From milk crates to pine boxes with wood shavings, nesting boxes don’t have to be fancy! Here is a general rule so you know you have enough nest boxes, no matter the number of chickens you have.
When we started raising our chickens, we only had four.
What stumped us, though, was hearing that chickens need their own space to retreat to and lay eggs.
So naturally, we provided one nesting box for each chicken.
What a mistake!
Our fifth anniversary of raising chickens is quickly coming up (WOW!) and we have learned a thing or two about nesting boxes and chickens!
Here’s my biggest tip – chickens don’t need much space to make themselves at home!
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Standard Nesting Box Advice
Chicken nest boxes give your hens a comfortable place to lay eggs. As they feel safe, they’re more likely to lie in them.
Nesting boxes also reduce the time it takes to find your eggs. You can almost always find them in a nesting box!
The standard advice is one nesting box to four hens. Why? I’m not sure.
At a bare minimum, you need two nesting boxes for two or more hens.
When a laying hen finds a nesting box suitable for laying, that nesting box becomes appealing to another hen for the same reasons. Instinctually, they’re looking for a safe place to raise their young!
When a chicken goes broody, she may begin collecting eggs and hiding them. The nest box she has been using will be her likely choice for hiding eggs.
That means that the nesting box is now out of commission for any other hens. Broody hens can be aggressive and territorial. No more sharing nest boxes!
Other reasons for multiple nest boxes may be chickens higher in the pecking order asserting dominance over other hens.
Finally, hens may simply prefer not to share nest boxes. If they don’t have other nest boxes to turn to, they may lay in other parts of the coop or even the chicken run (we have had both of these things happen!).
What About Nest Boxes for 20 Chickens?
We have a flock of 17 mature chickens. Sixteen of those chickens are egg-laying hens.
We have seven nest boxes, that we built, and the majority of the chickens use them.
General guidelines say we have two extra nesting boxes for the number of chickens we have.
We still have hens laying eggs in the run, in a corner of the chicken coop, and randomly in the coop.
There was even a period when a chicken was laying her eggs on the roosting bars! We only knew this because we were finding broken eggs in the coop!
Nesting boxes aren’t a guarantee chickens will lay their eggs there!
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How Many Nest Boxes for My Coop Size?
Your coop size may be influenced by the size of your flock. But for some, that may not be the case.
We have used three different chicken coops with three different flock sizes.
Our second coop was based on an 8×4 foot piece of plywood. We were able to build 5 nesting boxes into the side of it.
Our coop now is triple that size and we have seven nesting boxes.
But remember – even though we have those nesting boxes, not all of our chickens lay in nesting boxes!
Here are a few ways you can encourage your hens to lay in your nesting boxes.
How to Encourage Chickens to Lay in Nesting Boxes
If your hens are laying eggs in hard-to-access places, or random places, there are a few things you could do to encourage them to lay in a convenient location.
Fake Eggs and Golf Balls
There are ceramic eggs like these or wooden eggs like these that you can place in nesting boxes to encourage hens to lay in those nesting boxes.
This dupe has worked for us in the past. Especially for younger hens.
I have also heard of other homesteaders using golf balls.
We have not used golf balls in the past. However, we always have mature hens in our flock and they set an example for younger birds.
Nesting Box Size
Chickens will lay eggs in some of the most bizarre places. We have already talked about that.
However, they won’t usually lay in a place they can’t fit!
In the past, we have used 5-gallon buckets for nesting boxes. If we have a bucket split or crack for some reason, we cut the bucket in half and secure it to the coop.
The length and width of a 5-gallon bucket are great preliminary dimensions for a nesting box.
We built our nesting boxes for our coop. Our dimensions are 12 inches x 12 inches x 12 inches.
If you’re worried about the perfect size, just know there isn’t a “right size” for a nesting box. Just make sure there’s enough space for your hen to get comfortable.
