Modernizing Our Chicken Coop With Automation & WiFi

We completed our new chicken coop renovation! The previous coop was falling apart, had rotting boards, had no paint, hadn't been cleaned and badly needed an update. We completely rebuilt it with modern features and automated systems.

It took us two weeks to update it and we loved how it turned out. More importantly, our chickens seem very happy, safe and secure in their new home. See all the new pictures and how it turned out...before and after.

We started by replacing all the exterior wood panels and replacing them with new 3/8" plywood sheets. This was a little tricky since the entire roof structure was attached to the coop. Removing the plywood panels involved propping up roof 2x4's then carefully prying the old sheets off.

We then added an Kilz exterior primer and Sherman Williams exterior paint. We added a new door and yellow accent 1x3" boards. The color scheme turned out great!

Modern Amenities

We wanted to automate the chicken coop and add a few modern features for our convenience. This included an exterior electric fence, automatic door opener, automatic watering, large feeder, motion sensor lights and a WiFi camera to keep an eye on them.

We installed the Chicken Guard automatic door opener which was very easy to install. It opens the door at sunrise and closes it at sunset. The first few nights we found a couple chickens stuck outside after sunset, but they quickly learned. Now, they're all inside the coop when the door shuts.

We used a Zareba electric fence and poly wire from Home Depot for the external security. The main box is installed under the chicken coop eve for added weather protection and wrapped the poly electric line around the coop twice. The bottom line is only about 1" off the ground to protect from predators digging in. We have foxes and coyotes here in Central Oregon that I'm sure would take any opportunity to get into the coop.

Next we added the URPower solar-powered motion-sensor LED lights on each side of the coop. These work surprisingly well and provide a lot of light when triggered. Between the electric fence and motion lights, we've significantly upgraded the external predator defense. ​

We built large, automatic food and water systems. For feeding, we used 4" pvc pipe with 90 degree elbows at the end to keep the food in. When full, these can hold over 100 lbs of food, so plenty to keep them fed for a few weeks. For water, we have a 5-gal bucket with three water cups installed. We've noticed the bucket of water lasts them about a week in the hot summer heat. This allows us to travel without having to worry.

Finally, we installed a WiFi camera in the coop so we can monitor them easily without constantly walking out there. It has been nice to have a quick look, especially as they were little chicks figuring things out. Also nice to check in on them if we're traveling.

The new coop is a huge upgrade form the old one. It is automated and self-sustaining for at least a week plus has added security features.