Best size for predator apron or skirt - newbie seeking advice

[aart]

Thank you everyone for the guidance. We settled on 2' apron which will be a couple of inches below grade. Now my latest worry is rust. I am using galvanized, vinyl coated 0.5" hardware cloth (16 gauge). Spending a lot on that. Won't it just rust away under the dirt? I see lots of people do predator aprons - has anyone lost them to rust?

The vinyl may slow rusting down...but yes they can rust out.
Just read a post about that.....biggest problem was they didn't have roof overhangs out far enough to keep rain off of it.
You can read the rest here:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...building-coops.1191089/page-489#post-22047423

 

[21hens-incharge]

There are heavier gauge wire like rabbit wire with 1/2" x 1" openings. It may or may not be less expensive than hardware cloth. It should last a lot longer being a heavier wire.

It just something that may be worth looking at.



For example yardgard 100 foot roll is $77 on Amazon with a 1/2x1/2 inch square grid.

Correction it is 1"x1" grid.

 

[aart]

For example yardgard 100 foot roll is $77 on Amazon with a 1/2x1/2 inch square grid.

19ga HC?
How wide?

 

[21hens-incharge]

It is a 2'x100' roll of 1x1 rabbit wire. It is 16 guage.

19ga HC?
How wide?

I am linking it to wayfair because I hate linking to amazon. Same product though.


https://www.wayfair.com/YARDGARD--1...MI9uP8hd7Y5gIVhYbACh3faAcpEAQYASABEgKIsvD_BwE


My bad it is 1" x1" grid not 1/2" x1/2".

 

[RoyalChick]

Thanks! I am predator-paranoid (not without reason as one of my local foxes had 7 kits right by the house last year) so I am doing the 1/2" x 1/2" hardware cloth skirt/apron (16 gauge, vinyl coated) and then on top of that I have a powder-coated cattle panel skirt. Both hardware cloth and cattle panel go up on the walls too. The whole arrangement is held together with hog rings. I am feeling good about this approach but worried it will all just fall apart with rust! I think I am going to paint any cut ends of wire and cattle panel to delay the rust. Maybe I will end up running a hot wire if I could figure out how to do that.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Personally this is another reason I have the HWC lying flat on the ground, rather than burying/partially burying, as I can keep an eye on it for maintenance purposes.

 

[RoyalChick]

Good thinking .. .. .. .. wish I had thought of that before getting this far! Some adaptation may be possible. Thanks for the advice.

 

[David61]

My cousin used 2"4" animal wire right on top of grass and hooked it to the coop wire. Used yard staples and covered it with the same wood shavings as the coup flour. Looks like a mulch apron.