the floor of the coop

kshimpi

Chirping
7 Years
Jul 13, 2012
17
0
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I am having a coop with a built in run built this week. What do folks put on the bottom of the coop (the flooring)? I read that wire is not ideal b/c it hurts the feet. I am thinking about plywood since that seems like the most predator proof.
Thoughts?

Kristan
 
Wow, I have so much to learn. I meant to ask what folks put in the bottom of the run. Our run will be attached to the coop and covered. Right now there are just leaves and dirt on the bottom of the run. Do I just leave it as is?
 
Mine is plywood... with a layer of that cheap stick down vinyl tile stuff... with a couple of inches of hardwood fuel pellets on top of that.





Out in the run, it's dirt that gets tilled every 4 months...




and right now, because it's winter, I've got a 4" layer of straw down for them... to keep 'em dry and give 'em something to kick and scratch around in or nestle into if they want it.

 
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Good Information! I'm in the processes of building the coop and will start on the run in the spring. I have plywood as a coop floor, but plan on laying some self stick vinyl as well. I think it will be easier to clean. I'm building a larger coop, but have limited "side" yard space because I live in town. It looks like it will be a good idea to build the run as a walk in as well.








Run will be built off of back.

 
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I saw your coop a while back, it's totally over the top on details, but it's very well done.

Yeah, I recommend a walk-in run...

I built mine as a walk in, mostly to make cleaning and maintenance easier, especially since I am keeping their food and water out there. I can easily reach every corner of the run with a rake. Having it as a walk-in also gives me a secure space to handle them while I am checking them for pasting or mites or whatever. And they really seem to enjoy hopping up on the corner perches and jumping off of them, flying over the length of the run. So, it's more space to exercise.

Counting the space under the coop, which I designed as a space that is always dry and always shady for them... their run space is about 22' long. On the coop end, it's 6' wide and 18" tall, but then it flanges out to 7' wide on the other end. In the front, it's just over 6' tall, and in the back, it's about 4' tall with the same angle as the roof. The idea is to eventually build a more permanent roof over the end of the run to shelter the feed can from rain. In the meantime, and for the winter, I got some cheap clear tarps that do a bang up job with sheltering the structure from excess moisture and wind.


 
Thanks, Gifa. Living in a old river town, our houses are pretty close together. I wanted the coop to look like it was built 100+ years ago, my house being built in 1885.

I really like what you've done with your run and may try to do mine similar. Never actually owning chickens before, we are anxiously anticipating finishing our coop and having our first chicks this spring.

btw - I'm also an artist. My avatar is a portion of a painting I did for a local restaurant a few years back.
 
Thanks, Gifa. Living in a old river town, our houses are pretty close together. I wanted the coop to look like it was built 100+ years ago, my house being built in 1885.

I really like what you've done with your run and may try to do mine similar. Never actually owning chickens before, we are anxiously anticipating finishing our coop and having our first chicks this spring.

btw - I'm also an artist. My avatar is a portion of a painting I did for a local restaurant a few years back.

Yeah, I think it's super cool to build a structure that blends in with the local charm.

I read in a lot of places that 10 square feet per bird is the minimum... but I went with just over 20 square feet per bird... seems to stay cleaner for a lot longer... I literally just go in there once a week and give the straw a good churn... things desiccate a little more quickly, the chickens love to dig around in the freshly churned straw, and after 4 months, I just till it all under and let it mother earth take care of it. Other than the freshly dealt cecal poo, there's no real chicken odor wafting out of their pen. I do have a little vanilla car freshener tree hanging in there to keep the flies away in the summer... so, my set up actually smells sweet.

I also like that the run is pretty deep. I've seen a lot of runs that are long and narrow... but I always feel like the chickens really only have room to pace back and forth. So I like that the end is a 7'x7' square, the middle angles back in toward the coop, and the area under the coop is a 6'x6' square. And I like to change the furniture in there seasonally... in the winter, straw bales, in the summer, logs... Keeps it interesting for them.

I love your rooster painting. Very graphic and perfect for a sign on a restaurant. I like his squinty-eyed expression... a total Roo 'tude. =)

It's totally off topic, but here's a few examples of my poultry and fowl work. =) I made them really tiny so they wouldn't be obnoxious in the grande scheme of this thread, but you can click to see them bigger if you're into it.

 
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, Gifa, your coop/run setup is beautiful! I'm going to have to try the wood pellets- how do they hold up? I really need to put a run up if only for the winter. It would be nice to give the chooks some "outside" time while the ground is covered with snow.

As for a non-stick coop floor, pond liner works well too and you can get it in big sheets. Also, you can do the deep litter method without fear of your plywood floor rotting over time.
 

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