Coop flooring question

[marialane]

Our small flock lives in the bottom of our barn. There are wood planks down covering dirt. Pine shavings on top. The problem is moisture along side the walls as this is a bank barn and there is run off from the adjacent hill side. My husband wants to remove the planks and put pine shavings atop the dirt. I thought maybe some type of PVC board down on the dirt. Other than move the birds, what would be the best solution?

 

[Hawkeye95]

could you put down sand or stone screenings on the dirt? I use stone screenings in my horse stalls to keep them dry. (they are rock chips- bigger than sand, but it lays down like sand) They are REALLY cheap and if you get a few tons, it goes a long way! My neighbor recently got more to fill in his horse stalls and around the edges of the barn where he was having water problems and to fill in some holes.. for a 17 ton load plus being hauled out- only cost him $180. He had so much, he is giving us the rest, even though we don't really need it right now. It is a great base material. But you need to tamp it down with a hand held tamper or do something to compact it and then you could lay your board back over it. (build your base up nice and high)

 

[teach1rusl]

If any dampness is coming through, I'd avoid shavings like the plague, because then you'll end up with mold/mildew. In any place that deals with water issues, I like pea gravel/sand, or just sand if it's good and coarse. Or move your birds.

 

[EggyErin]

You could always try diverting the run-off if that's possible. Or, depending on how big the area is, you could do the rock screenings then cover with rubber mats, like stall mats, in the least expensive thickness.

 

[marialane]

I'm am so grateful to all of you! I have never thought of stone or sand. What a great idea! Your right, pine shavings just hold the moisture. As far as run off, my husband was working on that as well. So again, I knew I could get good advice from seasoned chicken owners. I feel better already!

 

[105600]

Maybe you can try mixing "Stall Dry" for your flooring. It's used to keep horse stalls dry and it's okay to use with chickens.

 

[Ole rooster]

Hawkeye...........that stone screening your talking about I think down here we call it granite dust. It's the same stuff used to put down a base for installing pavers. Much much better than sand. I've see professional gardners use it to mix with the dirt and make unreal flower gardens. Never thought of using it as a moisture barrier though.

 

[Hawkeye95]

Quote:
Yeah, I have about a 6 inch base of the screenings (or granite dust as you call it) in my horse stalls. Works GREAT! All of my friends use it in their horse stalls, too. It compacts nicely and then it's easy to scoop out manure on top of it. But yeah, it works fabulous too keep water away. Which is actually why we did it to begin with- we were having water outside drain into our barn, and since we've built up the outside of the barn with the screenings along the walls to build a sloped barrier, and the stalls have it in there- we haven't had water issues in years and years. About every 5 years, we do have to get more of it, but we don't need very much now since the base stays put.