Another coop flooring quandry...

[CheerfulHeart2]

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Circulation is a big plus when it is 115 out. . . and since it doesn't really get below freezing here, not a disadvantage in the winter. When they were babies, I did cover the floor with cardboard and a heavy layer pine shavings just to be safe. But that was only for the young birds. Now I know that at 4 weeks they have enough feathers to keep warm, so I would only do this until they started sleeping on the roosts.

 

[chookchick]

I've gotten the impression that the OP intends for this coop to be living quarters a good part of the time, but I may be wrong--is there going to be a run attached?

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That is the quandry I see--if the mesh is large enough for droppings to fall through, it is hard on their feet, and predators can reach up and grab their little toes (don't laugh, heard it here more than once...). If the droppings don't fall cleanly, it kind of defeats the purpose of having the mesh in the first place. The ventilation would be nice, but to me the cons far outweigh the pros, and ventilation can be provided in other, far more adjustable, ways.

 

[CheerfulHeart2]

Well, I love having the hardware cloth floor, even though the poops don't fall through, I can spray it out very easily.

 

[Eggnonymous]

Wow, this is definitely one of those topics that everyone seems to have a strong opinion about. Thanks for sharing them all!!

Also, thanks to Neil for the info on the plastic grid - is it fairly rigid? It looks from the pics that it might flex or warp a bit.

For those who weren't sure, our coop will just be for nights and when the hens want to get out of the weather. Our extremes tend to be in the hot/humid category, so ventilation is going to be important. I do see the point about comfort though. We are planning on getting standard size chickens - wyadottes, rocks, wellsummers and/or dominiques, but I know they won't be full grown for a while.

Anyway, thanks for all the "food for thought"!

 

[Peeplperson]

We originally put a hardware cloth floor in the coop, but now have a cheap remnant piece of vinyl flooring over it. It allows us to use the deep litter method, and when it's time to clean, we just lift out the flooring and pour it into the compost pile. The chickens have good footing with layers of DE and pine shavings, and we have no smell or parasites. Easy, efficient, and cheap.

 

[Turkeyraiser]

STAY AWAY FROM THE DURA-SLAT FLOORING!

We are in the poultry business and are long-time users of DURA-SLAT Poultry Breeder Slats.

We just received a shipment of ten of the 24" X 60" mats and are angered by the poor quality OF THESE "NEW" ITEMS.

We first used the DURA-SLAT poultry slats probably ten years ago. That original shipment has been used OUTDOORS in the harsh Wyoming weather constantly since. Not one failure has occurred in all that time. They wear like iron and even today, support 250-pound feeders with a little sag, but no breakage.

These new mats are a joke. Flimsy crap, thin materials and poor design. I note that DURA SLAT SAYS THE WARRANTY IS VOID IF THE MATS ARE USED OUTDOORS! WHAT????

I don't understand American businessmen. They design and manufacture a world-class product, then decide they can make more money, not by raising the price... but by cutting the quality.

Shame on DURA-SLAT for making such junk and shame on me for wasting money on it.