i wish someone would have told me!!

this is gona sound sort of stupid and like, duh, common knowledge but i wish someone would have metioned, while i was so busy trying to figure out the best way, plans , how to do this, and that to our chicken coup we forgot one simple thing..........BUILD IT WHERE YOU PLAN TO HAVE IT!!!!!!!..........we built our coup, only 4 x4 1/2 x 5 1/2 ft, but well we constructed it right at our back steps and now we cant figure out how to move the thing to the back of the yard where we want it! it got so heavy so fast, and now well have know idea how to move the thing, so far lifting it by hand isnt working, sad part is we havent even put in the roost and the nest yet!!!! WORD OF ADVICE TO COOP BUILDERS DONT FORGET ONE SIMPLE THING,WHERE TO BUILD IT, AND HOW TO MOVE IT!!!!! any advice from people that did the same stupid thing we did??????

have a back yard bbq and be sure to invite some strong friends.

That sounds like something I would do

Maybe you can try to move it just using some home-made rollers out of logs? Or by levering it onto a pallet or skid and dragging it into place? The latter option may rip up the lawn a bit, but at least you an oversow with some seed to fix it.

I've got an image in my head of some movie about building the Egyptian pyramids and seeing them move big blocks of stone this way: laying rollers in front and just pushing it from roller to roller.

If you know anyone with a forklift, give them a call????

Same thing happened with mine - we ended up pushing it with our tractor. Word of advice on this: put a piece of wood between your coop & the shovel on the front of the tractor! We ended up cracking an important structural piece of the coop in the process.

We did this with a similar-sized coop, but the way it was going to be mounted forced us to pre-build in garage and slide it into a pre-made hole in the run wall.

Here's what we did (2 strong men + 1 medium chick):

* SAWHORSES ~ we used two home-made sawhorses, and wearing heavy gloves we tilted it up and slid the coop onto the sawhorses, which had old moving blankets on them to aid in sliding it where we wanted it. Using sawhorses enables your movers to get the coop going without having to dangerously squat and lift. Anything that is lightweight, easily moved, DURABLE, and gets the coop to the right height will work.

* PLAN YOUR STRATEGY ~ we planned the path of the coop, how we would get it through the gate, and where we could stop to set it down and rest. That way when it was crunch time it would be a no-brainer, and everyone knew where everyone else was going.

* PREP AREA WHERE IT WILL GO ~ we made sure everything was ready, and cleared all debris/rubble/wandering animals away.

* HOIST AND SHUFFLE! ~ when the guys hoisted the coop up and started moving sloooowly toward their destination, I quickly pulled out the sawhorses and moved them to their next "rest stop." The boys then had a place ready to set down without dropping/getting too tired.

Our coop process proved anything can be done! You're almost there. Piece of cake!

Hope that helps.


Jen in TN
~:<>

Facing the same prob right now and my coops only about 1/3 done. Construction has come to a halt while I try to figure it out. It's currently still movable, but where I wanted it and how I wanted it it's not possible to move it and then finish as one side would be inaccessible. An alternate site puts my design as unusable.

I'd say rolling on pipes, engine lifter onto pickup or renting the forklift, but I think no matter how you do it your lawn will suffer some in the process. Any way to make it work where it is or disassemble a little, move and reassemble?

my husband had the idea of somehow attaching wheels to it, but i dont have any clue how he would..... or if it would even work....

The coop is small, so,, pick a side, use a car jack to lift a corner, lag bolt a lawnmower wheel, do the same to the other side, then bolt or screw two 10 or 12' 2x4's on each side from the side with wheels sticking out way past the side with out,,, now you have incorparated the basic ancient tools, wheel, fulcrum, and lever,,, one person on each 2x4(lever) should be able to easily move it.