Things You'll Need
- 1/2-inch plywood
- 1/2-inch hardware cloth
- 1/2-inch to 1-inch chicken wire
- 1-inch staples
- Two-by-four lumber
- Tape measure
- Saw
- 2 1/2-inch to 3-inch deck screws
- 2 1/2-inch to 3-inch framing nails
- Screwdriver
- Hammer
- Chicken bedding
- Plastic eggs or golf balls
- Feed and water pans
Instructions
Preparation
Contact your local building department about zoning, permits you may need and any other requirements for installing and converting a mobile home to a chicken house. You will likely be required to remove all kitchen, bathroom and heating fixtures and appliances.
Decide where you will locate the roosts and nesting boxes and which cabinets or closets you will keep for storing feed and supplies. Omit nesting boxes and roosts if you are raising broilers as they will prefer to sleep on the floor.
Remove carpeting, appliances, sinks, toilets, bathtubs and any interior doors that won't be in use in the mobile home chicken house. Cover any holes or openings in walls, ceilings or floors with plywood or hardware cloth. Remove any hanging lights, curtain rods, blinds or other interior decor items.
Remove window screens and windows and cover openings with hardware cloth or chicken wire secured every three inches with 1-inch staples. Regular window screens will not provide protection from night-time predators. Windows may need to be covered with plywood or fabric during the winter to prevent freezing inside the coop.
Construction
Check to ensure there is adequate ventilation with windows, doors or vents in the mobile home chicken house. Heat is usually a greater problem for chickens than cold as chickens are unable to cool themselves through sweating. Adequate ventilation prevents the buildup of heat, ammonia and moisture which can lead to health problems in your poultry.
Locate roosts in one, confined area such as a bedroom. Chickens prefer to roost together and roosting in a confined area helps them retain warmth during cold winter months. Use two-by-four lumber for inexpensive, sturdy chicken roosts. Allow 10 inches of roosting space per chicken.
Position roosts between two walls like a staircase leading from low in the front to high at the back of the room. Measure and cut end braces from a two-by-four to the length of the roost height and secure to the wall studs with screws or nails. Measure and cut a two-by-four to fit between the two end braces to form the roost and secure to braces with screws or nails.
Remove doors from low kitchen cabinets and give hens access to the cabinet shelves for the simplest and most inexpensive nesting boxes. Cover the shelves with bedding and place a few plastic eggs or golf balls on each shelf to encourage the hens to lay there. You can also install plywood shelves in a closet using braces cut from two-by-fours or metal shelf brackets for an easy, inexpensive alternative to nesting boxes.
Position feed and water pans close to your feed storage and water source in the mobile home chicken house. Shallow pans and plastic tubs can substitute for more expensive feeders and water fountains. Set up an inexpensive automatic water pan by hooking up a garden hose and livestock float valve to a shallow water pan.
Spread a layer of straw or wood shavings at least 2 inches deep throughout the mobile home coop. Chickens may be tempted to eat non-nutritious, crumble-type bedding that looks like their feed. Be sure to add a deep layer of bedding throughout the roost area to catch droppings.