Blocking wind/rain question/UPDATE used burlap/pictures post#29

[patandchickens]

Nice construction job there

May I suggest though that in order to *preserve* your nice construction job, before attaching anything solid to the upwind sides, you might oughta get some diagonal bracing in there, particularly in the direction of the prevailing winds. Otherwise it is very likely that your whole run assembly is going to start going all cattywhompus and becoming whatever you call the 3D version of a parallelogram (as opposed to the rectangular construction it is now).

It's real easy to do, just stoutly screw a few 2x4s on the major diagonals of all walls. Most important are diagonals going from high-upwindmost-corner to low-downwindmost-corner, but the opposite is desirable too if you have room. If you want to look at ways of doing this, I bet you could google "diagonal bracing stud walls" or something like that to see different methods. OTOH it doesn't make much difference so really anywhere you feel you have the room to screw in a long diagonal 2x4 will probably be quite sufficient

Good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[LaurelRidgeDreams]

Okay, the thought is to make a sandwich with the plastic in the middle. Hardware cloth is already on, plastic or a tarp in the middle, and something on the outside. Opinion is that chicken wire will stretch. Snow fencing, around here, is a heavy orange plastic fence. Is this what was suggested? I can very easily get plastic bailing twine.

I'm thinking the pen would withstand strong wind with the sides covered with plastic or a tarp. We used 4x4s and some 2x4s and they are two feet into the ground with gravel/dirt packed around them. I will talk with my husband about more bracing.

Do you think I should leave an area near the top of the sides without covering? This might give the wind somewhere to escape.

 

[elmo]

A more expensive but more durable solution might be those corrugated plastic panels. You could put them up in the winter and take them down in the spring.

Right now I have 6 mil plastic over one of my runs, and then on top of that, I've attached cheap reed fencing. It keeps the plastic from flapping in the wind and looks better, too.

 

[biddyboo]

We stack straw bales as wind baffles and they make a great insulation. They certainly are not pretty, are really messy as bits and pieces detach and blow around the chicken yard throughout the winter, but I've found no better wind barrier. Problem is, the hens love to peck at it and then scratch around with it, so you end up with an entertainment "center" for the chickens as well as insulation against snow, rain, and wind. ~G

 

[LaurelRidgeDreams]

Quote:
Where is reed fencing sold and what price is considered cheap? We have talked about corrugated plastic panels. The panels I could order are two feet wide and come in 8 or 12 ft. lengths. This would require adding a lot more wood to the sides. I was hoping not to have to spend so much $$$$

 

[Bear Foot Farm]

LaurelRidgeDreams

What kind of solid material?

I'd use metal or plastic panels.

http://www.fabral.com/dealers.php?state=NC

http://www.lowes.com/pd_77559-1115-..._prd_lis_ord_nbr|0||p_product_quantity_sold|1

Attach it with hex head screws, and it will be easy to take back down for reuse later​

 

[patandchickens]

Yup, the orange plastic mesh is what I mean.

Since you are only (if I understand right) covering two of the four sides of the run iwth plastic, no I do not think it would be much useful to leave the top open (and it might have the potential to lead to roof problems).

If you wanted to use the corrugated plastic panels I would strongly suggest investing in the polycarbonate ones (Suntuf, etc), NOT the cheaper pvc (Palruf etc). The pvc ones may be half the price but they will be WAY less than half the longevity, especially when being wind-stressed like that.

If you wanted ot use something solid-rigid on the N and W sides, frankly PLYWOOD would be the simplest, cheapest and smartest choice IMHO. Wouldn't have to be thick. I'd arrange it to BOLT on, not screw -- you cannot remove and replace screws more than a couple times without seriously compromising their ability to hold in the future, and without doing meaningful damage to the wood you're screwing into.

Good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[wyoDreamer]

Love your run.

I agree with Pat that the snow fence over the plastic would be a great idea along with the bracing in the corners. The key is to have something on the outside to make a sandwich with the plastic sheeting and prevent the plastic from flopping in the wind.

If you wanted something a little nicer, I think the 4'x8' sheets of vinyl lattice from Home Depot (or other of that type of store) would work. They are about $12 a sheet, which ain't real cheap but with a little care you could use it over and over. You can get them in wood also, which would allow you to paint them your faverate color if you wanted.

And if you installed them with bolts you could probably use them for years, just make sure to predrill the holes (number the panels so they go back in the same spot each year) and use a wide metal washer between the lattice panel and the head of the bolt to make it hold better and avoid cracking the vinyl. If you wanted a sun shade in the summer which would still allow air flow you could remove the plastic and just have the lattice.

I have plastic between two pieces of dog fence ( 2"x4" openings) and the wind has already ripped through the plastic, it did last for 4 months even though the fencing was not held tightly together and the plastic flopped a bit. But in my defence, I live in Wyoming and we have had 30 mph sustained winds with 50+ mph gusts since I put that together this fall. My idea was to try to extend my growing season and get more tomatoes, I am up at 7400 feet in elevation.

 

[LaurelRidgeDreams]

We are close to 4000ft altitude and have every bit if 30 to40 mph winds sustained and 60+ gusts in the winter. I think I might try using burlap to cut the wind. This is turning out to be more complicated than I thought it would be.

 

[elmo]

Quote:
You can get rolled reed fencing lots of places, like Home Depot and Lowes:

http://www.lowes.com/pd_231190-8743..._ord_nbr|0||p_product_quantity_sold|1&state=R

I paid about $20 for a 6 by 15 foot roll. It won't last forever, but I've had some up on the roof of my summer coop for about a year now and it's still in one piece, more or less (although it's bleached almost white by the sun).