FLOOR FOR MY RUN. HOW MUCH ROOM DO I NEED

[rubyjane]

I;M IN THE PROSESS OF BUILDING A COOP. I HAVE AN OLD AREA MADE OF CEMENT.I THOUGHT I WOULD PUT THE COOP ON THE CEMENT. THE COOP IS 4X8. THE CEMENT WOULD BE THE RUN IT WOULD BE 12X18 FEET.I HAVE 8 CHICKENS.WOULD ANYONE KNOW IF THAT WOULD GIVE THEM ENOUGH ROOM I ALSO WONDERING IF MYBE A BAD IDEA TO USE CEMENT. THE CHICKENS WOULD BE FREE RANGING MOST OF THE DAY IN THE GRASSY YARD.HAS ANYONE EVER USED CEMENT FOR A CHICKEN RUN?

 

[rubyjane]

NO ONE ANYONE

 

[valentinebaby]

First, you may want to turn the CAPS off - some people (not me!) on this site HATE it! General rule of thumb around here is no less than 4 s.f. per bird in the coop and 10 in the run. So, you're 8 will be fine in there. I saw a post recently where someone who had concrete put some type of bedding to help soften the ground - just do a search for "concrete floor" and see what it pulls up. If I had concrete, I'd get a scrap of linoleum large enough to cover the floor to help in the ease of clean up time. Good luck!

 

[rubyjane]

oops sooo sorry

thank you so much for your help

 

[redhawkou812]

Concrete is ok.....to a point. If the finish on the concrete is rough, you'll have a hard time cleaning up. The linoleum is a good way to go in the coop. If it's smooth finished concrete, it's easy to wash down, but I'd recommmend using pressure treated lumber to reduce wood rot, mildew, etc. If they're going to spend much time in the run, I'd lay some bedding down. Val in correct on the sq ftg, too. Good luck & keep us posted!

 

[patandchickens]

There is nothing wrong with concrete indoors in the coop, just put sufficient bedding on top of it.

Concrete does not make a great run footing, however. If you MUST use it for some reason, you'll want retaining boards and 6"+ or so of sand or gravel or sand/gravel mix on it (you could use organic substances but they will tend to float off in the rain unless i'ts a very sheltered area and you have high retaining boards). Make sure the retaining boards are set so water can drain between them a little bit. But it would be better to have the run not be concrete.

Good luck, have fun,

Pat