Building the Ultimate Chicken Coop: 10 Year Build Review

After my Chicken City tour video, so many of you asked detailed questions about the actual construction—what materials I used, how the walls attach, how deep the wire goes, whether to build it all at once or in stages.

Here's the thing: this structure was built over 10 years ago, and I've done almost zero maintenance since. It's built to last, and I'm happy to share exactly how we did it.

The Roof

Yes, Chicken City has a roof—it's fine-gauge wire mesh (not chicken wire) rolled across the top and supported by wooden beams. Where sheets of mesh meet, we use fencing ring clips to join them. At the edges, the mesh is sandwiched between two pieces of wood, creating a neat, secure finish that hasn't curled or peeled in a decade.

External Walls

The exterior walls are heavy-duty sheet mesh—industrial-grade, fine-gauge stuff. It's overlapped by two squares for extra security and attached with U-nails. Crucially, the mesh extends deep underground. If you dig down, you'll find it keeps going beneath the surface. This prevents foxes from digging under.

The occasional U-nail needs hammering back in (usually because goats scratch themselves on the panels), but that's the extent of maintenance.

Internal Walls

The room dividers use a wider-gauge mesh because they only need to contain chickens, not stop predators. This is cheaper and doubles as an excellent trellis for training fruit and berries. If you're cutting costs anywhere, internal walls are the place to do it.

The Floor

Simple: bare earth. No wire, no concrete. Since the perimeter is predator-proof (including underground), we don't need floor protection. Even the chicken house is bare earth underneath.

The only exception: mesh is attached to the exterior base of the wooden chicken house and buried into the ground, preventing anything from digging under the walls.

Watering System

Having a tap plumbed into the center courtyard was one of the best decisions. I use it daily—for watering plants, filling chicken water, cleaning feeders, even hosing down compost bins. Running hoses from outside through gates with animals underfoot would be a nightmare.

Drip irrigation runs throughout, powered by a solar panel on the roof. In summer, it's invaluable.

Build It All at Once?

I built everything in one go, which has major efficiency benefits—pouring concrete for posts, setting up irrigation, rolling out the roof mesh. But you could absolutely build the chicken house and main courtyard first, then add rooms as budget allows.