Brainstorming clear run panels for winter....

[TerryH]

I've been brainstorming some sort of clear removable panels for our run to shelter the girls from wind, rain and snow for the winter months. Just planning on covering the north side. Still trying to figure out an elegant solution that will be easily removable and easily stored during the warmer months. My first thought was to build some wood frames that I could screw to the existing wood framing of the run and the door with clear tarps. I'd make individual panels for each section of the run and the door so they wouldn't take up a huge amount of space when they are not on the run. First issue with that is that clear tarps are stupid expensive. I don't really want to use regular clear plastic sheeting. Thinking it might not last very long and it's not really clear. Anyone have any suggestions?

Pics of the north side of the run for reference....

I'm going to move the plant hangers up to the fascia board so the upper rail will be free of obstructions for the panels to have a nice place to attach.

 

[Folly's place]

I used two layers of almost- clear plastic, attached to the outside framing with a few staples, and then 1"x3" boards screwed into the framing, up to about a foot from the roof, so there was plenty of ventilation, but protection from wind and weather. I do have wider roof overhangs, which also helped keep the snow out. It worked very well, and also kept the run area a bit warmer during the day. In spring, it all came down very easily. Mary

 

[TerryH]

Anyone have and experience with this greenhouse film? Seems like it might be something to consider. It's guaranteed for 4 years of continual usage and appears to be tougher and clearer than just buying film at Lowes or Home Depot.

http://www.growerssolution.com/PROD/4-year-6-mil-clear-greenhouse-film/G4Y6MGF

 

[TerryH]

I used two layers of almost- clear plastic, attached to the outside framing with a few staples, and then 1"x3" boards screwed into the framing, up to about a foot from the roof, so there was plenty of ventilation, but protection from wind and weather.  I do have wider roof overhangs, which also helped keep the snow out.  It worked very well, and also kept the run area a bit warmer during the day.  In spring, it all came down very easily.  Mary

Thanks Mary! I was not thinking think about leaving ventilation space. Did you use regular plastic sheeting like from Lowes etc...?

 

[Folly's place]

That's what I used, because we already had a roll of it. Looks like it will be fine this year too. Mary

 

[Zamanthia]

First let me say, your setup is BEAUTIFUL! You must have really happy ladies

We just put clear panels on part of the roof of our run, but I think they would work in your application too. You could (in theory) put them up in fall and take them back down in spring, but I do not know how durable they will be taking them up and down. The panels allow sunshine in and protect from rain in an area of our run which is what we were after. They came from Lowe's... it is like greenhouse panels but they are clear. They also sell a 12 ft sheet which I think was like $31.

 

[TerryH]

First let me say, your setup is BEAUTIFUL! You must have really happy ladies :cd We just put clear panels on part of the roof of our run, but I think they would work in your application too. You could (in theory) put them up in fall and take them back down in spring, but I do not know how durable they will be taking them up and down. The panels allow sunshine in and protect from rain in an area of our run which is what we were after. They came from Lowe's... it is like greenhouse panels but they are clear. They also sell a 12 ft sheet which I think was like $31.

Thanks! It was a labor of love. My wife has wanted chickens for a long time. I wanted to give her a nice place to keep them and make it as easy for her as possible. I like the idea, especially the visibility of the polycarb panels but I too am concerned about their longevity with installing and removing them. Would be a pretty significant investment to cover the 9x26 north side if they didn't stand up to installing and removing.

 

[NewChickmom2016]

We had the same question and ended up using the Tuftex panels. We covered only the bottom 2/3 of the sides- on 3 sides of the run. The rain will really need to be coming at quite an angle to get in the open area. So far the only issue I see is that the inside of the panels are REALLY dusty just 2 weeks into use! To do the 3 sides of our 10' by 5' run the total cost was $130. We think they will last for many seasons and have an out of the sun area to store them during the summer months.

 

[NewChickmom2016]

This is how our run looks with the clear panels.

 

[Pork Pie]

Thanks! It was a labor of love. My wife has wanted chickens for a long time. I wanted to give her a nice place to keep them and make it as easy for her as possible. I like the idea, especially the visibility of the polycarb panels but I too am concerned about their longevity with installing and removing them. Would be a pretty significant investment to cover the 9x26 north side if they didn't stand up to installing and removing.

I've just removed some similar panels. It can be done, but as the plastic panels age, they become increasingly weak. Using screws, or maybe attaching the panels with binding wire, should prolong the life of them (I used roofing nails

)