Raising Backyard Wild birds in an Alumi-Coop
Right after months of discussing whether to enhance my backyard setup, I finally taken the trigger on an alumi-coop to see when the hype was in fact real. If you've been keeping hens for more than a few weeks, you know the battle of the "standard" house. Usually, you're coping with heavy, pressure-treated lumber that weighs a ton or those cheap, pre-fab kits from the big-box stores that will seem to fall aside the second a light breeze hits them.
Changing to an aluminum-based system was a bit of the shift for me, but honestly, it's one of all those things where you don't realize exactly how much extra work you were doing until that work is suddenly gone.
Why I Switched Away from Heavy Wood
With regard to years, I built my own coops. I'm pretty helpful with a saw, so I figured wooden was the way to go because it's conventional. But man, wood is heavy. And it's not simply the initial build; it's the way in which it absorbs moisture over period. Every winter, my old wooden "chicken tractor" would get weightier as the rain soaked into the particular grain, and simply by February, I used to be basically blowing out our lower back just trying to shift the flock to a fresh patch of grass.
The first point I discovered when I got the alumi-coop was just how incredibly light the frame is. It's made from high-grade aluminum, which indicates it's strong more than enough to handle the curious coyote but light enough which i can move that with one hand while holding a coffee in the particular other. If you're into the idea of "pasture-raised" eggs, you know that moving the particular coop daily is the secret sauce. Lightweight aluminum makes that task feel like a walk in the particular park rather than CrossFit workout.
The particular Battle Against Corrosion and Mites
If there's one thing I hate more than a heavy coop, it's mites. Wood is usually a nightmare for pest control. Those tiny little cracks, crevices, and porous surfaces are such as a five-star resort for red mites and lice. Once they enter a wooden coop, you're basically fighting the losing war along with sprays and power products every weekend.
With the alumi-coop , that problem virtually disappeared. Mites don't have anywhere to hide on a soft metal surface. As well as, cleaning is a total breeze. Instead of scrubbing in stained wood and hoping the lighten doesn't rot the floorboard, I just pull the parrots out, grab the particular pressure washer, and blast the entire thing down. It's dry in 10 minutes, and this stays clean. It doesn't hold onto that "chicken smell" the way old materials do, which usually my neighbors certainly appreciate.
Residing the Mobile Life
The whole point of the mobile coop—or a chicken tractor, in the event that you want to be fancy—is in order to give your chickens fresh ground every single day. When I keep my girls in one location for too long, they change a lush green lawn into a dirt pit within about 48 hours. Using the alumi-coop , I actually can rotate them around the yard, which does 2 things: it retains the birds super healthy because they're constantly eating fresh greens and insects, and it fertilizes my grass naturally.
The wheel systems on these types of things are often pretty clever, too. Many of them use a lever-action setup where you just flip a deal with, the wheels employ, and the whole structure lifts upward. I've had mine out in a few pretty uneven ground, and it deals with the bumps like a champ. It's a far cry in the old days associated with dragging a wood frame across the yard and hearing the wood groan as it almost snaps in half.
Dealing along with the Elements
I get asked a lot about how an alumi-coop handles the heat and the particular cold. People get worried that a metal coop will turn in to an oven within the summer or a freezer within the winter. In my experience, it's actually the reverse. Since aluminum shows plenty of sunlight, this doesn't soak up heat the way in which the dark-painted wooden roof does.
As for the winter, chickens are remarkably hardy simply because long as they will stay dry plus out of the particular wind. The way in which these coops are designed generally allows for lots of ventilation up best while keeping the "living area" draft-free. I just create sure to add some extra bedding throughout the sub-zero weeks, as well as the girls stay properly cozy.
Keeping the Potential predators Out
Nothing at all ruins an early morning like walking in order to the coop and finding out the raccoon figured out there your latch system. One of the biggest selling factors for me with the alumi-coop was the security. The nylon uppers is usually heavy duty, and since the particular frame is metal, predators can't chew up through the sides.
I've seen clever foxes try to dig under, but since the coop is definitely solid and has the bit of weight to its footprint without being impossible to move, it remains put. The latches are usually a lot more "pro" than the particular simple hook-and-eye things you see on cheap kits. It gives me a wide range of peace of mind knowing that while i lock them up at night, they're basically in a fortress.
Will be It Worth the particular Investment?
Let's be real for the second—an alumi-coop isn't the cheapest option on the market. You may definitely go to a local plantation supply store and purchase a wooden house for half the cost. But I view it as a "buy once, cry once" type of situation. I actually experienced three wood coops in six years because of rot, warping, plus general damage.
When you do the math, spending a bit more upfront for something that won't rust or even rot actually saves a ton associated with money (and frustration) over the long haul. It's an investment in your sanity as well as your flock's safety. As well as, if I actually made a decision to stop maintaining chickens (unlikely! ), the resale value on the metal house is way increased than a beat-up wooden one.
Setting It Up and Getting Started
When mine appeared, I used to be a small worried about mount. I've had some bad experiences with "easy assembly" home furniture that required a PhD to realize. Luckily, the alumi-coop was quite straightforward. Most of the parts are pre-drilled, and due to the fact aluminum is light, I didn't need three friends to help me hold pieces in place whilst I bolted all of them together.
We spent a Weekend afternoon putting this together, through Weekend morning, the hens were already discovering their new home. They accepted this immediately. The nesting boxes are easy to access from the outdoors, that is a huge plus because I don't have to go inside the coop plus get my boots dirty just in order to grab a few eggs breakfast every day.
Final Thoughts for the Transition
Looking back, I wish I had made the jump in order to an alumi-coop sooner. It simply simplifies everything regarding poultry chores. I actually spend less time fixing broken boards plus more time actually enjoying the parrots. They're happier simply because they get fresh grass every day, plus I'm happier because my back doesn't ache every period I move the particular run.
If you're fed up with the constant maintenance that is included with traditional coops, or if you're just starting out and want to do it best the 1st time, I can't recommend the aluminum route enough. It's sleek, it's durable, and it also makes the whole backyard gardening experience feel a lot less like a chore plus a lot more like a hobby.
All in all, your chickens simply want a secure place to sleep and some grass in order to peck at. Giving them an alumi-coop does both of those items much better than just regarding anything else I've tried. It's been a total game-changer for my back garden, and am don't think I possibly could ever go back to wood.