[Carrotcake]

Hi All

We're complete chicken novices so I'm chuffed to have found such a wealth of knowledge on this forum just in time to make sure we get it right before we start! We're planning to get two or three laying hens in the next couple of months so will doubtlessly be on here picking your brains for help.

My first questions are about the hen house. We have an old concrete block building which is approx 6ft square, has a sloping tile roof which goes from 6ft to 8ft and a doorway (not quite full height).
We are hoping to clean it out, put a door on with a hatch at the bottom for the chickens to use and add perches and beds.
Is this structure suitable and would I need to add any additional heat source for the winter months? I read that someone puts boxes in their henhouse for added protection in winter. Would that be enough for three hens in that size coop?

Although the building's solid, there are quite a lot of nooks and crannies in the walls and roof as it is an old building so I'm a bit nervous about the nasties that could lurk ready to attack. Would you recommend filling as many holes, cracks etc as possible or just pay particular attention to these areas when cleaning the chickens out?

Sorry for the barrage of questions. Any advice or thoughts on other things I should be considering would be gratefully received 

[joyfull]

hens come with their own feather duvets already attached so no extra heat source is needed. However draughts can be a killer so make sure that there aren't any. Ventilation will be needed so make sure any ventilation holes is way above head height. Perhaps a hole covered with strong mesh in the top of the door might be an idea. In the winter you could add a couple of bales in there to make it more snug and help minimise the heat loss. My girls love creepy crawlies 

[8doubles]

I would say yes to filling the holes a coat of emulsion will lighten it up, a window or half glazed door to let light in and put the nestbox on the darker wall. They like it gloomy for laying.