draft versus winter, um, breeze...

[patandchickens]

Burlap (the really loose-woven stuff they sell in rolls for wrapping your evergreens etc) makes a good windbreak and snow screen too. Lynne, I bet it would keep most of that coarse snow from coming in over the top of your boards, if that causes you problems.

I've had to go mostly to burlap on the runs on the upwind side of the building, because solid tarps were causing some structural endangerment when they caught strong winds, and am really pleasantly surprised at how well the burlap is performing so far, both in terms of radically decreasing wind velocity (despite how porous it is) and in terms of not flapping much at all.

Pat

 

[tenderkat]

Pat,

In regards to using burlap. I have a TON of burlap coffee sacks. I've never thought of using them in any way for the coop. I'll definitely use your idea for our run. They'll probably look pretty cool, kinda decorative. I'm wondering if I might be able to fasten them around my roost area at night to maintain a little bit more coziness for my birds? I'm sure they would provide enough ventilation, but just enough extra buffer against the cold. Do you think my girls might start nibbling on the burlap?

Katherine

 

[patandchickens]

Interesting idea about putting burlap around the roost at night. I am not sure it would do much good, but then OTOH I'm not sure it wouldn't either, esp if these are coffee-bag burlap rather than the real loose-weave stuff you use for shrubs and such. I don't think I'd place bets one way or the other. Try it and tell us what happens

(I would not put it anywhere by a heatlamp, btw - I don't think that's what your'e suggesting, but, just in case

)

My chickens/turkeys have not been pecking at the burlap, but I've only had it up for six weeks or so and poultry is perverse enough that I'm not going to pledge any guarantees

What worked best for me, for putting it up, was to tack each end to a wooden dowel or 1x2 using a staplegun in several places, then roll it snugly around the dowel or 1x2 a couple times and staplegun it down again, then deck-screw or cable-tie the dowels or 1x2s to each end of the run fence. That way the strain is distributed all over the burlap. Then I used some cable-ties here and there to hold the top, bottom, and some spots in the middle of the long span of burlap onto the fence, so it would not sag or bag.

For shorter spans, like putting vertically on the chainlink run door for the turkeys, I cut it about 2' too long and made slits in each end so as to create pairs of tabs that I could knot onto the door, pulling the burlap snug as I did it.

Probably there are better ways of doing it, just don't rely on staples alone (use battens or tabs or something to spread the load).

Good luck, have fun,

Pat