Duck house questions

[anniele27]

I'm pretty sure that this has probably been answered somewhere but I am not having any luck trying to search the forums on my phone so here I go:

We are building our outdoor duck house this weekend so it'll be all ready when the ducks need to be moved in. We have a kinda drop off area right before our lake that is full of sand. We are building the home into the stairs going to the beach so it'll be 4 walls and very sturdy.

My question:

We have figured out a way to predator proof it for just about everything but snakes. Any advice? The house itself will be solid wood and built straight into the ground but for the run we wanted to use hardware cloth. What size is best for keeping snakes out? Will 1/2 in work?

Feel free to link me to another forum because it's very possible I have asked the same question as someone else!

Thank you!

 

[nange08]

This site says that for snakes hardware cloth should be 1/4 inch mesh.-- "The fence should be made of heavy galvanized hardware cloth, 36 inches wide with a 1/4-inch mesh. The lower edge should be buried six inches in the ground and the fence should be slanted outward from the bottom to the top at a 30-degree angle (Figure 3)." (http://www.rutherfordcounty.org/pets/pdfs/Controlling%20Snake%20Problems%20Around%20Homes.pdf)

 

[Going Quackers]

I would also mind the gauge as some 1/4in can be weaker than others.

 

[anniele27]

Thank you for the help!!!

 

[anniele27]

The hardware cloth was a great idea! Here's a picture of the finish project including the "run" attached

There is a large secure door that shuts with a latch and lock but you can't really see it In the picture

 

[anniele27]