Rollaway best nest box design allows fresh laid chicken eggs to roll forward into a protective collection tray. Get cleaner eggs with less damage, less pecking.

With rising cost of all that it takes to obtain a chicken egg today, it’s very disheartening to find several cracked, broken or eaten from a rogue egg eating chicken.

Early model of the 8 compartments rollaway nest box

Four Compartment Rollaway Nest Box

Egg tray lid lifts up for egg collection

Eight Compartment Rollaway Nest Box

The concept of a slanted floor in a nesting box for eggs to roll forward into a protective collection tray is not new.  Many have made wooden rollaway nest boxes for years

What is different in these Amish made rollaway nesting boxes is that they are totally made out of heavy duty galvanized metal that can be power washed and disinfected should you ever have a poultry disease outbreak.

The proven design provides just enough slant for the eggs to roll forward with the least damage possible.  The Amish have figured this out and have been quietly making these wonderful proven nest boxes for decades.

At one time a commercial company actually made a galvanized metal rollaway nesting box and for whatever the reason they never survived.  Probably at the time marketing would have only been available in farm magazines.

Original Vintage Commercial Rollaway Nest Box

When the Amish get a hold of a good product and it then becomes no longer available they will begin to reproduce it on their own.  Today many of the old time products are still being made and used in the Amish communities.

These newer nesting boxes were discovered by the folks over at Cottage Craft Works in 2007 during a product tour deep within the Amish communities and then began to offered them to the general back to basics homesteader and backyard egg producers.

The original rollaway nest boxes have the green roost with divided boxes. They are available in a two-hole, four hole and eight hole model.  Each compartment will accommodate 5-6 hens.

The eggs drop down on a plastic coated wire mesh screen with a poop tray underneath for easy and quick cleaning.

In 2011 while on another product tour, the folks at Cottage Craft Works discovered another Amish company making a similar rollaway nest box but with a wide open concept without dividers. This is the same concept used in commercial nest boxes where the chicken enters divided curtains to lay their eggs.

This wide open community concept accommodates more chickens in the size of the 4 compartment boxes. The 48” Community Rollaway nest box will accommodate up to 45 hens although some producers are reporting numbers that double that amount.

Community Rollaway Nest Box Accommodates More Chickens

The Community Rollaway Nest Box Egg Tray Holds More Eggs

Aside from the open concept, the Community style has a larger egg tray to hold the additional eggs and uses a laying mat for the eggs to drop and roll on.

The Community is also reversible to either a front or rear collection tray.  Using the rear collection tray makes them very handy to use in small hard to access chicken coops or when you don’t really want to disturb the chickens during egg collections after dark.

Both styles nesting boxes have the roost hinged to lift up to access the egg tray but to also block off the entry to the nest boxes when needed.

Both styles of the rollaway nest boxes are available to purchase online at Cottage Craft Works.com

Cottage Craft Works is a back-to-basics general store providing old-fashioned products of value and functionality for today’s homestead hobby farm.  Many of the products are made for non-electric off-grid homesteading.