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Mobile poultry hut design
- Mobile poultry hut design is important for poultry comfort and management.
- The materials you choose impact temperature, durability and the chance of predators catching birds.
How to build a mobile poultry hut
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Tools needed for the project
- Circular saw
- Hand saw
- Wrenches
- Pliers, regular and needle nose
- Power drill
- Drill bits
- Hammer
- Hack saw with metal cutting blade
Estimated cost of materials needed
| Material | Approximate cost |
|---|---|
| 2 – 4″ x 4″ x 8′ | $26.00 |
| 6 – 2″ x 4″ x 8′ | $44.00 |
| 1 – 1/2″ x 4′ x 15′ hardware cloth | $42.00 |
| 2 – 1/2″ x 4′ x 5′ hardware cloth | $30.00 |
| 1 – galvanized poultry netting, 24″ H x 50′ | $20.00 |
| 3 – cattle panels 50″ x 16′ | $90.00 |
| 12 – vinyl siding panels 9” x 150” | $60.00 |
| 4 – 10″ x 1.75″ steel centered wheel | $40.00 |
| 4 – 1/4″ x 6″ bolts | $10.00 |
| Washers and nuts, 1/2 inch diameter | $5.00 |
| 2 – 1-lb. boxes of grip fast 2 1/2″ fence staples | $6.00 |
| Strips of conveyor belt | TBD |
| Total | $373.00 |
Construct the frame
- Lay the two 4″ x 4″ x 8′ parallel to each other.
- At each end, attach a 2″ x 4″ x 8′. Lay the 2×4 over the top and at the very end of the 4×4 of each 4×4.
- Drill a ½” diameter hole through the 4×4 and 2×4. Insert a 6” x 1/2” bolt, and attach a washer, a lock washer, and a nut to tie the two together. Do this on all 4 corners of the frame.
- Drill holes through the side of the 4″ x 4″ x 8′, one about a foot or so away from each end, for the wheels. The hole should be at least half an inch in diameter to serve a half-inch bolt.
Attach the cattle panels
- Elevate the frame, so that all four corners are off the ground at the appropriate height for attaching the wheels. Do not attach the wheels just yet.
- Bend two cattle panels in an arc over the frame and staple them to the frame, about 1 inch or less off the ground, using 2″ or 2 ½” staples. Make sure the panels do not cover the holes drilled in the frame where the wheels will attach.
- Cut the third cattle panel in half and attach one half to what will become the back of the hut. Affix this panel at the same level off the ground as the panels that form an arc over the frame.
Build the door frame and door
- Build a door frame on the front of the hut, using 2″ x 4″ x 8′ for the frame, and 2″ x 4″ x 8′ to make the door. We usually build rectangular doors that are tall enough for a person to walk through comfortably but feel free to adapt the door design any way you think will work for you. There is no one way to build a door, so choose a design that will fit your needs.
Wrap hut with hardware cloth and chicken coop wire
- Wrap the entire lower half of the hut with hardware cloth. Cover the lower part of the door, but of course, trim the hardware cloth so that the door can open and close. Attach the hardware cloth with 1″ or 1 ½” staples.
- Fill in the upper half of the front and back with the chicken coop wire. Be sure to use chicken coop wire for only the upper half of the hut. Chicken coop wire is sufficient to keep birds and flying predators out, but the holes are large enough to let some ground predators reach in and do damage to the birds. Hardware cloth will work better on the lower half of the hut.
Attach the wheels
- Now attach the wheels. Run the four ½” x 6″ bolts through each hole drilled in the 4″ x 4″ runner, from the inside. Place washers on both inside and outside of the runner. Attach the wheel on the outside of the hut, using washers and nuts.
Attach the vinyl siding
- The vinyl siding pieces come 12′ long, so they will need to be cut to 8′ lengths to match the hut. Then, when laying the rows of siding, every other row can consist of two 4′ lengths of vinyl siding, alternated with 8′ lengths of siding. The first row should run along the bottom of the cattle panels, starting the same distance from the ground as the panels. To attach the siding, two people will be needed for the task, one on the inside of the hut, the other on the outside:
- The person on the outside of the hut will hold the panel in place, and at the same time run a short piece of wire through the holes that run along the top of the vinyl siding piece.
- The person on the inside of the hut will grasp the wire strand and tie it tightly to the cattle panel. The next row of vinyl siding can then be attached in the same method, locking the panels together in the grooves on the siding made for that purpose. Work your way up on both sides so that they meet at the top. Then overlap one piece to prevent water from coming in from above.
- Because of adding wheels for ease of moving, there is a bigger gap at the front and back ends of the huts. Young birds can sometimes crawl out if this gap is not covered. If possible, purchase old, used conveyor belts, and cut strips to cover the gap. Attach them with 2” staples so they won’t come off over time.
One last thing
14. Inside and at the back of the hut, hang a lightweight piece of wood or PVC pipe at ground level, and attach it to the cattle panels using rope or twine. It can be used as a bumper panel when moving the birds, to keep them from getting caught under the frame of the hut.
You are done! To move the hut, you can use a two-wheeled dolly, or attach ropes to the front or back to move it along.
Advantages
- Durability.
- It’s tall enough to walk inside comfortably, giving easy access to birds, feeders, etc.
- Compared to chicken tractors, it gives the birds more air space during hot weather and more airflow in general.
- You can hang feeders and waterers from the top of the hut on the cattle panels, and leave them hanging as you move the unit forward.
- The taller unit allows you to more easily observe the birds, compared to chicken tractors that are low to the ground and enclosed.
- It is relatively inexpensive to build. If necessary, adapt the design to use tarps to save you some money upfront.
Drawbacks
- It would probably be difficult to raise more than 1,000 birds during spring, summer and fall using this method.
- Each hut holds approximately 35 birds, so you would need 10 huts to hold a group of 350 birds. Three batches during the year would equal 1,000 birds, more or less.
- There is a lot of labor involved in moving the huts and feeding and watering the birds.
- To raise more broilers, you need bigger portable huts that hold 300 birds, if it is necessary to keep the birds in huts.
- More birds could be raised in a “free-range” style, but with concerns about the potential loss to storms and predators.
- It takes some time invested to build the huts—especially if vinyl siding is used for cover. Once it is on, vinyl siding will last a very long time.
Continue learning
Poultry your way — This guide from Minnesota Institute for Sustainable Agriculture (MISA) has information on goal setting, marketing, processing, management alternatives, farm profiles and additional resources. Chapter five, on management, may be of most interest to you.
Poultry equipment for alternative production — Review equipment recommendations for waterers, feeders, fencing and more from ATTRA.