Keep Clean Nesting Boxes
If you’re looking at nesting boxes, I encourage you to consider easy cleaning.
Remember – a chicken is laying eggs because they are content and safe!
When you’re looking at a nesting box with easy cleaning, you also want to consider the bedding you use.
Pine shavings aren’t easy to clean, but if you have a smaller flock or get fewer eggs, they may be something to consider.
We use hay because that’s what our hens prefer. But we have used pine shavings and leaves in the past.
Chicken Needs
At the end of the day, a chicken wants somewhere dry, dark, and safe to lay her eggs.
That feeling of safety is instinctual. Some say a hen will sound off after laying her eggs to attract predators to her and away from her eggs.
Stressed-out hens aren’t going to lay. So if you’re moving coops, the weather has intensified in your area, chickens are hungry or thirsty, or you’re having predator issues – hens may take a break from laying eggs.
How to Choose the Best Option – Additional Things to Consider
There are a few instances where you may want to consider unusual factors when building your nesting boxes.
Size of Your Chickens
My flock is comprised of larger-size hens. I have never heard of breeds of chickens influencing the size of a nesting box, but it may be worth considering.
Larger breeds such as Cornish, Buff Orpington, and Rhode Island Reds may need a larger nesting box. Prioritize the needs of your chickens when considering things like coop dimensions, locations, and features.
We build our nesting boxes to be 12 inches x 12 inches x 12 inches out of habit. It’s just what we’ve always done!
Building Materials
We would also argue the best materials are the ones you already have lying around.
We won’t invest in pre-built nesting boxes from our local farm supply store because we know we have scrap wood lying around.
We also won’t invest in nesting pads when we know and love straw and pine shavings.
There is something to be said for staying away from things that will deliberately harm your chickens. Don’t use materials that have been treated heavily with chemicals or that you know will injure your chickens, like exposed nails or rusted metal.
Different Needs for Different Flocks
If you’re building nesting boxes for an elderly person, you may want to use lighter-weight materials. Especially if you use any sort of lid.
If you’re catering to the needs of children, you may want to build your nesting boxes closer to the ground.
As chicken keepers, there is a level of convenience you want to build into your nesting boxes.
Ours are currently mobile, but they’re built out of solid wood. We aren’t afraid of the chickens tipping the nesting boxes, but were aren’t ready to permanently attach the nesting boxes to our coop. So mobility, and durability, were two things we valued when constructing our nesting boxes.
A broody hen may also encourage you to create mobile nesting boxes. If you’re interested in hatching chicks, a broody hen will become aggressive to other hens trying to lay. A mobile nesting box, that you can remove from the coop with the broody hen, gives you the best of both worlds.
The Best Bedding for Nesting Boxes
We are huge fans of straw.
My chickens rarely poop in their nesting boxes. When the straw has been used or an egg cracks in it, I simply throw it into the chicken run for the chickens to rake through it.
There are nesting pads made out of various materials. They make for quick clean-up and provide great cushion for birds.
Other options, like straw, also decrease the amount of dust in your coop.
Bedding also determines how egg collection will go. Straw is great at hiding eggs. Pine shavings are especially great at hiding eggs. Consider that when selecting your bedding, too.
The Best Products for Backyard Chickens
I am always looking for the best practices and products for my backyard flock. A healthy chicken is a happy chicken!
Luckily, I have found products that stand the test of weather, time, and use. I have all of those linked on my resources page! I also have personal testimonies and notes of how we use these products.
Need other Great Ideas for Your Backyard Flock?
Nesting boxes are only a small piece of a chicken coop.
What about windows? Do chicken coops need windows? I answer that question in this blog post.
Pests can also be a problem! Even though our chickens sleep in a chicken coop, we have to take extra measures to protect our flock.
On the blog, I have other posts with tips for protecting your flock against predators and how to use readily available materials for bug control.
For more homesteading inspiration, follow me on Pinterest!
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