Ultimate Pallet Coop
If you strolled through a big-box home improvement store during the past two summers, you probably noticed massive lumber price increases spurred by a series of events related to the pandemic. This was especially untimely for new chick owners like us, who had seven fluffy friends in the basement needing a permanent home in a few weeks.
Our finances didn’t allow for the purchase of a pre-manufactured, move-in-ready coop, and we discovered that many are designed more for aesthetics than for functionality. The used coop market didn’t look much better. My girlfriend, Elaina, and I decided to build the best coop we could dream up on a budget. We’re both mechanical engineers by degree, so we began by doing our homework on which characteristics make up a top-notch coop, and then we jotted down some chicken scratches (pun intended).
Planning for Success
We ranked our design criteria in descending order, with chicken needs first, followed by chore functionality and accessibility and, finally, aesthetics. We ranked looks last, because we knew most designs could be jazzed up later.
The first functionality detail we considered was floor height. Pre-made coops and many DIY builds place the floor just a foot or so above the ground. This sentences humans to a lifetime
