# Nestbox Ideas?



## JMoriarty (May 16, 2011)

I'm trying to find cheap nest box ideas. We used to use milk crates when I was a kid and were going to again, but I cannot find any that are big enough. The only ones around here are 10 1/2" deep. Our coop is a re-purposed horse barn and is around 24' x 24' so there is PLENTY of space. I love that it's so big though. I just don't know what to do for boxes. If we hook them to the wall, we've only really got one wall and then we built a partition wall when we had horses but it's more of a bunch of 2x4s going across the barn, but I supposed we could hang some there as well. Two other walls are stone and the front wall is the door and a large window. Anyone have ideas on other cheap methods of boxes or where to get milk crates for less than $10/each?


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## rpalmer (Mar 10, 2011)

JMoriarty said:


> I'm trying to find cheap nest box ideas. We used to use milk crates when I was a kid and were going to again, but I cannot find any that are big enough. The only ones around here are 10 1/2" deep. Our coop is a re-purposed horse barn and is around 24' x 24' so there is PLENTY of space. I love that it's so big though. I just don't know what to do for boxes. If we hook them to the wall, we've only really got one wall and then we built a partition wall when we had horses but it's more of a bunch of 2x4s going across the barn, but I supposed we could hang some there as well. Two other walls are stone and the front wall is the door and a large window. Anyone have ideas on other cheap methods of boxes or where to get milk crates for less than $10/each?


Find a produce market and get their heavier crates. They wind up in the garbage.


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## JMoriarty (May 16, 2011)

Hmm... I wonder where there is one around me. Maybe my dad will know... I'll ask him. He seems to know where everything is lol...


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## ptras (Jun 29, 2010)

JMoriarty said:


> I'm trying to find cheap nest box ideas. We used to use milk crates when I was a kid and were going to again, but I cannot find any that are big enough. The only ones around here are 10 1/2" deep. Our coop is a re-purposed horse barn and is around 24' x 24' so there is PLENTY of space. I love that it's so big though. I just don't know what to do for boxes. If we hook them to the wall, we've only really got one wall and then we built a partition wall when we had horses but it's more of a bunch of 2x4s going across the barn, but I supposed we could hang some there as well. Two other walls are stone and the front wall is the door and a large window. Anyone have ideas on other cheap methods of boxes or where to get milk crates for less than $10/each?


You can find used kitchen wall cabinets on Craigslist for cheap or free. A 30" tall cabinet will make two 12" tall nestboxes with a four inch space in between that can be used for storage. I have used a couple of old cabinets as nestboxes. I just screwed the shelves in place and added nestfronts.


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## rpalmer (Mar 10, 2011)

JMoriarty said:


> Hmm... I wonder where there is one around me. Maybe my dad will know... I'll ask him. He seems to know where everything is lol...


Your local grocer might be a help also.


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

just build some out of wood. much easier to keep clean and you can make them as big as you want. that would look better in a barn too.


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## newtopidgeons (Mar 11, 2011)

I heard a guy at the club this year say he used cardboard boxes stapled to the walls all over his racing loft. He said he didnt use any particular size box but just put them everywere and he said he has tons of babies. Just tear them down after breeding season and get new ones next year.


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## NayNay (Mar 16, 2011)

I was researching nest boxes here on the site, and someone posted these open front rubbermaid type and size tubs that were pretty cheap. 

But, if I had a lot of space like that, I'd probably go the kitchen cabinet route, and even be proactive, and contact local kitchen remodeling folks or contractor- a lot of them just take that stuff to the dump. My town has the ReStore, which resells stuff like that to keep it out of the landfill, but we are a bunch of granola munchin tree huggers-lol


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## ptras (Jun 29, 2010)

NayNay said:


> I was researching nest boxes here on the site, and someone posted these open front rubbermaid type and size tubs that were pretty cheap.
> 
> But, if I had a lot of space like that, I'd probably go the kitchen cabinet route, and even be proactive, and contact local kitchen remodeling folks or contractor- a lot of them just take that stuff to the dump. My town has the ReStore, which resells stuff like that to keep it out of the landfill, but we are a bunch of granola munchin tree huggers-lol


I used cabinets that I took down a few years ago when I remodeled my kitchen. They sat in my shed just waiting for me to use them as nestboxes.  My pigeons are nesting in $300 Merrilat cabinets!

In my area (Boston, Mass area) I see people listing kitchen cabinets on Craigslist all the time for free. Usually the only problem is that they want you to take them all.


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## shadowoak (Mar 19, 2011)

google
jims pigeon supply he makes really nice custom nest box fronts for only 12.00 each . 
you could get scap wood for the sides and bottom really cheap or somtimes free from home depot .


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## TylerBro (Mar 14, 2011)

I belive that you could build open box types out of three sheets of p
Osb for aound 40 bucks for 12 boxes and you can make them kinda big as well ... check out this Tread .. 
They just won't have the doors .. but would work .


http://www.pigeons.biz/forums/f38/loft-build-51982-2.html page two has the boxes without the fronts you could do that if you have a saw.


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