Nest boxes by flock size
Hens share nest boxes, so a flock needs far fewer boxes than birds. The guides ask for one for every 3 to 5 hens; the columns below work each rule out for a flock, and the last gives what Coop Designer builds. Go to a flock of:
| Hens | 1 per 5 | 1 per 4 | 1 per 3 | Penn State | Tool |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
| 5 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 2 |
| 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 2 |
| 8 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 2 |
| 10 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 3 |
| 12 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 3 |
| 15 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 4 |
| 18 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 5 |
| 20 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 6 | 5 |
| 24 | 5 | 6 | 8 | 7 | 6 |
| 25 | 5 | 7 | 9 | 8 | 7 |
| 30 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 9 | 8 |
Virginia Tech and Maryland put it as one per 4 to 5 females, so the first two columns are their range. The tool builds one per four and its check passes any count down to one per five; it asks you to add a box below that.
How big a nest box
- Standard hens: at least 12 by 12 in (Penn State); Oregon State and Florida give 12 by 12 by 12 in. Penn State warns against going bigger, or several hens squeeze in together and more eggs break.
- Bantams: Maryland gives a 10 by 10 in box for every four to five chickens; the tool uses that smaller size for bantams.
- A lip at the front: 3 to 4 in, to hold the nesting material in (Penn State). Florida half fills each box with straw or wood shavings.
How high, and where
At least 2 ft off the ground (Penn State, Florida); Maryland puts both the boxes and the roosts 24 in above the floor. Where the roost goes against the boxes is where the guides disagree:
- Maryland keeps the roosts higher than the nest boxes: hens roost on the highest point in the house, and boxes they sleep in get very dirty.
- Oregon State advises against boxes on the ground or lower than the roosting poles, to keep them cleaner, with a roof sloped at 45 degrees on top so nobody roosts there.
- Penn State keeps the nests at least 4 ft away from the roosts, which settles it where there is room.
In a small hen house there is no room for 4 ft, so the tool follows Maryland and keeps the roost above the boxes; its nest check names all three guides.
Where the boxes go depends on the coop. On the hen house on legs the tool hangs them on the outside of the end wall under a hinged lid, 2 ft off the ground: you lift the lid and collect the eggs without going in. In a walk-in they stand inside along the side wall under a sloped top, so the hens cannot perch on them.
Two examples from the tool
The six-hen hen house has two boxes in a row 24 in long on the end wall. The twenty-hen walk-in has five, 60 in of boxes along its side wall. Open the six-hen design or the twenty-hen design to see them in 3D, and set the number of boxes yourself in the nest box field.