed any signs of stress, extra bickering/bullying or other issues associated with overcrowding. Sunday we will begin our "free-roam training" and that should help even more. Love the design, love how easily it can be modified to various needs, but would definitely prefer to spend that kind of money on something that already covers all the bases to begin with. For anyone who suffers from "chicken math syndrome", you should definitely pass on this and go invest the money with one of the free, true DIY coop plans you can get from the interwebs or on here in KZfaqLand. :)

Thanks for this review! I had to get a prefab coop because I didn’t have any other option. I noticed that with this one my 8 chickens are squished together at night. I’m glad I let them out to free range because it’s way too tight for 8 chickens. I’ve also noticed that the “roosts” are as low as the nesting boxes, and it causes my chickens to poop, sleep, and scratch bedding into the boxes.

Thanks

Ed I have the same coop, I have 10 females and one rooster inside, what i did was eliminate the dividers inside and placed 3 laying boxes outside screwed onto the coop. By the way retired Navy C.P.O. here. Lovin the monthly checks. LOL, and also a small time farmer with only chickens, dogs, and cats. In Central florida.

Yup I just bought this coop and we have 2 chickens. That was our issue they grow lol I think its perfect for our two spoiled gals.

Agreed there is NO way that 8-10 adult chickens fit comfortably…also the roost bars should be higher to make them happy. currently have 8 chicks I like the idea of installing an exterior nesting box.

Hi Ed, thanks for your honest review,,n no painting doors won't keep swelling away unfortunately, how are the chickens doing

Hi, it just came in delivery. Must say the company i bought it from "Tractor supply" was awesome. Not sure if this is their coop or they are just one of the suppliers , but it would appear that they are the only one that sells it. So getting ready to put it together. Question, I have 5 hens but they are "free range" so this coop is just where they will sleep and lay. Our previous coop was abut the same size and it was fine. What i have done to all my coops is mount them on top of a 6 inch raised bed . this extends the life of the coop as the bottom is raised and not in direct contact with wet dirt. I put hardware cloth underneath for predators and rodents. My question is 1. roost, where you able to easily ad more? 2. waste pan, I wold like to practive the "deep litter method. so the just poop down into the bottom of the run on top of wood shavings. would it be ok to just pull out the metal pan and let them just perch on roost with just open on bottom, will they be able to walk in the egg booth without the pan. 3. where do you place food and water? since my hens are free range I feed them outside the coop, but we are tryng to control mice and wild bird situation and was advized to keep feed in coop. where do you put feeder? thanks!

how about thompson's water seal instead of paint? we just bought two of these and am engineering the installation right now. i want to be able to move the things so am planning on a plywood "picture frame" under it with wire mesh between the plywood and bottom of the coop to give that face shear strength.

Four chickens max

Any issues with raccoons or other animals digging in?

I regret buying this coop. Raccoons thanked me for it, though.