Haybale coop

[anniemary]

I got a book from the library on chicken coop designs and found a very interesting one using square hay bales. They stacked the hay bales like a giant square igloo. In a farm magazine, I saw a round bale drilled out and used for a dog house. The owner said the hay kept his dogs cool in the summer and warm in the winter.

My husband and I are thinking of doing the hay bale coop. Has anyone seen this or done this before? We are currently doing the deep litter method in a old shed by the house. We want to move the chickens away from the house because our front porch is full of poop!

We don't have the resources to build a new coop but we do have hay. However, I do like the deep litter method....

My question is, how would I do the floor? Would I do the deep litter method on the ground? If not the deep litter method, how do dirt floors work?

Any thoughts?

 

[3chimama]

I don't know about the floor but just wanted to let you know that they build houses with this method as well....

 

[oberhaslikid]

As far as the floor you could use straw on the dirt floor.Then you could also get some pallets and place on the floor and cover with plywood then build around that.I did this before to be honest the dirt floor is easier to clean.I pitch fork out the straw and lay down Grey lime and then replace the straw. When you need to clean again just clean down untill the floor is Black.I do this with my goat barn.

 

[joletabey]

I am curious as to how you keep the bugs out- plus my chickens ate the hay I put in the nest boxes, so I had to switch to shavings. What if your chickens ate their house?

 

[birdbrain5]

that is really interesting, i would love to see pics if you decide to do it! how big would you be able to make it? would you use hay bales for roof too? im trying to picture how to do it, unless you made it really narrow. hmmm
does it say if you have to replace it after a period of time bc the hay rots? the round bale idea is cool too, i wonder how they drill it out.

 

[Bossroo]

A few facts to consider... hay rots when it gets wet and/or in contact with soil. It redily decomposes. When it contains too much moisture, it will spontainiously combust. Hay is porous and perfect habitat for all kinds of mice, rats, bugs , fleas, mites, mould, mildew, etc. One will have to replace the structure frequently. Hay is expensive. So it will be the most expensive poultry habitat in the long run.

 

[kyleboy.123]

The haybale coops are used in places were they have really cold winters. They get straw bales stack them up and run a metal bar threw them so they wont fall over. Then when it snows the snow piles on top of it and acts like a insulator.

 

[drdoolittle]

This is a really cool idea! I, too, would love to see some pics.

 

[drdoolittle]

Here are some pics. I found online.

 

[midd2005]

sounds very interesting to me. when they build houses out of it, i know that stucco is involved, which helps with the moisture problem. i house sat once in a house with hay bale walls but you would have never known that they were there had they not told me.

i googled a little and found an article that may be of some interest to you:

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl...a=X&ei=GfpiTKSrAoL_8Abkrv2JCQ&ved=0CCsQ9QEwBA