He Turned His Car Hauler Into A Chicken Tractor
After getting an old 16-ft. car hauler trailer frame from his friend, Barry Brown built a mobile coop to add a second flock of chickens to the ones in his stationery chicken coop. By recycling other materials, he also added many labor and time-saving features with little additional cost.
The coop was built with free wood from a building he tore down. He purchased used chicken house tin and nesting boxes from some of the many former poultry operations around his Searcy, Ark., farm.
For the automatic watering system, a barrel fills with water from rain gutters on the outside of the coop. Pipes from the barrel lead to waterers on the inside and outside of the coop. To keep water from freezing in the winter, he wraps the lines with heat tape. During cold months, the coop stays in his yard where he can plug the tape in.
For easier cleanup, Brown purposefully left the floor open with chain link fencing. Initially, that was a problem as his new chickens roosted there; he lost 10 in one night after a raccoon injured and killed them trying to pull them through the openings. Now the chickens roost on 1x4s and 2x6s under the side wall overhangs, which also have screen floors, so their droppings fall outside. Brown places cardboard on the coop floor when there are young chicks to protect them from falling through.
“I bought an automatic door online, but the battery didn’t last long. So, I added a solar cell to catch enough energy,” Brown says.
He moves the coop sporadically with a tractor, usually at night and to places he wants fertilized. His ultimate goal is to have the chickens follow cattle in the pasture and have the unit as self-sufficient as possible.
“I try to make it automated, and then go back and fix ideas that didn’t work,” he notes. For example, he collects eggs by hand because the angle of a conveyor to move eggs varies depending on where the coop is parked.
He’s solved problems with inexpensive solutions. A screen cage around the water barrel stops chickens from roosting there and keeping his feed handy and protected in totes in the coop are two examples. He also hangs shiny objects from the coop eaves to keep hawks away when his chickens free-range around the coop.
The trailer frame and other recycled items work well for the chicken tractor, he says. They get the job done without a big investment that costs more than he can recoup from selling eggs.
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Barry Brown, Searcy, Ark. (barrybrown0323@gmail.com).
Click here to download page story appeared in.
Click here to read entire issue
He Turned His Car Hauler Into A Chicken Tractor LIVESTOCK Poultry After getting an old 16-ft car hauler trailer frame from his friend Barry Brown built a mobile coop to add a second flock of chickens to the ones in his stationery chicken coop By recycling other materials he also added many labor and time-saving features with little additional cost The coop was built with free wood from a building he tore down He purchased used chicken house tin and nesting boxes from some of the many former poultry operations around his Searcy Ark farm For the automatic watering system a barrel fills with water from rain gutters on the outside of the coop Pipes from the barrel lead to waterers on the inside and outside of the coop To keep water from freezing in the winter he wraps the lines with heat tape During cold months the coop stays in his yard where he can plug the tape in For easier cleanup Brown purposefully left the floor open with chain link fencing Initially that was a problem as his new chickens roosted there; he lost 10 in one night after a raccoon injured and killed them trying to pull them through the openings Now the chickens roost on 1x4s and 2x6s under the side wall overhangs which also have screen floors so their droppings fall outside Brown places cardboard on the coop floor when there are young chicks to protect them from falling through “I bought an automatic door online but the battery didn’t last long So I added a solar cell to catch enough energy ” Brown says He moves the coop sporadically with a tractor usually at night and to places he wants fertilized His ultimate goal is to have the chickens follow cattle in the pasture and have the unit as self-sufficient as possible “I try to make it automated and then go back and fix ideas that didn’t work ” he notes For example he collects eggs by hand because the angle of a conveyor to move eggs varies depending on where the coop is parked He’s solved problems with inexpensive solutions A screen cage around the water barrel stops chickens from roosting there and keeping his feed handy and protected in totes in the coop are two examples He also hangs shiny objects from the coop eaves to keep hawks away when his chickens free-range around the coop The trailer frame and other recycled items work well for the chicken tractor he says They get the job done without a big investment that costs more than he can recoup from selling eggs Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Barry Brown Searcy Ark barrybrown0323@gmail com
To read the rest of this story, download this issue below or click
here to register with your account number.
